Tim Galvin

Dance

At some point in our lives, while curled up on the couch with a gallon of cola and a pillowcase full of cheese and bacon balls, we have all had to endure the admonishing anti-piracy advertisement that precludes most of our innocent movie nights. Unfortunately this limp-wristed ‘war’ has now become a tactile invasion, but instead of the American world police invading a sandy country for its precious oil deposits, the 51^st airborne are now planning to cross over our digital borders into musical cyberspace with their itchy trigger fingers pointing directly at serial downloaders just like me and you. This movement, led by grey-haired dinosaurs that grew up snorting cocaine off of vinyl records in their drug dealer’s basement, serves to threaten the entire dance music blogosphere as we know it. Music is made to be shared, so don’t let the threat of being bummed by a horny biker for five years in a federal penitentiary ever dissuade you from that ultimate truth.

I could continue this rant for aeons but I understand that your time is precious, and that you probably came here to read about what the hell you are going to do with your weekends!

‘Wub Wub Wub’, here comes the dubstep train! City Kid Music knows what’s hot and they are back with a vengeance at The Clubhouse on Saturday February 11 with a line-up big enough to fill Kim Kardashian’s buttocks. Xkore (UK), J.Nitrous and F3tch – Atom will be representing on the night along with a special Hypnosis Recordings showcase.

Wanna be on TV without murdering someone or being on the wrong end of Shane Warne’s orange trouser snake? The Stafford Brothers have invited their film crew to join them at their upcoming show at Academy on Friday February 24 to film scenes for season two of their tongue in cheek reality TV programme. You could be the next Timmy Trumpet, except taller and dressed more appropriately.

If Transit Bar were a pillow it would have two cool sides; the lads have been bringing some absolute heaters to the small stage in the past few months and March is no exception. UK demi-god Hudson Mohawke (UK/Warp) and Ras-G (LA/Brainfeeder) are both served up piping hot on Thursday March 1 and the legendary DJ Krush (Japan) returns for another spellbinding turntable set on Thursday March 8.

I have some special releases for you guys this month so get your keyboards and credit cards ready. John Dahlback returns with one of his best tunes to date, the enormous guitar sampling Grunge; Wil Bailey, Hatiras and Nom De Strip prove that threesomes are always good with their tech banger Swagnum P.I.. Avicii teams up with Nicky Romero on the lovingly titled Fuck School; Fatboy Slim, Riva Starr and Beardy Man join forces on Get Naked and the Cassian/Shazam collaboration Country Club has spawned one of the best records of the year with their remix of Monkey Safari’s Fat Papa.

Dem Slackers

Sonic Death Fart

In an industry currently monopolised by 30-something half bearded millionaires, it is refreshing to see that the EDM torch is slowly being passed down to the next generation of producer/DJs. The new breed are raw and exciting, with potent rock star DNA replacing the formerly archetypal geek stereotype that usually accompanies a fresh faced electronic musician.

If dance music were to have a spiritual home - a figurative mecca for the blooding of future industry kings - it would be impossible to look past the fertile breeding ground of Holland, which just so happens to be home to one of the most exciting young stars in modern electro - Kevin van Veelen AKA DEM SLACKERS. 

The feisty teenager first appeared on our radars back in 2010 courtesy of an amazing remix of Sandro Silva & Anjiro Rijo's Fifty What; the track fittingly nicknamed ‘The Brown Noise’ due to its uniquely cruddy bassline.

“I still think it's so strange that track got so big. It's basically just a fart sound with some big live sounding drums. I never expected so many DJs would play it out!” he laughs.

Although he is only known to us as an electro producer, van Veelen honed his craft in other mediums before switching to digital composition.

“Music has always been the number one thing in my life,” he says. “I used to play the guitar and then switched to electronic music when I was about 12 or 13. I started out making hip-hop until one of my friends got a couple of his tracks signed to Dutch label Spinnin' Records. I was really interested in the whole dance thing and decided to give it a try… And the rest is history!” 

Barely 19 years old, the Dutchman has already chalked up a healthy catalogue of original material and remix work including recent re-works for Canberra’s own The Aston Shuffle (Start Again) and Peking Duk (Welcome), the latter recently finding its way onto the playlist for one of DJ Tiesto’s radio shows.

“I love the Peking Duk boys, they're doing big things,” he says. “I'm always really happy when Tiesto plays one of my songs on his show. He has been doing it for a while now so I have to try and not see it as something normal… Because it is pretty freaking awesome!”

With success comes notoriety and demand, and the new year looks to provide a lot of opportunity for Van Veelen to increase his profile around the world with some big announcements due soon.

“Beyonce's dad is managing this new girl group called From Above and I just did a remix for them. I did a mix for Tuff Em Up which will also be the label that drops my new single Schlingel soon. And I've got a bunch of other remixes in the works but I can't say anything about those yet. So head over to the Facebook page and stay informed!”

That Fifty What remix really does sound like an extended fart, I'm telling you. It's awesome. Anyway, Dem Slackers play at Trinity Bar on Friday February 3.

Dance

According to the Mayans we all have 338 days to live, but can we really take advice from a race that played social three on three with a severed head?

Would you put your money on a prophecy crudely chiselled into stone by a shoeless Ted Bundy wannabe wearing a necklace of human ears? Sure I’d be superstitious too if I walked around all day naked from the waist down surrounded by a jungle full of claws and fangs, but we’ve come a long way since the days of primitive irrationality. Although what if they are right, what if there is a minute chance that 2012 is the last year in which we draw breath? I, for one, am a one percenter; a bastion of the minute possibility that we are all headed for a fiery demise, and so I declare 2012 to be the most insane no holds barred party marathon we have ever endured. Strap yourselves in, it begins now.

Have you ever carried your shoes home from a woolshed? I’m not talking about some kind of bedevilling backwash to a regretful roll in the hay with a guy named ‘Bazza’ at a B&S ball, I’m referring to the potentially messy aftermath of attending the exciting Ultra Dimensions II event at The Yarralumla Woolshed on Saturday January 28. This 16+ rave features a hefty tuckerbag of hard style, hardcore and hard dance DJs including Weaver, Hardforze, Nomad, Loose Cannon, DJ Cassandra and Kiron, so what better way to annihilate your new year’s resolution to stay or get healthy than to make your way to this!

Two of my favourite things are sandwiches and breakbeat and in an overly hedonistic gesture, the lovely team at Trinity Bar have decided to combine both into one romping Sunday afternoon. The Picnic Jam parties are building steam in January with their biggest international guest to date. The Plump DJs have been announced on Sunday January 22 alongside an impressive array of local talent including Offtapia, Eldred, Peking Duk, Shaolin, Skinny, Dept of Defiance, Party by Jake DJs and Strangeways DJs. Get in early because this is going to be rather large!

After a monstrous evening with Calvin Harris, the Academy crew are keeping the big names rolling in for summer. Young Blood returns on Friday January 20 featuring Kid Kenobi’s project Two Fresh and Friday January 27 welcomes back the horniest man on the planet, Timmy Trumpet, for another massive main room set.

Festival season always begets a swag of amazing new EDM releases and this year is no exception. Local lads Peking Duk have released their long awaited solo single Welcome which features a stellar remix from Dutch bass head Dem Slackers, which has already been getting spins from Tiesto. Fatboy Slim’s classic Ya Mamma has been given a gargantuan rebirth by Moguai and The Aston Shuffle have waved their magic wand over my favourite track from last year: Joe Goddard – Gabriel.

Enjoy!

Yacht Rock

NAUTICAL KNOW-HOW

You know the feeling: you paint on a old pair of testicle-hugging jeans, slip on your stripy canvas shoes, sans socks, stretch an old wide mouth t-shirt over your self-styled bed hair, flank Che Guevara’s face with your floppy blue cardigan, wrap your neck in a defiantly obtuse kerchief and straddle your single speed bicycle for a trip down to an underground poetry slam. If this perfectly sums up your daily routine, then you have probably already been to a YACHT ROCK Christmas Eve party.
 
“Every Christmas Eve, Knightsbridge Penthouse chooses to pay tribute to this lifestyle by embracing the Yacht Rock culture,” says Minky Faber, co-promoter and Y-Rock connoisseur. “Our music, attire and menu matches. The champagne should be flowing along with Mai Tais and Piña Coladas, the pastel penguin polo shirts and oversized sunglasses should be in full force, the ladies looking effortlessly carefree in printed dresses and Palazzo Pants. There’re plenty of crisp linen shorts and boat shoes included.”
 
So what can one expect after parking one’s Chapelli cycle outside the big silver door at Braddon’s eclectic late night boudoir?
 
“Yacht Rock pays tribute to the ‘smooth’ rock from the late ‘70s to early ‘80s,” she says. “Essentially, this is the type of music that accompanies lazy summers spent cruising the shores of California on a yacht, sitting on the pier of some Florida Quays, or relaxing by Lake Burley Griffin at sunset with a picnic and a bevy of casually good looking friends.”
 
The music policy at Canberra’s most unexclusive exclusive holiday celebration reads like an AM playlist, best enjoyed with a pinch of retrospective esteem and a few teaspoons of healthy irony. “Plenty of Hall & Oates, Toto, Doobie Brothers, 10cc and Dr Hook,” says Minky. “Hints of Fleetwood Mac and Electric Light Orchestra. It involves every song you’d turn up to full roar on 1053 2CA and belt out in the car with the windows down.”
 
With many locals choosing to spend their Santa season outside of the nation’s capital, the Yacht Rock tradition is powered by a loyal army of friends and acquaintances who have chosen to make the yearly event their unofficial reunion party. “For many people, Christmas Eve means returning to Canberra from distant shores or across the rivers. We aim to provide a party for those who want to catch up with true locals,” she says.
 
The humble ‘champagne and conversation’ tradition of Yacht Rock is planned to continue for many years to come with the crew hinting that they may have a few more surprises up their nautical sleeves come next sailing season. “We want to surprise you in 2012 but always be that older, eclectic, and naughtier older sister to Parlour Wine Room,” she says, before bursting into song. “You walked in… to the party. Like you were walking on to a yacht… [something something something]… You’re so vain, you probably think this song is about you, don’t you.”
 
All Aboard!
 
Yacht Rock will take place at Knightsbridge Penthouse on Saturday December 24. Entry is free. From 3pm.

Dance

One minute you are sailing through the Bahamas with the lingerie football league champions and the next a piercing buzz fills the air. The intense shriek rattles around in your sinuses causing your eyes to snap open like a mousetrap and the harsh fist of reality delivers a swift uppercut to your frontal lobe. There are few things on this earth that can rival the awful shock of a post festival hangover when your soul is as muddy and decrepit as the dirty fluoro singlet in the corner of your wardrobe. There is only one cure: some call it ‘hair of the dog’, others ‘manning up’, but I like to refer to the long heralded art of social stamina as ‘doing what we do best’.

If you are in your teens, you probably think ‘vinyl’ is some kind of cheap floor covering, although to all of us who are a little north of childhood it conjures up images of fresh black records and dusty needles. The art of analogue music manipulation is a rarity in dance music these days, with most modern day artists preferring the comfort and convenience of digital gear. LLIK LLIK LLIK are bucking the trend with a fab Vinyl Only party on Friday December 9 at Transit Bar. The night features a swag of locals including Biggie, Anjay, SVRT, Radar, SamAKA, Pete Canell and Gabewanious. Get in and relive the glory days of house music!

After releasing one of my favourite local albums of the year, Karton are back at The Clubhouse on the very same night along with Crooked Sound System, Faux Real, Shifty Business and Bricksta. This is the first in a series of parties presented by City Kid Music and it will only set you back a meagre $10 on the door.

Trinity Bar, we need to talk. Every time I think I’m out you just pull me back in! December is meant to be a quiet month where you sit in front of the TV and save your pennies for New Year’s Eve but not if the Dickson dancehall has anything to say about it. Friday December 9 features house maestro Oliver$ (GER), Saturday December 10 brings Aeroplane (BEL) and Moonchild back to the fray, Saturday December 17 welcomes Sam La More and The Loops of Fury and before you can say “Christmas Day hangover!” Xmas eve features a double headline extravaganza with Ajax and The Stanton Warriors. Boys and girls, Santa does exist and he is eight feet tall and named Hugh Foster.

The New Year period always breeds exciting new club music and if I had to pick two new releases destined for anthem status, it would definitely be this duo; the first is Avicii’s monstrous tune Fade Into Darkness and the second is Fedde Le Grand’s amazing remix of the latest Coldplay single Paradise. Have fun, stay safe and a very merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all you crazy party people. See you all in 2012!

Spicks and Speck-tacular Finale

A SPECK-TACULAR RUN

Adam Hills is a well-oiled machine; the Australian comedian possesses an infallibly polished and likeable demeanour that transcends even the most hardened generational acumen. His resume is bursting with international achievements, though the most prominent feather in Hill’s cap would still be his tenure as host of the ABC darling SPICKS AND SPECKS, which has been a suitable seven year long vehicle for his charmingly universal appeal. The biggest weapon in Spicks’ arsenal, the one quality which enabled it to succeed against its more shiny rivals for all 277 episodes, was definitely its celestial allure. During its lifetime, the program was watched religiously by an eclectic spectrum of fans; hipsters streamed it on their iPads, retirees stayed up past their bedtime to catch every new episode and it finally stopped families from fighting over the remote after dinnertime. “I think part of what really worked with the show was that we were doing things a little differently to anyone else and one of those things was to never outstay our welcome and to call it a day when we thought we had done as well as we could do,” says Hills.

For the benefit of those of you who have spent their last few hundred Wednesday nights hidden under a rock, it was announced this year that the seventh season would be their last, a revelation that Hills is only just beginning to come to terms with himself. “This is the first time I have started doing interviews for the end of Spicks and Specks and hearing it spoken about in the past tense is the first time that it’s hit me that it is kind of over!” he says, adding almost apologetically “it’s like ‘there used to be this TV show’ and it’s like ‘oh my god, this is how they will be talking about it in years to come!’”

The public reaction to the end of the show has been quite a sombre one, while some fans have taken to their Twitter page applauding the show’s success, most are confused by the decision and find solace in publicly mourning its loss. “People have been really devastated and have said as much, but luckily the fact that we weren’t axed was a good thing,” says Hills. “The fact that it was Alan, Myf and I that made the decision, I think people understand that and they realise that seven years is a really good run. We always did the show for the right reasons and they trust that we are finishing it up for the right reasons.”

The success of the show almost came as a surprise to Hills and co-hosts Alan Brough and Myf Warhurst, all three signing on with only a generic idea of what to expect from each other. “Alan and I knew each other from comedy festivals but Myf and I had never met and we had to spend a few nights on the phone to get to know each other before episode one.”

Even though Hills ensures me he “has always loved music”, he was brought into the production as a kind of comic foil for musical brainiacs and competing team captains Brough and Warhurst. The format of the show was largely based around musical trivia although as it developed it became more of a half hour improv comedy performance loosely garnished with abstract facts, all masquerading as a light-hearted competition between the two teams.

“Myf and Alan had the real music knowledge and the real love of music and I was a bit of a layman sitting in the middle and I was there to basically translate their knowledge for the people at home,” he says. “I think that’s why it worked; if the person hosting the show had a great knowledge of music it would have all seemed a bit too insular but because I was the dumb guy in the middle going ‘I don’t know who you are talking about’, it added something else. People always assumed I knew a lot about music but I was just reading questions that were written for me!” laughs Hills.

Such an iconic show deserves a suitably prodigious send off and the troublesome threesome are preparing to get back on the road to say goodbye to their Australian fans in the form of ‘The Finale’, an epic live show which Hills insists will provide quite an interesting challenge.

“It’s one thing to host a TV show but to be on stage in front of 2,000 people night after night when it’s just the three of you, you really have to have each other’s backs,” says Hills. “Fortunately on the last tour we had a band with us, who we will have again this time around, the drummer of which is 26 and he drums with Tex Perkins. Alan and Myf and I forgot that we are not 26 nor are we drummers in a rock band when we tried to keep up with him. The scariest day of the tour was when we realised that we could pull off the show with a hangover.”

As Hills prepares to sign off, one burning question remains. Will the death of Spicks and Specks turn their hungry throng of fans onto competing Australian musical quiz show RocKwiz?

“It’s weird, we are doing competing tours – I think they are on tour at the same time as us so there might be some kind of West Side Story standoff in the middle of an Australian town somewhere!” he laughs.

Farewell Adam, Alan and Myf live at the Spicks and Speck-tacular Finale at The Royal Theatre on Saturday-Monday December 10-12. Tickets are $99 + bf and are available through Ticketek.

Straight To You: triple j’s Tribute to Nick Cave

The Royal Theatre
Wednesday November 16

Nick Cave was surely born in the wrong era. His raw and emotive lyrics paint a lucid mental portrait torn from the memories of a ragged bush balladeer, a lonesome poet, a complex man whose only possessions are a pen and a message. It would be inaccurate to say that Cave merely helped shape the local music industry; he also succeeded in perpetuating its history, reviving the dusty soul of Australian folk poetry.

Taking on the immensely diverse and unique back catalogue of Nick Cave would surely be no easy task and so it appeared that the loosely assembled cast of frontmen and women appearing onstage at tonight’s Straight To You tribute show would at the very least have their task cut out for them.

As triple j’s Dom Alessio strode out on stage to introduce the show, it was disappointingly apparent that the Canberra event was far from sold out. The Royal Theatre is quite an intimidating venue and there was a noticeable gap between the sauced up revellers who had chosen to watch the performance standing up in front of the stage and the more amenable fans who decided to take it all in from the bleachers.

All was forgotten as the first wave of cheers erupted to welcome the recognisable beard of Kram (Spiderbait) on stage to open the show. The backdrop appeared ominously blood red as he kicked things off with a brooding rendition of Red Right Hand. The unlikely duo of awkward electro pop act Muscles and indie songstress Bertie Blackman followed up with a pounding version of Do You Love Me? before Muscles took to the electric piano for an impressively restrained and mature solo rendition of Let Love In.

Sparkadia frontman Alex Burnett was introduced on stage next, belting out an overly affected version of Shiver, a tune most will probably recognise from the early ‘90s cover released by The Screaming Jets. The “extremely sexy” Johnny Mackay (Children Collide) was introduced next to a rapturous cheer and managed to ‘collide’ with everything onstage during his over enthusiastic rendition of Nick The Stripper. Mackay then backed up with a much more melancholic rendition of People Ain’t No Good and made way for the next act. The dapper Jake Stone (Bluejuice) and Urthboy (The Herd) were up next and really got the crowd on their feet with a duo of amazing dub and hip-hop re-imaginings before Kram returned with Dan Sultan to finish off the first part of the show with a rocking version of the classic track Deanna.

The first half of the show was fairly subdued in comparison to the second act, where the performance took on a kind of rock opera feel. Urthboy combined with the lusciously attired Lanie Lane and rock goddess Abbe May for an entertainingly theatrical version of Stagger Lee, the incredible Lisa Mitchell slow danced her way through a jaw-droppingly beautiful version of Into My Arms and the enigmatic mistress of the dark Adalita (Magic Dirt) floated on stage to make her presence felt with another Cave classic before returning the spotlight to the boys once again.

To finish off the epic night, Kram returned for a solo rendition of Henry Lee before all of the artists combined for a massive collaborative effort on the fittingly upbeat Get Ready For Love. Considering the enormity of the task and the fact that this show was their first performance together, the ensemble managed to avoid the potential ‘live karaoke’ feel and deliver a fitting tribute to the dark prince of Australian rock music.

Dance

Coming to you live from festival season, this edition is brought to you by short shorts, steroids and 15 dollar beers. Maybe you have already caught ‘festival-itis’, but how can you be sure? Leading medical specialists (not including Convict, er, Conrad Murray) state that symptoms may include a desire to woop loudly and sporadically, throwing your hands in the air ‘like you just don’t care’, not remembering the last time you ate and feeling a special connection with sunglasses that are much too big for your face.

Canberra could be considered a possible ‘ground zero’ for the outbreak of festival-itis, with tens of thousands of young infected party-goers fist pumping their way into cavernous stadiums and open fields, amassing into a throbbing swarm of flailing limbs and wobbly jawlines in celebration of the sun finally poking through the clouds. Two very different sonic leviathans let out their mighty roar in the coming weeks, namely the Foreshore Summer Music Festival and the Summer Rhythm Festival.
For those of you who have been stuck in an Austrian man’s basement for the past five years, Foreshore, taking place this Saturday November 26, is a stoic institution in the local scene. The festival is a full throttle 12 hour outdoor jubilee involving the hottest local, interstate and international artists on the planet. This year’s festival has taken, some might say controversially, a mature step forward by adding a raft of popular indie artists to the usually DJ-heavy line-up, including Boy & Bear, Gotye, Gypsy & The Cat and Architecture in Helsinki. Whatever your taste, the day is sure to be a killer experience if last year is anything to go by.

The Summer Rhythm Festival, taking place over three days in the surrounding bushland of Goolabri Resort from Friday-Sunday December 9-11, is still in its infancy although this year’s second effort is also impressively diverse. The line-up includes Hook N Sling, Van She Tech, Goodwill, Cassian, Shazam, Hermitude, The Bird and Salmonella Dub and a long list of local and interstate guests. A three day camping and entry pass will only set you back around $95 (plus bf) if you book prior to the event through the website. See you there!

As easy as it is to forget about nightclubs in summer, Academy just keep reeling us back in with enormous parties in December and January. The two biggest shows that the Alliance mob have just announced are UK scallywag and personal favourite Kissy Sellout on Friday December 16 and superstar Calvin Harris on Friday January 6. I’m advised that pre-sale tickets have sold out for Mr Harris so you will have to get there very early on the night if you want to score a coveted ticket on the door to catch the tall man up close and personal.

Well I’ve just gone and blabbered on too much this edition and there is no time to talk about any new releases – promise I’ll make up for it next time. See you in the mosh!

Armin Van Buuren

TRANCE WITH ME

Genuine superstars are usually known by a lone autonym. The level of success required to uncouple your surname like an empty trailer and drive away with only a few lazy syllables is incredibly hard to achieve; just ask Bono, Madonna or Jesus. In the same way rock, pop and religious fiction fans embrace those celebrities with inconceivable levels of worship, fans of trance music also have their own deity in ‘Armin’, who initially seems a little hesitant to acknowledge his status.

“I am not worthy!” he says shyly. “I am a DJ, I play other people’s music and I get paid for it so if you think about it too long it’s actually ridiculous. Of course I have had success with my records and with my shows and so on and so forth but you should not forget that I work with a great team of people around me.”

Alongside countrymen DJ Tiesto and Ferry Corsten, ARMIN VAN BUUREN has been the driving force behind the trance genre since he began broadcasting his solo radio show A State of Trance in 2001. The weekly broadcast is predicted to have over 30 million listeners across 40 countries all over the world, and just in case you were wondering, in over ten years and 500 shows he has never missed one.

“We are actually making plans for the 550th show celebrations right now! It is a lot of work but I get so much back from it you know, I think everything I do all comes together in my radio show. It’s really exciting and it really keeps me on my toes which is really good, I think,” says Armin. “I have to say that I didn’t start it to become a commercial success; when I started I just wanted to hear a radio show that I would enjoy as a 17-year-old. It would be somewhere that you could hear all the latest in trance and progressive and I can honestly with my hand on my heart say that this is still the case today.”

For the latter part of the last decade, Van Buuren has held down top spot in DJ Mag’s coveted Top 100 DJ poll, the absolute industry zenith for any top class dance music professional. In 2011, he was famously expunged from the throne by floppy haired Frenchman David Guetta, a final wake up call for all of those who refused to acknowledge the commercial baton change in modern day dance music.

“Honestly I have spoken to a lot of promoters who really don’t care about the result of the poll but on the other hand it is a list that matters and it is a list that people look up to,” says Armin. “In a way it is comparing apples to oranges. Like as much as I respect Guetta, I mean how can you compare his music to mine? It’s completely different.”

The endless energy that fuels Van Buuren’s popularity has always flowed from his uncompromising live shows. Each is a forceful, almost obstinate extravaganza designed with only two things in mind: to educate and to entertain. The most personally rewarding achievement for him so far has been the Armin Only tour. This unique event involved Van Buuren performing an inhumanly long nine hour set from the beginning of the night until the very end, sometimes without a toilet break.

“I don’t usually go,” he laughs. “There is a little moment near the opening where I can go underneath the stage and there is a toilet for me there but I only have a few minutes,” says Armin. “I love it though, you have complete control over the night. I see it like Christmas dinner! Don’t get me wrong, sometimes I love to go to McDonalds or Burger King for a hamburger but playing a full nine hour set is like the best experience you can have.”

Van Buuren is noticeably excited about returning to Australia in November, packing a completely new show to unveil during his headline slot at Foreshore Summer Music Festival.

“I’m not the type of DJ who prepares my set in advance so I’m not sure exactly beforehand what I’m going to play but I could play a lot of things from my new CD. I could even play all my own tracks, a completely new set [or] a completely instrumental set; it really depends on the people,” he says. “Regardless though I can guarantee that we will deliver the best show we possibly can!”

The most impressive thing about the man behind the dazzling lights and enormous crowds is that he is surprisingly devoid of ego. Van Buuren is a grounded, intelligent and polite family man who is currently juggling his burgeoning career with his most recent ‘release’, his four month old daughter Fenna.

“Of course there is a little bit of adjusting,” he says. “It’s a little bit yin and yang you know? I think you can only excel in what you do if you have a stable thing at home. This is such a crazy life that I lead and I mean it is completely unreal! To come home to a family and someone that loves you unconditionally even though a gig went wrong or something technically went wrong but they still love you is such an important foundation for me.”

See Armin Van Buuren live at the Foreshore Music Festival in the Parliamentary Triangle on Saturday November 26. Tickets cost $119.95 + bf and are available through Moshtix.

Dance

In the clubbing world, the term ‘refurb’ is usually an audaciously fancy way of saying ‘rehab’. A ‘refurb’ is most commonly announced under the guise that wholesale aesthetic improvements are being made. Hearing the news, punters lick their lips at the prospect of an entirely new clubbing experience, although the short hiatus is often no more than a well overdue detox for the bar staff and DJs while the clammy internals receive a well overdue spit and polish. As most northsiders will know, Trinity Bar recently underwent a similar process, although the self-imposed shutdown has transformed the venue from a classy bar into an impressively dazzling club. With massive names appearing weekly and most parties free before 10pm, it’s well worth heading in to check out the exciting new look of Canberra’s favourite night spot.

Ask your Mum what psy-trance is. Go on, ask her. It’s a well known fact that nine Mums out of ten won’t know what the blazers you are on about because, let’s face it, it’s not exactly mainstream music. The genre lives in abandoned warehouses, creepy forests and glow in the dark bedrooms and rarely clambers out of its isolated hideaways – until now. The lovely doofers at Connekt are bringing all the bells and whistles of their acclaimed private parties to the Uni Pub on Friday November 18, featuring a host of local DJs including Bizzle, Bjorn Borg, Incongruous, Somnium, Loose Cannon, Stoj, Disect, Alamout and Tarik. Two things to remember: wear something ‘glowy’ and no, they won’t play David Guetta.

If bad ass bass music is more your cup of brown liquor, look no further than Mercury Bar on the very same night. The lads at Sub Bass are back with another round of mind-vibrating future tech on Friday November 18 with a list of evil body rockers leading the charge including Crooked Sound System, Buick, Tidy and Delux, Dred, Faux Real and Ced Nada.

The Canberra scene is all about contrast really, so if fluoro pants and jungle moshing don’t float your boat, there is a big sparkly cave called Academy just waiting to serve you the finest in top shelf house music right around the corner. The parties are pumping out faster than Long Island Iced Teas and Friday November 11 is headlined by young stars Light Year and Emoh Instead. Saturday November 12 brings the ageless wunderkind Ashley Feraude back to the main stage and Saturday November 26 has just been announced as the official Foreshore after party. They have a word for those nights people – messy.

Just before I go, get these new tracks into your eardrums quick-smart. What So Not have just released one of the coolest EPs of the year in 7 Dollar Bill, Yolanda Be Cool are back with a vengeance with the deliciously bouncy Le Bump and Nu:Tone have just released one of the best remixes I have heard in the last five years with their re-work of Emeli Sande – Heaven.

Chris Cornell

“You’ve gone soft Chris!” slurred an overzealous bogan from the left-hand side of the theatre. Cornell strummed his pristine acoustic axe, grinned from behind a Jesus-like beard and flicked aside his long wavy rock ‘n’ roll helmet, retorting coolly “Yeah, I guess I have.”
 
30 minutes earlier…
 
The rear laneway of the Canberra Theatre was blocked by a large white semi, the first hint that tonight’s show, although billed as a ‘stripped back’ experience, would provide large scale professionalism and production to the nth degree. The lobby was bustling with darkly clothed rock fans; people were jostling for a spot at the bar, sandwiched around small round tables and struggling to hold onto their quota of empty beer bottles. Then the moment finally came: “Ladies and gentlemen, Chris Cornell will be on stage in five minutes.” Within seconds the horde of sauced up fanatics had dispersed into the main room, leaving behind a wake of empty Pringles tins and enough hastily discarded glassware to fill a small in-ground pool.
 
Inside the red belly of the theatre the stage was flanked by six imposing guitars and a single turntable. Soon the murmurs of the crowd erupted into a deafening roar welcoming Cornell on stage. As fans all know, his recent ascent (or descent, depending on your opinion) into hardcore Christianity has transformed him physically and tonight his classic gothic warrior look has given way to khaki slacks and a humble white t-shirt. Appearances aside, as soon as he unleashed the trademark gravelly monster from the depths of his diaphragm, the entire room sat captivated in awe.
 
A theatre is a dangerous place for a rock performance, for as everyone knows, as soon as a boozy bogan is placed in some kind of confined public seating arrangement their inner monologue is set to ‘off’ and every small thought they have is vomited out in the most Australian of twangs. “Play Seeewn-gaaarden!” yells one, taking advantage of the very first moment of silence; his pissy plea starting a chain reaction, an almighty Mexican sound-wave of ill-timed requests. “Spoon Meeeen!”, “Black Hole Sun!!!” and so on. Luckily Cornell was a consummate professional, holding himself on stage like a seasoned stand up, replying to each increasingly embarrassing remark with a smile and a surprisingly witty response.
 
Cornell moved through a bunch of left field solo tracks, a couple of Audioslave anthems and even a Temple of The Dog classic, but as the loudmouth interactive audience had made clear, it was the Soundgarden back catalogue that everyone was baying for. It was here that Cornell really delivered, belting out hits like Black Hole Sun and Fell On Black Days; his mind-blowing vocal range embraced by unbelievably precise guitar work. The break between songs summoned rapturous applause – sometimes he changed guitar, others he grabbed a vinyl record, slapped it on the lone turntable and played alongside.
 
After almost two hours, the man declared that the show was over and disappeared offstage to an emotional thunderclap of hands and voices. Predictably, he returned soon after for a short encore, treating the crowd to a surprising set of re-worked classics including Billy Jean and Imagine.
 
Tonight proved that Chris Cornell is still a rock god. You can take away the drums, you can take away the bass – hell, take the whole damn band if you want to – but the Seattle-bred legend of American grunge loses nothing on his own. For he is the voice of a genre, a true reminder of the best and most influential generation of modern rock music.

Dance

There is a distinct difference between hip-hop and dance music DJ competitions. Hip-hop comps are all about performing the wildest tricks, cutting up crazy samples and scratching harder than Charlie Sheen after a seven day crack binge. Dance music DJ comps are more focussed on actually getting people to dance by playing the right records well, keeping your mixes tight and jumping around like Tom Cruise on a sofa. Friday November 4 plays host to Canberra’s premier DJ competition, the Foreshore Sound Search finals, where Pedro, The Surge, Tom & James and Less Than Three will battle it out on the main stage at Academy for a coveted slot at the festival in November. One of the most important aspects the judges will be looking for is crowd reaction, so if you want to support local talent, get on down and get loud!

Most of you triple j listeners will have already heard the new Aston Shuffle single Won’t Get Lost, a massive new indie dance release for the Canberra duo. It’s been a long wait for fresh Shuffle material but this new track signals the start of a wave of new Aston releases soon to hit your eardrums as the guys finally get back in the studio after almost a year on the road. Stay tuned.
The boys will also be back in the capital to headline the scaled back Stonefest Rock On event this Saturday October 29 at the UC Refectory. Much has been said about the last minute changes to the event, with most of the main acts being cancelled due to poor ticket sales. This statement is a sad reality in an age of festival overkill where there are simply too many expensive events and not enough punters to go around. Personally, I think there are positives in reverting back to the old format, mainly that party goers get a more intimate show with The Aston Shuffle, Illy, Tonite Only, Flight Facilities, Sampology (AV/DJ set), Diafrix, The Hump Day Project and Dept. of Defiance all appearing up close and personal. Why not gather a measly $31 and get along and revive the old beast so that next year can be even better!

Academy is fist pumping all the way through November with another strong list of slick muscley events designed to get the Patron flowing through your veiny forearms. At the top of the pile is an epic Jersey Shore-themed foam party on Friday November 18, so if you have been waiting your whole life to unleash your inner Guido or Guidette, now is your chance to strap on your sweatband, slick back your spiky hair and pump your way through a wall of bubbles… like a champ.

It’s new release time! Album-wise, Wolfgang Gartner has finally released Weekend in America, a massive electro monster that’s been worth the wait. Alesso has just dropped my pick for tune of the year with his remix of Devolution – Good Love and Eric Prydz is back with another classic progressive track 2Night. Enjoy!

Dance

Technology can be evil; you’ve all seen the Terminator series right? It’s only a matter of time before your meek two-slice toaster becomes self aware and commits itself to a soulless rampage through your neighborhood exterminating all the ‘Connors’. Maybe that’s a tad extreme in the context of my actual dance music related point, which begs the question, is technology diluting the dance scene?

We are in an age where anyone can become a ‘DJ’ with only a laptop, a copy of Traktor or Serato and a Midi controller. To all the serious budding Disc Jockeys out there I say instead of reading the a software manual and beefing up your Beatport cart with top 20 hits, start by learning the basics like increasing your knowledge of music, manual beat matching and individualising your style rather than becoming just another young techno geek prodding illuminated buttons at syncopated intervals.

If you really want to experience music manipulation done the way it should be, head down to Academy in October and check out some of the major events taking place in the underground cave. Friday October 7 marks the return of the Young Blood event, this time around headlined by Sydney party starters Spenda C, Doctor Werewolf and the Bounce Crew DJs. Don’t forget your oversized t-shirts and flat brimmed novelty caps on Friday October 14 as atomic hipsters Minx and Tenzin belt out the latest hits at Club Electro, while fans of the massively popular mixed CD series will not want to miss Chris Fraser’s return to the main room on Friday October 28 for the Wild Summer 2012 Australian Tour.

Now that Parklife has passed us by, it is fair to say that festival season is in full swing! That means that it is prime time for massive summer music releases so it’s only fair to provide you with a suitcase full of monstrous new anthems for October! The cheeky lads from the Swedish House Mafia have returned with an epic peak time remix of Coldplay, Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike revamp an old trance classic with Madagascar, dubstep still reigns supreme with Nero’s tweak of Sebastian, CTFO and Mickey Slim returns to the fray with another cranking original I’m a Freak.

Lastly, a snippet of exciting news that has just landed on my desk, I have an extremely large and immovable soft spot for early ‘noughties’ progressive house music and the king of that particular golden era was without doubt Australia’s very own Luke Chable. After years of dabbling in other genres, the Melbournian is back to doing what he does best, dopamine-inducing prog anthems. The first two new tracks have been leaked online and are stellar collaborations with Shiloh and Steve May respectively, keep an eye out for the imminent release of Thank Your Mother For The Rabbits and Rokit in the coming weeks.

Sinden

With every iconic achievement comes the endless bugbear of the stereotype. Artists and inventors can spend their whole career distancing themselves from their most famous accomplishment; just ask Colonel Sanders, who in our minds will always be depicted with a bucket of tasty chicken parts, or David Hasselhoff who will for the rest of his life be pictured running in slow motion down a nameless beach in red budgie smugglers. Another artist who is a member of this particular club is SINDEN, who was part of the group of UK producers who gave birth to the now defunct genre of fidget house music.

“Of course a blessing!” He says, from his hotel room in LA. “It was genuinely really exciting back at the beginning because it was a sound we created and developed; it shook dance music up for the best! It was just a shame that it was copied by many and became derivative.”

Sinden is part of an elite trio of UK producers, including Herve and Switch, who as a forward-thinking unit keep pushing the boundaries of bass, always searching for the freshest new sound to reignite international club music.

“At the moment I'm excited about house and techno still and where bass coexists, just stuff that is fun for the club, edgy still, but funky,” says Sinden. “I'm listening to a lot of rap as well.”

Sinden’s biggest release to date is the aptly named Mega Mega Mega, an amazingly leftfield album co-produced with long time collaborator the Count of Monte Cristal. The long player is a blistering collection of chewy club records and rattling new age calypso that provided a proper challenge for both artists.

“We worked our arses off on it,” he says “There was so much material that we couldn't even run with, songs with artists we couldn’t even clear. It makes you despondent because you think you're onto something cool, but then some label or artist politics play a part, and you have to go back to the beginning.”

Aside from the exasperation of a full length album release, Sinden has managed to remain vigilant in the studio, racking up an incredibly diverse body of work in the past few months including a sizzling release on US label Mad Decent and some knob twiddling for international dancehall artists like Natalie Storm.

“I’m doing some tracks with a few Jamaican artists like Natalie for a future solo release. Switch and myself have just started a few house tracks that we need to just finish off. [I have] a few remixes here and there too, there’re a lot of tracks in the pipeline!”

With such a multifaceted approach to music, no two Sinden sets are ever the same, so what can Australian audiences expect from his upcoming shows?

“Really stuff that hits the party full impact, dancefloor business,” he says. “Aussie audiences give it all, which I love; they just get wild and get loose. The vibe in the club is always so sweaty and jamming!”

Sinden is hitting up Trinity Bar on Saturday October 15, with Ajax, Offtapia, Peking Duk, Eldred, Shaolin, Cheese, Sammy Sounds Like and Dave Norgate! Entry is $20 on the door.

Dance

In a world filled with empty Facebook event invites from people you hardly know, piles of dusty flyers clogging the entry way to chic clothing stores and endless radio ads voiced by over enthusiastic marketing drones, it’s pleasing to see that some of our local music events can survive on little more than word of mouth and a few vague statements punched into a friend’s keyboard.
Local drum ‘n’ bass promotional team TJS don't need to advertise, the bassbin brigade are back with a seductively elusive ‘secret’ party aimed at true jungle souljahs. Reeeewind is being held on Saturday October 8 at an as yet unnamed location and features some of the best new and old names in the underground scene including Paul Blackout, PaPaf & Arkation, Centaspike, Bec Paton, Dred, Jaycee, Para, Miss Universe, Fourthstate, MGO, Ced Nada, Killosis and MC Darkwing. Make sure to look out for skywriting, ask that guy in Civic that always requests change or simply keep your eyes peeled online for more information about the venue closer to the event.

It’s a well-known fact that Canberra breeds amazing dance music talent. Our fair city can lay claim to a swag of big hitting industry folk including The Aston Shuffle, Chris Fraser and Jaytech to name but a few. To celebrate the next generation of late nightclub kings, a trio of young producers have banded together to release the Nostalgia EP, a collection of deep tech and dubstep featuring contributions from young upstarts Princi, Bricksta and BC Schtang (Ben Colin and Schtang). The Clubhouse is featuring an exclusive launch of the mini album on Friday September 30 featuring all three producers alongside local support act Nick Riveria. Entry is a paltry $10, so get along and support our future electronic stars!

As you may have read in this issue, UK’s ‘co creator of Fidget’ Sinden is returning to Canberra for an exclusive intimate show at Trinity Bar on Saturday October 15. This special event is presented by InTheMix and celebrates Sinden’s appearance at the Parklife festival, so if you missed out on tickets to the Sydney boob and beef fest then this is just the next best thing, isn't it?

It’s been a huge month for new music in clubland and I have a swag of new tunes to share with you this edition. Joe Goddard has come out of the woodwork with his amazing crossover hit Gabriel, a haunting personal favorite which contains some of the best female vocals I have heard since Iio’s Rapture. One of the biggest tunes in the Swedish house scene, Deniz Koyu’s Tung has finally made its way onto Australian dancefloors, Moby has returned with a brilliant new single Lie Down In Darkness which has been released with a massive Bassjackers remix, Dr Kucho has waved his magic wand over house classic Hale Bopp and Alesso has cranked things up with his new big room record Nillionaire.

Kimbra

HEART AND OLD SOUL

Kimbra Johnson would be just as comfortable bathed in the smoky ambience of an old school Chicago jazz lounge as she is bouncing around the main stage at a modern day music festival. The effervescent 21-year-old pop/soul performer is a nonpareil example of an ‘old soul’. Her unique style draws parallels with “a lot of funk and soul and probably even rock elements” which she has honed since she was a young girl growing up in Hamilton. “Even watching little home videos I can see that I’m already singing songs,” she says. “I’m sure artists were the same where they had little paint brushes in their hands when they were toddlers you know, just because it was the natural way to express yourself.”

There is something lucidly antiquarian about Kimbra’s style, a quality which Australian label manager Mark Richardson discovered while he was perusing Myspace back in 2007.

“[He] saw some of my stuff and ended up flying over and offering me this opportunity to record an album, so it was kind of just too good to pass up and even though I was young, my parents were really supportive of it because they knew I was pretty pumped to do it!” she says. Her collaboration with Richardson has simmered in the studio for almost four years, culminating in the imminent release of her debut album Vows, a surprisingly diverse and mature collection of pop, soul and jazz.

“I don't think it was really a conscious thing; it’s not like I set out like ‘I’m going to tackle every genre on this album’. I just listen to a really varied amount of music and different styles of production so that’s just naturally what happened,” says Kimbra. “Where there is a certain emotion like the ballad, Withdraw, which I did completely at home by myself, it’s not going to suit the same kind of production as Cameo Lover. It was more of a process of keeping it truthful to the lyrics and the emotion of the song.”

Her hit single Cameo Lover was recently awarded first place in the coveted Vanda & Young Award for International songwriting, beating an extremely strong field of contenders, including her own collaboration with Gotye. “That one was hard work though so it’s really nice to be acknowledged at that level. It’s just so cool that people connect with it and have such a strong reaction to it, it’s just really nice!”

Vows is a welcome counterbalance to the perishable radio pop currently attacking our ears on morning music TV, a fact which may surprise Kimbra’s fans who may be expecting a raft of niche records. “I wanted to make something that had layers, something that you could live with and hopefully was a bit timeless. I hope that people will enjoy dissecting the layers of the album because it’s definitely not just a pop record.”

Kimbra will be showing off her poptastic sounds at Parklife Festival. To find out more info on tickets and dates for Parklife, including details on the Sydney festival, check out parklife.com.au . Vows is out now on Warner.

Example

LEAD BY EXAMPLE

While Elliot Gleave, aka Example, was growing up in London, most of his friends were beguiled by the glossy rebellion rife in ‘90s American hip-hop culture. “I started making rap because that’s all I knew,” says Gleave. “When I went to school in south London everyone was really into black music culture and because I couldn't play football or basketball I kind of started rapping just to fit in really.”

His first big break came when one of his tongue-in-cheek demos pricked the ears of likeminded geezer Mike Skinner, aka The Streets, who quickly signed Example to his label The Beats. While he was still finding his feet as a contracted performer, a handful of his early releases even managed to make their way onto national radio, an achievement that Gleave still finds unworthy of any kind of posthumous glory.

“I used to record demos when I was at university but none of them were very good and then in 2004 I put out a song which wasn't even that good still then, but it got played on radio and since then its just kind of been a natural evolution to where I am now.”

After enjoying local success, Gleave became weary of the UK hip-hop realm and started phoning up his friends in the electronic scene to help him reinvent himself as a recording artist.

“After a while I started feeling a bit awkward in the rap scene, like I was a white guy from west London with long hair and I didn't really have any gangster stories,” he laughs. “I had only ever written to rap music before whereas now I’ve been experimenting writing dubstep and house and trance, and that’s why singing seems more natural than rapping to me now.”

His first Australian hit single Changed The Way You Kissed Me has become one of the most popular crossover records in the country, reaching the upper echelon of both the Australian singles chart and the Australian club chart.

“I haven't been there to see it but my Mum and Dad and sister live in Australia, so they have told me about it!” he says. “My dad was like, ‘one minute he is in the gym and the song is on the TV and the next minute he leaves and gets in the car and it’s on the radio and he gets home and it’s on the radio again!’”

His upcoming tour of Australia has a double edged motive, both to promote the release of his upcoming album Playing In The Shadows (featuring beats from Nero, Faithless and Laidback Luke) and to take part in the annual Summer skin-fest, Parklife, where he will also be debuting most of the new tracks live.

“[What] we are doing in Australia, it’s going to be relentless man, literally just bouncing, moshing, raving, hands in the air!”

Example will be joining MSTRKRFT, Wolfgang Gartner and Nero plus Offtapia, Peking Duck and Cheese at All Our Friends At Night, held at UC Refectory on Friday September 23. Tix through Moshtix.

Dance

The results of the annual InTheMix Top 50 DJ poll were announced in August with resident ‘slashies’ The Stafford Brothers taking out top spot in the national list. Our local heroes and last year’s winners The Aston Shuffle were unfortunately relegated to third place on the disco podium this time around, although a top three result in the country is still an amazing achievement for the boys. The ACT awards also provided some DJ silverware for club heavyweights Peking Duk, Jaytech, Cheese and Jared De Veer with local venue Trinity Bar taking out most popular local nightspot.

Congratulations to all the winners and thanks to all of those who took the time to vote!
Now that I have provided myself with an ample segue, Trinity Bar shows no signs of slowing down in September, with a massive line-up of mind-bending events set to cover the walls in sweat for the start of spring. Friday September 16 invites ex-Riot In Belgium banger Beni along to celebrate the release of his solo album House of Beni alongside the Starfuckers DJs (Syd). Saturday September 17 is yet another double international event with Ed Banger muso Dj Funk (USA) sharing the stage with RackNRuin (UK). For those of you attending the stellar All Our Friends at Night Festival, Friday September 23 also provides you with the official after party featuring whichever headline artists they can coax away from the beer fridge. Saturday September 24 welcomes Jump Jump Dance Dance in DJ mode and Friday September 30 brings the one and only Kid Kenobi (Syd) back to the capital for an exclusive showcase!

The Summer Rhythm Festival is another new kid on the block for electronic music fans. The event is being held over three amazing days from Friday December 9 to Sunday December 11, just outside the ACT border in Sutton. This year’s line-up is an impressive mix of acts including Salmonella Dub (NZ), Hook N Sling, Van She Tech, Cassian, Shazam, Goodwill, Jono Fernandez and a long list of locals including D’Opus & Roshambo, B-tham, Team Wing and Tim Galvin. Tickets are available now from the usual outlets! Salmonella DubSalmonella DubOh Academy, when will you stop putting on such crazy parties, I need some sleep!

Friday September 16 rocks your bones with the One Love Dubstep Invasion featuring my personal favorite Shockone followed by bearded Raw-FM prophet Chris Fraser on Saturday September 17 and “Dance Music’s two hottest ladies” Havana Brown on Friday September 23 and Emily Scott on Friday September 30!

New music just keeps flooding in for spring with trance legends Blank & Jones coming out of the woodwork with an epic mix of Medina, Gutter, househeads unite for a bouncy main-room rework of the Joey Negro classic Keep On Jumpin and dare I say it, I’m also a big fan of the new David Guetta & Afrojack monster Lunar… just keep that to yourselves please.

dance

We are fast approaching the festival season, a prodigious time when sunglasses get larger, shorts get smaller and English and American artists migrate south to escape the sleety misery of a northern hemisphere winter. Fuelled by the mouth-watering duo of the Australian sun and unlimited complimentary bottles of Grey Goose, these pasty travellers flock to our main stages like migrating bearded geese for the latter months of the year. In recent times, the necessity for tired punters to brave the horrid three hour drive back from Sydney after a long weekend of festival overindulgence has been made redundant by our local promoters who have delivered some of the most professional and well respected EDM events right here in our own backyard.

One of the newest kids on the block is the All Our Friends At Night festival, being held this year on Friday September 23 at the UC Refectory. Improving on last year was no mean feat, but the promotional wizards at Pang and UC Live! have managed to deliver one of the most excitingly diverse line-ups in recent history. US indie rockers Mstrkrft headline the event alongside ‘the next Chemical Brothers’ Nero, electro chart-throb Example, Beatport king Wolfgang Gartner and locals Offtapia, Peking Duk and Cheese. Tickets are available now for a paltry $69.95 (first release) from the usual outlets, so get cracking Canberra!

Trinity Bar motors along like a well oiled machine well into September with an avalanche of amazing parties lined up for the month. Friday September 2 presents dual international headliners Antiserum (USA) + Mark Instinct (CAN), Saturday September 3 welcomes the uber-talented Dj Izm (Bliss N Eso) to the ones and twos and Friday September 9 brings the Strange Talk lads back for an exclusive DJ set. Stay tuned for some exclusive news on the All Our Friends after party in the next edition of The Drop.

The Academy main room fires up on Saturday September 3 with local beat junkie Jacob Levi Howes taking over the headline slot. Trance guru Marlo returns after his epic 3D performance as poster boy for the Ministry of Sound Trance Nation tour on Friday September 9 and local tag team Ashley Feraude & MC Harlequin will get your feet moving with a special ‘DJ vs MC’ battle on Saturday September 10.

Now for some new tunes; my Beatport crate is bursting with September bangers including the sublimely bouncy garage of HeavyFeet – Get On, the amazing Moby sampling dark house of Marco Lys – Go, the proper ‘hug the person next to you’ uplifting chords of Funkagenda & Adam K – Drift, and the mind bending beauty of Jimpster’s rework of Kollektiv Turmstrasse – Was Bleibt. Album wise, keep an eye out for some amazing releases from Nero (Welcome Reality) and Example (Playing in The Shadows); both artists are set to turn the commercial world upside down with a couple of game changing crossover records that are essential listening for the upcoming summer season.

ALEX SMOKE

SMOKE AND MIRRORS

If you are one of the rare breed of musical aficionados who are just as content sprawling about on a bear skin rug, clenching the stem of your evening Bordeaux and absorbing a crackling concerto from your antique gramophone as you are twirling glow sticks around a sweaty box-like room full of strangers, then dance music composer ALEX SMOKE will need no introduction. 

The Scotsman has built up a reputation as one of the most ambitious artisans in the industry, well known for exploiting his classical background to meld modern day techno with emotive dance-floor symphonies. Smoke’s latest album Lux was a genre defying masterpiece of plenary unification, warm strings embracing dark beats, sharp synths cascading through soft snares, a complex mix of future sounds comprised of many late nights in the studio.

“It was a bit of an experiment in some ways as I wanted to try out a lot of new techniques and ideas, so there was a lot of technical learning going on at the time,” says Smoke. “It took so long to come out though, that by the time it was released I was already two projects ahead and the album felt a bit old to me. I'm still happy with it and that's ultimately what's important to me once I've got a bit of distance from a project.”

One of the new projects that Smoke is referring to is a leftfield film score for caliginous fairy tale Faust, an appropriate mantle for his famously murky electronica.

“It was the culmination of over a year's work and it was a very personal project, so having the premiere go well was very satisfying,” he says. “The main problem is working out how to get it around for people to see as it's not a straightforward process. I'm now working it into an album so I can get the music out there without having to show the film too. The actual writing of it was massively enjoyable for me as it was a proper challenge. Composing nearly two hours of music for a string quintet is a lot of work, but it's where I see my future really.”

The Scotsman will be showcasing a hard-drive full of new exclusive material from his upcoming album when he returns to Australia this month for a series of up front live shows, which if past performances are anything to go by, always include a few welcome surprises.

“Obviously things are grouped together so that I can roughly recreate existing tracks, but the best moments are invariably when things just go their own way on the spur of the moment,” he says. “The last trip was obviously dominated by the collapsed lung (which has) slowed me down a bit so I'll probably not be too mental. But I'll not be sitting in the corner with a sad face and a glass of orange juice either.”

Effigy presents Alex Smoke at Transit on Saturday August 27. Doors open at 8pm, and tickets are $14.70 through Moshtix.

NIX

Palms sweaty, you watch the lights flicker on the ground. You can’t hear the crowd yet, only the beats in your head, over and over. You take a deep breath, your grip on the mic tightens, everything is in slow motion. You clamp your eyelids and see the words scroll down an imaginary page in your mind’s eye, your lips start to move but no sound comes out – not yet. One by one, things start to materialise outside the invisible bubble around you, voices behind you, footsteps on stairs. Gradually the bubble expands, you hear the bass from the stage, the performer’s voice and finally, the crowd.

NIX knows what it feels like to step up onto the big stage for the first time, beating a host of young MCs to be crowned as KP Records’ cardinal Pass The Mic champion. First prize wasn’t a crispy wad of cash or a goofy novelty cheque, the winner received what all young hip-hop artists would pull out their strap and kill for: a chance to perform alongside one of their idols, who in this case were US moguls Bone Thugs-N-Harmony.

“It was definitely one of the most exciting moments in my life,” says Nix. “When the time finally came, the adrenaline kicked in and it felt so natural to be up there doing my thing. I had no problems at all remembering lines and everything just flowed. It was so amazing to look out and see all the people in the crowd. I think that I was still riding the adrenaline high a week later.”

The young MC schooled himself on East Coast hip-hop while growing up in Sydney, finding his calling wrapped up in the silky smooth delivery of artists such as Ghostface Killah, who inspired him to start penning his own rhymes and developing his own spin on lyrical technique.

“I didn’t get into emceeing until around the age of 15 or 16. Initially I was just scribbling lines here and there. It wasn’t until I met my friend Grimey, who happened to be a grade above me, that I really started to dabble in the art of rhyme,” he explains. “Our mutual appreciation for hip-hop gave me a great platform to work with as an emcee just starting out. Since then, I guess I’ve quietly been working on my craft over the years.”

In 2011, the KP crew are back with an even bigger headliner – legendary superstar Ice Cube – and the local hip-hop crew are offering the chance for another up and comer to compete for a support slot, something Nix is well placed to offer advice about.

“Just do you. Be yourself in your music and do not subscribe yourself to anyone else’s expectations or style but your own… oh, and have fun with it!”

For the chance to follow in Nix’s footsteps, enter the Pass The Mic competition by uploading your best MP3 to kokyprik.com. The winner will open for Ice Cube at the AIS Arena on Friday September 16.

KAISER CHIEFS

KINGS OF THE FUTURE

Contrary to what the wrinkly tabloid magazines carefully stationed around the waiting room at my local dental surgery will lead you to believe, famous musicians are just like normal people - they have eyes, ears and deviated septums just like, well, some of you. It is an industry myth that the only feedback they will entertain is yammers through a speaker stack, for in our shiny new age of imperforate and immediate social contact, the best of the bunch are tuned in to ‘Radio YOU’, just like Simon Rix from UK supergroup KAISER CHIEFS, who have just released their long awaited fourth studio album The Future Is Medieval with an empathetic nod to their international fan base.

“It’s always important for us to be the best we can be, because we are the ones who have to go out on stage and perform the songs, so we want to make sure we have a lot of pride in [our songs] first,” he says. “I’ve read that some people have said that there aren’t as many ‘sing-along hits’ on this album which I guess is a result of us always being judged against our first album, but I think that this one is definitely more creative instrumentally and is a real leap forward musically.”

The Kaisers have long suffered the terribly contagious ‘we-like-your-old-stuff-better-than-your-new-stuff-itis’, an affliction that, sadly, doesn’t command the same media attention as say, bird flu or rabies, but that affects those with the title of ‘celebrity’ in just as great a number. The success of their monumentally iconic debut Employment, released back in 2005, has long been a bugbear for the UK four-piece, an achievement which all of their subsequent releases have been held unfairly against, quite like those before and after shots of Amy Winehouse. It was therefore important for the band, after a three-year hiatus, to reintroduce themselves to their legion of loyal fans, a task made even more emphatic by their method.  Fans were able to preview and compile their own ten track album from a list of 20 songs, the most popular of which all ended up on the final version that now proudly lines the front window of your local music emporium.

“We have been away for a while so we just wanted people to know that we’re still here!” says Rix. “When you’ve been away for an extended period you have to come back and make a statement like ‘hello, we’re back!’, which is why we decided to do things a bit differently with the release. I guess for me personally it’s been quite a nervous experience, it’s like the same sort of excitement I had with our first album. It’s good to reignite those old feelings again.”

The album was released on Friday July 1, the beginning of a new financial year which also signifies a rebirth for the Chiefs, who have been burning the midnight oil to reinvent themselves musically.

“The most important thing for us was to make sure that the songs were all very strong and it wasn’t just a bunch of hits with a few unreleased B-sides thrown in there,” Rix says. “It was really surprising for us with some of the stuff that the public chose in the end, things like Heard It Break are not traditional Kaiser material, so it really showed that people like seeing us try something different, which is great!”

Most will agree that the tone of The Future is Medieval is a lot more sophisticatedly moody than on their previous records, where the most focus was placed on thrashing out elementary radio rock. Tracks like their new single Little Shocks are wrapped in a raw and grainy shell rather than the safely padded cocoon from which they have emerged.

“It’s a bit introspective, I guess,” says Rix, thoughtfully, “because of some sicknesses and deaths around us, it might be a bit darker because of those life experiences. It’s also about us moving away from home to live in London, to the big city, where everything is old and has this rich history to it, and about us experiencing the darker side of that.”

The album was co-produced by, among others, Ethan Johns, most famous for his collaborations with Ryan Adams and Kings of Leon. Johns is most famous in the UK music community for his headstrong approach to recording ethos, something which Rix explains was a welcome aid in the evolution of their latest album.

“It was a good surprise with Ethan, we were really pleased about that!” says Rix. “He is just one of those people who gets you in the room and gets it all done. I don’t think we would have been able to finish this record without him. I do have to give credit to Nick, our drummer, as well because he put a lot of work into the production on this album. It’s really good to have people that you trust in charge.”

The four school friends from the suburbs of Leeds have come a long way since first banding together in the late ‘90s as repudiated punk outfit Runston Parva, an era that, for most, would have spelled the end of a promising career in rock music.

“We were all way too stubborn to not make it. I think back in those days we were a little guilty of following other trends when we should have just been playing music that we like, which is what we are doing now and what has definitely brought us the most success.”

If the future really is medieval, the Kaiser Chiefs will surely take their place on the gilded throne as kings of UK rock music once again. Let’s just hope they can stay there a while longer this time around.

The Kaiser Chiefs will be playing The UC Refectory on Wednesday August 3. Tickets are $60.60, and are available through Ticketek!

Dance: The Drop

Contrary to what bow-legged hipsters LMFAO will lead you to believe, the Melbourne Shuffle is not the hottest dance floor craze sweeping our nation. The lionised ‘sideways running man’ pales in comparison to the latest fresh club choreography born in our own nation’s capital. I am, of course, referring to the Canberra Crump. The moves are simple - Step One: lunge in front of a stranger, drink in hand, and throw your elbows around like you are struggling to escape from a washing machine, taking extra care to spill the sticky innards of your cold beverage all over their best shirt or dress. Step Two: thrust your bottom in and out making sure to invade as much of their personal space as is humanly possible, all the while whooping and hollering like an injured seal. Something for us all to be proud of really.

The local dance music scene has a fiery counterpunch to winter’s icy jabs in the form of one of its biggest months to date, seducing you back into the land of strobe and smoke with an unbelievable array of local and international artists visiting our city in July.

Calling yourself The Nextmen conjures up images of camply accessorised nylon suits and back alley crime fighting, and while I can’t comment on the validity of these assumptions, I can tell you that this particular duo are sensational deck wizards. If you like a bit of party tune mash-up action, head on down to Transit Bar on Saturday July 9 for a close up look at one of the UK’s most entertaining musical layabouts. 

Trinity sets the bar extremely high with its stellar July roster kicking off with UK wonky house master Boy 8-Bit on Friday July 8, Ministry of Sound regular Goodwill revisits on Friday July 15, inventors of the brown noise Dem Slackers (UK) kick things up a notch on Friday July 22 and B-more superstar Tittsworth trundles his bag of booties across the floorboards on Saturday July 23. Phew!

Fresh from completing the first season of their amusingly staged reality TV series, the Stafford Brothers are heading back to headline the Academy main room on Friday July 8. The duo are direct from the production studio with a designer bag full of new club bangers set to melt the fake tan all over your new dress. The ticket price also usually includes being showered with Jagermeister at some stage of the night, so you should probably wear black, ladies. Who remembers that brilliant filtered masterpiece Spaced Invader? For those of you who were a little too green to experience proper house music in its prime, Academy have secured the services of mega Canadian producer Hatiras on Friday July 15, do not miss!

Finally, to satisfy your hunger for new club weapons in July, here are some hot new records for your playlist, Crookers, Feat. Wax Motif & Neoteric, Springer; The Only, Hollywood Anthem (River Phoenix); LAZRtag, Guess What?; and Beni, It’s a Bubble. Enjoy!    

Dance: The Drop

There is a basic rule in dance music which I like to refer to as the ‘Khaki Conundrum’. Most genres of dance music are born in dark dungeon-like rooms, perpetuated by small groups of internet idealists and then released into the mainstream like an unstoppable cyber virus. By the time a genre or particular artist is being requested at the DJ booth by groups of fake tanned cocktail swilling teenagers, in the eyes of purists, it has long been stripped of any chic credibility. Take dubstep as an example - for years it was the golden boy of unshaven keyboard warriors, a pure and untouched genre that, at the mere mention of the word made you cooler than the other side of the pillow. Along came Skrillex, and to a lesser extent, Deadmau5, and all of a sudden the ‘GTL’ brigade are claiming the genre as their “OMG favourite, lol”. I, for one, welcome our new high-heeled overlords because hey, at least it’s better than Justin ‘Anti-Christ’ Bieber, right?

Pesky historians will lead you to believe that Germany hasn’t invaded anything since WWII, but I know better. Who would have thought that a small club in our nation’s capital would be the next pin on the Kaiser’s campaign map. Seemingly overnight The Clubhouse has become Das Klubhaus, but luckily for us, it’s the events that keep rolling in instead of armoured tank divisions. Effigyare back in the upstairs cave on Saturday June 18, presenting UK female tech house seductress Sasha Le Monnier(UK) playing alongside the regular motley crew of local techno wizards.

Who smoke da reefer? I’m not condoning drug use here, just using a childish segue to introduce Australian Indigenous didgeri-dance legends Ganga Giri, who are appearing at Transit Bar on Saturday June 25. The full band have appeared at a host of local and international music festivals such as Falls, Glastonbury Festival (UK), Woetsjtock Festival (Netherlands), Boom Festival (Portugal) and the Fusion Festival (Germany), so it is sure to be an infectiously mind boggling live show!

If getting home in time to watch David Letterman is your bag then look no further than the next edition of Early Birdat The Deck. Regatta Point is such an amazing venue and 4Soundhave lined up a massive division of local DJ’s to shake the lake to its trolley filled innards for the next instalment on Saturday June 25. The line-up includes most of the old (dare I say it) Lot 33crew, including Peekz, B-Tham, Team Wing, DJ LYLT, 2Hyped, The Zizz, Pedroand Tim Galvin. Sadly enough, I think that this might be my last ever set in Canberra as I look to move on to bigger things interstate, so it would be great if you could all come along and buy me lots of expensive imported beer. I promise to put on a show that you will all remember!

Dance: The Drop

Everything is in 3D these days, seriously, take a walk through Garema Place and that homeless guy asking for change looks like he is coming straight at you. It’s almost as though you could reach out and touch him through the lenses of your three hundred dollar Ray Bans. Academy are jumping on the extra dimensional bandwagon with an exciting event in 3D, starring young trance don Marlo on Friday May 27. Glasses will be provided but the popcorn is on you!

If you ‘liked 3D before it was cool’, maybe the Purple Sneakers party is more your style. The crazy party cult is back at Transit Bar on the very same night supported by floppy-haired disc defilers PhDJ, Architect DJs, Minou, Esteban, Less Than Three and Lucky Punk. Those who won’t conform to a cover charge will be pleased to know that this event is free entry!

Disciples of click will be gathering at The Clubhouse on Thursday May 26 for the opening night of a new techno event called Digital. Freshly trimmed chin hair will be stroked red raw to the future sounds of local talent including Mikey G, Kazuki, Forthstate and Alex Cleary and Kiron. Don’t forget to bring a pen and paper as you are sure to receive a thorough spiritual education in proper underground tunes.

Just a quick warning, I hope you have enough sick days saved up for June because the

party calendar is filling up quicker than Chris Lilley’s swear jar. Academy’s guest list for the month includes BKCA (Basskleph & Chris Arnott) and Emily Scott on Friday June 3, Chris Fraser in Raw FM CD Launch mode on Saturday June 4, monumentally awesome electro punks Lazrtag at Young Blood on Friday June 10, and Tommy Trash headlining the Ministry of Sound annual tour on Friday June 17... I feel my fake morning cough coming on already.

If you still haven't worked out where you will be spending your June long weekend, look no further than Trinity Bar on Sunday June 12. Management have secured the services of, not one, but two massive international headliners to completely ruin your Monday. Techno wizard Jesper Dahlback (SWE) will be appearing alongside evil brain mashers The Proxy (RUS) ably supported by local heroes Peking Duk, Offtapia, Cheese, Dept Of Defiance, Shaolin, PrinCi and Eldred. The cover charge is...wait! Who cares! Just go!

I think you will all agree that it’s ‘tip a kettle of hot water over your windscreen in the morning’ cold at the moment, and we all know who is to blame, the bloody Snowy Mountains. If, on your way to exact vengeance on the selfishly frosty peaks, you wish to warm up to some hot electronic beats then make sure to stop past the Banjo Patterson Inn in Jindabyne for the ski season opening party on Saturday June 11, featuring some of Canberra's best DJs including Hubert, Offtapia and Peking Duk.

Bass Kleph

LIVING THE HIGH LIFE

The life of a superstar DJ is quite arduous. I mean, there’s all the pesky overseas travel, all the annoying industry accolades and, of course, the unruly die-hard fans who just won’t stop telling you how good you are every single day. Australian DJ/producer extraordinaire Stu Tyson aka BASS KLEPH is a survivor - even when faced with all of these nauseating obstacles he is still persevering for the love of his chosen art form, and by golly, is he doing well for himself.

“I travel quite a bit these days. Since the start of 2011 alone, I’ve already DJd all over USA, Canada, South Africa, Germany, UK, and Russia,” he says. “The recent tour in USA/Canada was great. Playing in New York, LA, and Vegas was fun, but Denver and San Diego were the highlights! Even more recently I had some very fun shows in South Africa, and a wicked gig at Ministry of Sound in London.”

In previous years his production success was primarily contained within our borders. Everything changed back in 2006 when Tyson (along with Aussie collaborator, Nick Thayer) took out Best Remix at the UK Breakspoll awards. The ensuing years were a veritable renaissance period for the young Aussie, who became an international star, one who has just added yet another Beatport Number One to his ever increasing mantle.

“I was as surprised as I was excited when it happened. The track I'll Be OK also hit number one, and that gave me two number ones in less than a year. There were a few champagnes had that night!”

Bass Kleph’s club shows are always a mind-boggling mix of forward thinking sounds and uber-cool technology. His latest live project is the exciting BKCA collaboration with fellow tech producer Chris Arnott, who is coming along with Tyson on his upcoming Australian tour.

“Chris and I used to play together in a band years ago. So BKCA is a reunion of our writing. It fuses both of our styles at a point somewhere between a band and dance music. Currently it features just the two of us. Chris on vocals and effects, and myself on Ableton and machine. Although we are looking to eventually expand it into a full, traditional band setup.”

The tour is not only a homecoming for Tyson, it also supports the release of his latest digital project Bass Kleph: Presents, a collection of new and unreleased solo material and selected remix work.

“I wanted to make a package that says, ‘this is Bass Kleph’. Up until now, you've only been able to have my separate songs, or a DJ mix that was full of other peoples’ tracks. My sound has changed a lot over the years, and I feel only now has it really found itself. So I want to be able to share that with everyone.”

BKCA will be hitting up Academy on Friday June 3. Doors open at 11pm, and ticket info is available from www.basskleph.com .

Dance: The Drop

Time flies when you’re having fun. No one can blame us for wiling away the first half of 2011 in dimly lit clubs with duck faced strangers and a wallet full of beer money, for if the Mayans were right, we only have 18 months left before the earth turns into a steaming pile of melted Macintosh products. If a theoretically prophesised apocalypse is not enough to force you into full on party mode, well then I just don’t know what will!

Academy has been powering up your Saturday nights with a host of local talent in recent weeks, and the month of May is sure to be no different! Saturday May 14 see’s the ‘Sergeant of Singlet’ Jared De Veer take the helm, Saturday May 21 brings one half of the Ping Pong DJs, Matt Nukewood to the main stage while Saturday May 28 welcomes house music guru Pred back to a headline slot.

Canberra definitely has some very amazing venues to choose from and one which has been extremely underused over the years is The Deck at Regatta point. With spectacular views of many of our quintessential landmarks, the terrace is a novel place to get your swagger on with a bunch of well rugged up friends. Lucky for us, 4Sound have locked in another club event at the lakeside venue, which has been penciled in for Saturday June 4. The line-up and confirmed details are to be advised so stay tuned!

For those of you who attended the recent Warehouse music festival, you may have seen some of the media publicity that followed the event the next day. For starters, our city struggles to maintain a healthy dance music scene at the best of times, but to ambiguously demonise an entire culture because of a handful of overzealous revelers and a couple of empty coin bags was a tad ambitious in my eyes. A simple ‘Drugs are bad, mmm-kay’ would have been sufficient thank you. The festival itself was a great success and the turnout of over 5000 people was impressive for an event that, for most, was followed by a torturously red-eyed day at work. The standouts for me were definitely Gabriel & Dresden who played an epic closing set on the outdoor stage; a notable mention also has to go to the very impressive two hour warm up by local lad Peekz!

With so much incredible music being released every day, I thought I might finish with a rundown on some of the best new records coming through my inbox. April was a great month for local artists including Canberra disco don Magnifik, whose latest single Behaving Badly has just debuted at No. 44 on the Aria dance chart, check out the killer Team Wing remix for some proper main room weaponry. Other releases firing up into May include The Immigrant, Summer of Love (Angger Dimas Mix), TV Rock, Beatboxer, Lowkiss, Monster (Bombs Away Mix) and Michael Woods, No Access. Enjoy!

James Blunt

PUTTING IT BLUNTLY

I have never used a pick up line in my life, well maybe once, and whenever you do something ‘just once’ it has to be perfect, it has to be memorable and it has to indirectly involve an internationally renowned superstar recording artist. It just so happens that my particular muse was UK bred modern day troubadour JAMES BLUNT. Those in the know understand that the entertainment business is an incalculable mistress and as I may never get the chance to talk to Blunt again, I thought, why not share my charmingly putrid conversation starter with the man himself?

“What the hell is that?” he laughs down the phone from his US hotel room, fresh from an appearance on the Conan O’Brien variety show. Well now I just have to tell him. I take a deep breath and continue, “Excuse me, I don't mean to be Blunt but ‘you’re beautiful, you’re beautiful’.” Luckily this is followed instantly by laughter and then, “I don't think I’ll be using that one myself thanks”.

It is clear at this point that James Blunt doesn’t need any help in the charm department; he’s a very polite and beguiling character. It is no surprise then that he was recently rumored to be performing the previously alluded to hit song at the recent royal wedding at Buckingham Palace.

“I actually started that one myself,” says Blunt. “I was just being asked a lot about it and eventually you just give them what they want so I said ‘Sure I’m just playing the church organ’. Then I changed my Wikipedia page to say ‘classically trained organ player’ and something like four and a half thousand websites published it so it got a bit out of hand!”

The past few months in Bluntville have been spent living out of a tour bus. “It’s not as glamorous as you might think when you are all still looking for a shower in the morning,” he adds.

Blunt is currently crisscrossing North America to promote his latest studio album Some Kind of Trouble, a more uplifting foil to his previous ballad rich long-players Back to Bedlam and All the lost souls.

“I was writing [this one] for myself, which is kind of selfish in hindsight and I’m just having fun,” says Blunt. “I’ve just set out to do stuff that I’d enjoy, so I’m writing all the songs I have always wanted to write and that’s why this [album] is really upbeat and energetic.”

Buying a ticket to a James Blunt show is now more than just a way to please your girlfriend. His recent live performances have been heralded for their raw energy and audience interaction, something which Blunt explains has been enhanced with his new material.

“To go onstage and play has been amazing, it’s been really funny to see the various reactions to the new songs. Like, Stay The Night has that kind of football chant on top of it and you hit the first chord and everybody starts singing, it just takes you by surprise the first time!”

As most of his fans will know, before he was a world famous recording artist, Blunt served as an officer with the British army as part of the NATO operation in the Balkans, an experience which served to empower the artist to become an ambassador for charity organisations such as Medicins Sans Frontiers (Doctors Without Borders), something which he promotes all over the world.

“Just from my experience in Kosovo, we were doing a tough job but every day they would be saving civilians’ lives and just under the security and protection that they gave us, it just amazed me. Now, fortunately I am in a position where I can give something back,” he says. “I might be seen as a star but while I’m busy talking about myself there is a doctor out there saving somebody’s life.”

But don’t assume that Blunt is all poetry and rock skimming, no sir, this is a man who can take apart an Enfield SA-80 assault rifle in less than a minute, probably while necking a pint of warm beer.

“I think to a degree you are probably right with that; people will perceive people who they read about or hear music from in a certain way depending on which songs they know them for, particularly which singles they know them for,” says Blunt. “People always say ‘Hey, you must be romantic’, but I don't carry around flowers with me or anything and if you asked me how I was feeling about anything I would say ‘fuck off mate, why don't we have a drink!’ People ask me about relationship advice too and most of my songs are about failed relationships so there is definitely some irony in there,” he laughs.

While his reputation is for music that is mostly contemporary pop and wedding songs, Blunt assures his fans that he has a little more up his satin sleeve this time around.

“I do divorces too, I have a song for every moment, single people as well and everything in between,” says Blunt. “I’m really excited about coming back to Australia, the people have such an amazing sense of humour and a great sense of life, so I don't have to work too hard and I can just relax and have a laugh!”

James Blunt will be inspiring audiences at the National Convention Centre on Wednesday May 18. Tickets are available through Ticketek for $99.10.

The Aston Shuffle

THE EVERY NIGHT SHUFFLE

Newsflash Jon Stanhope - your recent Live in Canberra campaign missed the mark. Big city dwellers won’t be convinced to haul their leather sofa and 2.3 children down the federal highway by way of postcard snaps of beautifully empty parklands, a skyline monopolised by ancient airships or innocent gangs of soon to be culled kangaroos alone. To attract more visitors to the nation’s capital, you should simply commission a 20 feet high marble statue of THE ASTON SHUFFLE. Such is the popularity of the Berra-bred, bearded twosome, the mere presence of a chiseled likeness would be sure to increase our population by at least fifteen percent.

Mikah Freeman and Vance Musgrove are nuclear fueled achievement machines set to ‘win’, recently taking out the coveted top spot in the national ITM top 50 DJ poll, securing a prime time slot on triple j as hosts of The Friday Night Shuffle and releasing their acclaimed debut album - not a bad twelve months in anyone’s book.

“I don't think any of those things were things we expected to happen and you have to pinch yourself every moment someone says ‘here is a laundry list of things’ but at the same time, amidst all of that we still try and have a ‘heads down, bums up’ attitude towards everything,” says Vance.

“In the same respect, as amazing as it is, it scares the living shit out of us and as awesome as it is, it just makes us want to get better as artists,” adds Mikah. “This meteoric rise has happened over a period of time and as quick as you get big you can fall.”

Tonight is a special night, as it heralds the Canberra launch party for their much-anticipated LP Seventeen Past Midnight, a fittingly diverse collection of musical memories, which has been a long time in the making. The audience is brimming with a lot of old faces, a warm mish mash of family and friends, most of whom have known the duo since they were old enough to operate a synthesizer.

“Our music is about a moment or a feeling, or something that has happened to us,” says Mikah, contemplatively, as Vance chimes in with a grin. “In fact I can exclusively reveal that an alternate album title was Can I Borrow a Feeling. Didn't quite make it through in the end there.”

It wasn't original material that initially put the Shuffle on the map. Their groundbreaking remixes for Malente, Claude Von Stroke and Chris Lake laid the foundation for a meteoric rise which sees them currently sitting on top of the tree as Australia's most in-demand dance music producers/DJs. As most who have tried will attest to, the intrinsic journey that an album begets is another thing altogether.

“We always aspired to do an album, we always thought we had one in us but the distinction is between knowing you want to do it and having the aspiration to do it and feeling like you have got it together enough to know how. That was the thing that took a little bit of self discovery I think,” says Vance. “I mean you can work for four weeks on a record and it can be practically finished, but it doesn’t feel like it clicks, and then something that you have been working on for two minutes which is 12% finished can click and you go ‘right there is the essence of that’.”

Prior to the interview, the lads had just spent some quality time in the studio recording their latest installment of The Friday Night Shuffle, an offer that came about after the ITM results were announced, as Mikah explains.

“When they asked us to do the radio show, me and Vance were like ‘are you serious man?’ We didn't have any experience, no ideas in that kind of thing and we aren't exactly the most charismatic guys like ‘heeey, what’s going on!’” he laughs. “So when we thought about it and we processed it a bit, I think by that number one accolade, in triple j’s mind I think, is that people respect us and trust us in the music that we play. So the way we approached it then was that it’s not necessarily about us and our radio show, it’s about us curating two hours of music on triple j every Friday night. You know what I mean?”

Those who spent their New Year’s Eve on Bondi Beach would have seen the guys debut their new live show, a pad bashing, key stabbing electronic symphony which stole the show from headliners David Guetta and Armand Van Helden.

“It was such a build up,” says Mikah. “Like the album was pretty much done then, so we were focused on that.”

Noticeably excited, Vance continues “[It was all about] the little moments of ‘there are ten tracks here which nobody has heard’, and how are they going to react, and you are in the middle of playing it and you kind of look up from the keyboard and you see people with their hands in the air and chicks on dudes’ shoulders and stuff! It’s like they have never heard this record before and they like it! Knowing that a record can possibly have a boob moment in it is one thing, but when no one has ever heard it before and it’s still a boob moment, then that’s awesome!”

Aston Shuffle will be getting people moving at Groovin The Moo on Sunday May 8 at the UC Meadows. Tickets are $99.90 + BF, through Moshtix.

Dance: The Drop

Canberra is full of bears. They are all around us, all the time. “Well, I haven’t seen any,” you might say, in a confident and argumentative tone. “Bears are only native to certain continents including North and South America, Europe and Asia, so a statement like that is both ridiculous and offensive!” (Did you just read that in Arj Barkers voice? I did). I am, of course not referring to your forest variety, furry picnic basket thief here, but rather the hordes of Canberrans who, as soon as the mercury dips below 18 degrees, choose to meander back to their toasty caves and hibernate for the chilly season.

Yes, your nipples get hard and smoking outside feels like you’re sucking in pure nitrogen, but that doesn’t mean that the music scene comes to a grinding halt. In fact, what better place to be than inside a heated room full of sweaty friends and strangers!

Academy warms up in May with a host of big room events beginning on Friday May 6 with Australia’s sexiest tech DJ Emily Scott. Peking Duk’s new monthly party Young Blood returns on Friday May 13 with one of my favourite sonic sophomores Northie headlining. Ministry of Sound wobbles your insides with the Sounds of Dubstep tour featuring Will Styles on Friday May 20 and finally on Friday may 27, trance guru Marlo lands back in Canberra for a special 3D event! Bangin!

Trinity Bar is like that hot girl who keeps rejecting your advances, it always seems to have something on every day of the week. The team has just launched not one, but two new weekly nights to fill the void in your party planner. The Wednesday and Thursday post work period is now home to Refreshing Afternoons where you can enjoy a free BBQ while soaking up a chilled soundtrack, and Sundays play host to Live Sundays with a new band every week.

But what about bass music? Well fear not young reverberation junkies, Low Freq moves away from its natural habitat at Transit Bar for a special event at Trinity on Friday April 29. All the regular misfits are here including Faux Real, Fourthstate, Scully, D.Wils, Ced Nada and something called a Giant Rocktopus.

In the spirit of our Shuffle-rich issue, I have to remind you all to grab a ticket to the Groovin the Moo spectacular taking place on Sunday May 8 at the University of Canberra just so you can support the lads in their quest to take over the world. Many of us have had evil world domination aspirations before but few have been able to realise them, so living vicariously through the Aston Shuffle should provide ample sustenance for all of us mere subordinates.

So grab your overpriced flannelette shirt and a thick pair of jeans and join the rest of us on the freezing footpaths of the inner city for another month of night-time celebrations. Be brave Canberra, be brave.

Album of the Issue: The Aston Shuffle - Seventeen Past Midnight -[Downright/Ministry of Sound]

Usually when you couple a long awaited album release with skyscraper high expectations you are left somewhat disenchanted and indifferent. Lucky for fans of the duo, their debut album is an affirmation of the immense talent of The Aston Shuffle, and in short, it is absolutely brilliant. As the familiar growl of I Wanna See You grumbles through the speakers, the initial blows are landed in what turns out to be a surprisingly diverse electronic onslaught.

Bring it Back, Your Love and Anticipointment deliver the trademark bouncy main room jabs for which the lads are so well renowned, inclusions like Amaze and Intro Forever discharge an indie uppercut and The Surface, Start Again and Where Are Your Teeth pound your ears with chunky house music. Just when you feel like you have their combinations worked out, the angry fist of Drop connects with your jaw, knocking beads of sweat from your face as you fall face first to the canvas. This is a brutal gloves-off sonic street fight which you just can’t win, but hey, there is two of them and only one of you.

HE’S MY HAIRY GUY

I remember bounding out of bed as a small child on a Saturday morning and attacking a large bowl of corn flakes with atomic omnipotence so that I was allowed to switch on the TV and watch Video Hits. Early morning music television was actually more of a religion than a prosaic weekend routine; the square screen was a Narnia-like portal into another world, a world of beautiful superstars and fantastic absurdity. American rock bands were at the forefront of this revolution of indulgence, their visual chimera poured into lounge-rooms all over the world with artists like Motley Crue, Poison and WARRANT impregnating our young minds with not so subtle unscrupulous innuendo. The latter, a four piece from the back streets of Los Angeles rose to the top of the charts in the early 90’s with hits like Cherry Pie, Uncle Tom’s Cabin and I Saw Red. Twenty years and a few lead singers later, the boys are back in town touring their latest album, an ode to a time of fast cars and an even faster lifestyle.

“The main goal is to have as many fans hear the new record Rockaholic. In this crazy business it seems that all the drama trumps the music. We want people to get back into the Warrant music,” says founding member Jerry Dixon “We’re always on the road in the USA and do an average of 50 shows a year. We just need to learn how to get on plane and head down under more often. The prep is going well, just trying to figure out what day and time it is there! What’s crazy is we’ll be there almost 20 years to the date of our last Australian tour.”

After experiencing an exuberant honeymoon in the LA rock scene, their enigmatic frontman Jani Lane left the band in the late nineties under questionable circumstances, a clear crossroad which almost ended their musical career.

“Yes, we call the 90’s the ‘Black Years’. It was a great time for new music that would pave the way to grunge but it was a bad time in the Warrant camp,” he says. “Egos and dreams where shattered in the blink of an eye. The band was used to being a priority and it was tough when the key was turned off and thrown away. My main issue was that I loved all the music that was in a sense taking away my band. But somehow we survived.”

Lane returned in 2008 for a short series of reunion shows, but as with all bruised and battered relationships, the cordiality was short-lived, Lane packing up his leather pants and moving on again the following year.

“The many times he left us high and dry pissed us off at the time. As time passes I realize it was the best thing to ever happen to us. As a band we are closer than ever, we get to write music together, we get to go to Australia together but most of all we are happy. Happy band equals good music,” says Dixon.

Change happens to us all, for some it replaces potential with a figurative brick wall and for others it galvanizes us and inspires us to keep moving forward with our dreams. Luckily for fans of Warrant, the engine room is still cranking along with a full belly of steam and it seems the old rockers have lost none of their brash attitude in their new material.

“Writing’s in a constant state of change .You can’t sit down with a song writing business plan. Songs just come from your soul, good, bad or ugly. Tunes can start out with the intention of being about love and end up being Sex Ain’t Love. The new record has 14 songs that speak about 14 different things,” he says. “Records are written over long periods of time and in our case this one took two and half years. What you hear is what we felt in that time frame. So, yes, in two and half years we did have some sex, drugs and several parties, along with some tears.”

The band emerged in an era where the rock music industry was a white-knuckle ride, a full tilt rollercoaster full of endless parties, packed stadiums and hardcore fans. “It was so much fun I can’t remember!” In contrast, some of today’s musicians seem to regard their art as more of a career path than a lifestyle, although Dixon agrees there are definitely some exceptions to the rule.

“Have you gone to a Screamo show lately…? These new bands tear it up! I don’t think music ever changes, just new kids with new ears and new looks with the same dreams we all have. [We are] still the same old Down Boys… It just hurts more the next day.”

Dixon has blown the candles off his birthday cake twenty times since he last set foot in our country, and you can tell that he is quite enthusiastic about the idea of coming back to set the stage alight alongside Quiet Riot and the LA Guns and a whole new legion of Aussie fans.

“The show is going to kick ass from start to finish. Three great LA bands from the Sunset Strip on the loose down under & in New Zealand equals one hell of good time. We are so excited to get there and crank up the amps.”

Warrant will be rocking out the ANU Bar on Saturday April 30. Tickets are $90 through Ticketek.

Dance: The Drop

Unlike most people, who might remember the early ‘90s for the first gulf war, or the commercial rise of email, or even as the time when Kurt Cobain had a pulse, I tend to commemorate the era of fluoro tracksuits by one event alone. At this time, somewhere in a dimly lit bedroom in the suburbs of Melbourne, a young Italian Australian by the name of Anthony Pappa was honing his wizardry on a pair of well-worn turntables. By the age of 13, Pappa was already being chaperoned into nightclubs to spin funky house and disco to people twice his age. By 15, he had taken out the Australian DMC championship, landing him international exposure relatively overnight. The rest is history, and the Pappasaurus returns to Canberra on Easter Thursday, April 21 alongside an equally impressive roster of international stars.

Effigy boggle the mind yet again with an incredible line-up at Hippo Bar including the aforementioned Australian ex-pat, who is joined by Desyn Masiello (UK) & Marcos Paz (Arg), all for the ridiculous price of $10 (before 10pm). Fuel your four-day hangover with a night of incredible progressive music!

Just a quick stumble away is Transit Bar, who are also providing ample long weekend entertainment in the form of Sydney tech legend Simon Caldwell, appearing in a long awaited return to our city on the very same night. Caldwell is joined by a slew of locals including Biggie, SVRT, Anjay, Scottie Fischer, Pete Canell and Radar. When it rains it pours!

Whenever I hear the name Trinity, it always makes me think of the manly woman with the incredible bottom from the Matrix movies. Some might also attribute this word to Canberra’s newest A-list venue in the heart of Dickson’s Chinatown, which delivers a brutal slow motion crane kick to your wallet in the month of April with a monster line-up of big name guests. Friday April 15 brings house music deity Danny Howells (UK) to the DJ booth for a special five hour set, Saturday April 16 heralds the return of super producer Sam La More and Thursday April 21 brings a diverse trio of headliners including Nadastrom (USA), Illya (Syd) and Audiojack (Ger).

The Clubhouse has been captaining the bass music battleship in the last few months, and the lads don't seem to be pulling up anchor any time soon. Friday April 22 brings another round of Bass Lab to the dark womb, this time helmed by DnB wizard Q-Bik (WA). Your deckhands for the evening will also include Dred, DJC, Riske, Izz and D.Wils.

I can’t finish this edition without giving you a last minute tip for the impending Warehouse Music Festival. If you haven't already purchased a ticket, find a promoter on Facebook and grab one while you still can, as you will pay a lot less for one now than you will on the day. See you all in the main room!

Greg Proops

“Who se line is it anyway?” is a rhetorical question that most pay TV subscribers have agonised over since the hit improv showpiece burst through our small square screens back in the 1990s. The show’s main protagonists were of course roly-poly referee Drew Carey and his trio of professional exhibitionists Ryan Stiles, Wayne Brady and Colin Mochrie alongside a team of semi-regular favourites including perennial Mr Cool GREG PROOPS

“I auditioned in San Francisco and got to go to the UK,” says Proops. “It changed my life and probably yours as well.”

The audacious American is best known to Australian audiences through, but Proops manages many successful strings in his bow. “By doing many different jobs indifferently,” he says, including being an actor, TV compère, comedian and improv artist. “The Ancient Greeks invented acting. Then I invented stand-up, then Ryan Stiles invented improve,” says Proops. “Doing improv gave me the confidence to fail in two different comedy milieus.”

With his dandy demeano ur and sharp wardrobe, Proops is the sassy Johnny Cash of American comedy. He has exhibited his famous coiffure to comedy buffs all over the world. “Poms like puns. Seppos yell more,” he adds, and like all crazy egomaniacal stand-up performers he has had to trade impudence with a few revellers who had probably enjoyed a bit too much of the house wine with their illegal pain medication.

“You mean drunk disruptive asshats who seek to destroy my rapport with the masses and hinder my poetic wanderings? [It doesn’t happen] that often,” he says. “A guy was asleep in New York last week. In the front row. I spent a half hour exploring his inner thoughts. Then he woke up and knew the capital of Ecuador. Rough justice. No one gets Western with the Proopdog.”

Back in the States he hosts his own live talk show at the famous Hollywood nightspot Largo, which has a long list of previous ‘drop ins’ including Jason Schwartzman, Russell Brand, Jack Black, Dave Grohl, Patton Oswalt and Sarah Silverman. In the short hours he isn’t on stage or comparing expensive pullovers with world famous celebrities, Proops is in the recording studio saying things into a microphone; you might remember his saucy accent from something called Star Wars: The Phantom Menace and to a lesser extent from Pamela Anderson’s and the Bob the Builder animated TV series. “I could use some depth,” he says.

By some unimaginable turn of events, Proops has shifted time and space to allow his Australian fans a chance to get up and close with the Proopdog in a series of stand up shows across the country in April, and he is looking forward to coming back. “Like a breath of fresh air. I love the food, the wine, the weed and the people. Very much so [and] I left eight dollars in Melbourne in my hotel room.”

Greg Proops will perform at the Canberra Theatre Centre on Friday April 15. Tickets are available through the venue’s website.

Dance: The Drop

I can’t remember the last time I unwrapped a glittery egg shaped snack and consumed its sweet chocolaty entrails in celebration of Easter. There comes a time in a person’s life when the period becomes less about sharing overpriced cocoa products and more about how many hours of drinking you can cram into the double barrelled public holiday. I beseech that the modern day Easter bunny would be more helpful bearing a basket of paracetamol tablets, bacon and egg rolls and king size energy drinks. Now let’s find out how to fuel that nasty hangover, shall we?

Monkey Bar has resurfaced as a popular destination for house music connoisseurs thanks to 4Sound Productions’ latest club night. The next event is an all local Easter Thursday ( April 21 ) extravaganza featuring 2HYPED, Kaisen, B-Tham, Team Wing, Bobby Rush and Pedro. Entry is only $5 before midnight.

Those of you on the ‘board shorts’ side of NSW will be frothing at the mouth to hear that another epic Stage Fright party is planned at the Merimbula Lake View Hotel on Easter Saturday ( April 23 ). These events are always egg-sactly what the doctor ordered for the bevy of south coast ravers who are usually extremely deprived of regular quality music events. This edition features Scott McMahon (Melb), Team Wing, Moosh, Mick Marshall and Tim Galvin, so why not jump in your car and wring the last little piece of sunshine out of your holiday!

Music festivals used to hibernate after the summer season but thanks to climate change and the bulging coffers of major music promoters we now get these wonderful days of overindulgence all year round. One of the biggest up and comers on the scene in the last few years has been the Groovin’ the Moo Festival at the University of Canberra and the 2011 line-up has all the might of a retaliatory power slam from Casey Heynes. House of Pain, Cut Copy, Datarock, UNKLE, Sampology, Art vs Science, The Aston Shuffle and AC Slater are but a few of the amazing acts scheduled to rock the north side campus this year. Tickets are available from all the usual outlets and are just shy of the $100 mark.

I mentioned in the last issue that The Aston Shuffle were releasing their debut album in April. Well, Canberrans can steal an exclusive sneak peek at the long player at the official listening party tonight (Thursday March 31) at Trinity Bar. Local heroes Cheese and Offtapia will be there to provide light audio refreshments after the festivities conclude. Doors open at 8pm and entry won’t cost you a dime!

Academy has a carton of surprises for your April party calendar, beginning with US electro newcomer Drop the Lime on Friday April 8. Horny blowmeister Timmy Trumpet returns with a caseload of brass for the Ministry of Sound Electro House Sessions on Friday April 15 and Naughty By Nature have just been announced as headliners on Friday April 29 – this will be one hot and sweaty hip-hop joint that you will not want to miss. Hip Hop Hooray!

Play it loud!

The Stanton Warriors - The Warriors - [Central Station Records]

Who has seen the Stanton Warriors do a DJ set before? Ok you, you and you, and you over in the back there, so a few people. Good. Take that tactile funk epiphany and fold it over on itself enough times so that it looks like a little flat disc with a hole in it; that is The Warriors in a nutshell. Ok maybe not a nutshell but a CD case nonetheless. This long awaited collection of Stanton originals is an egg carton of bumpy breakbeat fury, a dozen slamming records created with only one thing in mind, to make you do that embarrassing involuntary shimmy like a super fly drunk dad. The disc begins with their latest crossover jewel Get Up and delivers blows so quickly you would swear they were aimed at Casey Heynes. Bushido POW!, Dakota BIFF! Shoot Me Down WHAMMO! It’s like a god damn Batman comic and I’m the camply dressed villain. Luckily for our butt muscles, the lads reel it back in with Superstar, but from then on in, the recipe is all head shredding bass bins and wobbly synths. Just when your Air Force ones are starting to buckle, the disc climaxes with a nice cruisy album ender in Out Of My Head. Ahhh The Warriors just fucked me and then spooned me to sleep. BLISS (Galv, you’re a legend – Ed.).

The Drop

We all love a good parochial success story here in the Nation’s Capital. The closest we have come to a proper local celebrity in recent times is our loose claim as the origin for Formula One prodigy Mark Webber, but we all know deep down that he is originally from Queanbeyan. The ascendancy of The Aston Shuffle gives us hope; a hope that may give credibility to our city which, let’s face it, is rarely acknowledged as a paramour in national and international circles.

The boys are finally releasing their long awaited debut album entitled Seventeen Past Midnight on Friday April 15 , including a swag of electronic hits like I Wanna See You , Your Love and Start Again . Buy it, play it, love it!

While German producers Franziskus Sell and Jakob Hildenbrand may not be household names to most dance music fans, their partnership as Format B has produced some of the most upfront techno music in recent memory. You can catch the duo performing an exclusive intimate show at Trinity Bar on Saturday March 19 presented by underground moguls Effigy . Supports for the night include Tim Heaney , SVRT , Radar , Gabriel Gilmour and Yohan Strauss , all for the bargain price of absolutely nothing!

A recent study found that 98% of girls aged 18-25 love bags and beefy arms. The ANU Bar has bulls-eyed its demographic with a special event on Friday March 18 featuring Australian pop/indie club rockers the Bag Raiders and Muscles . Tickets are selling fast, so if you are young and female, what are you waiting for?

Alliance never fail to provide punters with the best in commercial club weaponry and the next explosive shell in their arsenal is the Ministry of Sound Clubbers Guide tour featuring Sydney mash-up champion Tom Piper . This is sure to be another epic night in the old cinema, well worth your hard earned $18.50.

The emergence of exciting dubstep producers in 2010 resulted in some of the most cutting edge club music that the scene has ever produced. One of the wildcards in the industry is Californian native Bassnectar , famous for his high energy shows and mind-blowing productions, all of which he is bringing to Trinity Bar on Friday March 25 . Entry is only $25 on the door which includes an impressive roster of broken beat professionals including Buick , Shifty Business , Stunami , Faux Real , Miss Universe , DJ DFP , Ben Colin and Aeon .

I can’t close off this edition of the Drop without giving props to local duo Peking Duck , who after a long period of solid production work have just been signed to premier Australian electronic label Vicious Records (which is helmed by house music dons John Course and Andy Van ). Their sophomore release is a remix of Butterbox – Cups , an absolutely storming electro monster. Why not check it out and download a copy from www.beatport.com and support your local talent?

Tommy Tiernan

TOMMY TIERNAN must have very chapped lips. It is world renowned that kissing the Blarney Stone endows the ‘smacker’ with the gift of the gab, and Tiernan sure has a very effective gob. Based on ticket sales alone, the infamous Irish comedian is second only in his homeland to a little known Dublin four-piece by the name of U2 – not too shabby for a foul mouthed scofflaw from Inishowen.

Tommy isn ’t afraid to stir up a little controversy wherever he goes; I would go as far to say that he is famous for it. Subjects like Down syndrome, homosexual astronauts and 9/11 have all found their way into his stand up routines over the years, something the cheeky Irishman isn’t too troubled with.

“ I live in it for the sake of laughter and ‘controversial’ is just the name of somebody else’s dog that keeps barking at me,” says Tommy. “I don’t recognise the creature but I know that if he hangs around my table long enough he is bound to pick up a few crumbs, but like I said, I don’t own him or trust him. He’s devious.”

Normal society teaches us that there are certain topics we can laugh at and certain no go zones emblazoned with a 50 foot high flashing stop sign. Tommy tends to ignore the obvious and decides instead to live his professional life on both sides of the moral highway. “All views are skewed,” he says. “Some are just more entertaining than others. Maybe humour is a sign of enlightenment but I doubt it. In fact, I doubt everything.”

His most famous stoush was with the entire Jewish race – an off the cuff remark regarding the holocaust, blurted out during a casual back and forth with an audience back in 2009, resulted in a backlash which led to a series of dates being cancelled on his tour of America. That being said, Tommy doesn’t have anything against religion, ironically having played a priest in an episode of beloved UK comedy series Father Ted

“ A priest that was hearing my confession once asked me to pause while he asked his friends to come around and listen too , but I took it as a compliment.”

As they say, any publicity is good publicity, and Tiernan has certainly made the most of his career. As well as his amazing comedy career, Tommy has also delved into TV and radio, although he still hasn ’t made his mind up about where he wants to be in ten years. “I haven’t actually decided to become a comedian yet. I’m just killing time until I know exactly what it is I want to do with myself,” he says. “I don’t even have a list, I would just like to make it to the end of the day without exploding.”

Tommy returns to our barren brown land with a bubbling cauldron of offensive one liners . “I talk and they laugh,” he says. “Hopefully.”

See Tommy Tiernan perform live at the Canberra Theatre Centre on Saturday April 2. Tickets are $49.90 and can be purchased through the venue’s website.

The Drop

Are you sitting at home alone again on a Saturday night with only a half eaten bag of Doritos and season one of The Vampire Diaries to dull your pain? Are you ready for a change? In only a few short weeks you could be lying beside the pool on a Balearic Island where your only worry in the world is which Kardashian sister gets to rub oil on your feet. All this and more awaits you in your new career as a professional club DJ!

Swap those heavy and impractical textbooks for a pair of shiny headphones and an oversized novelty pendant and join me in a Learjet with the Olsen twins. can help you realise this life of pure indulgence with their new DJ school, run by presenter and a mix of local dance music identities. If you are sick of lining up to pay for your drinks, don’t waste any more time and contact James at 4soundproductions@gmail.com. Both beginners and intermediate disc jockeys are most welcome.

Most famous RnB singers have found that dance music is an attractive way to present their auto-tuned beer and boob monologues to teenagers, and the era of the club crossover record began with artists like . The UK rapper has become a massive main room drawcard since he hypnotised and with his magical bling pendant and coerced them into smash hit collaborations like and . Dizzee delivers this trademark swagger to Canberra fans tomorrow night ( ) at . Come and

Friday nights at have provided us with a lot of massive names over the years and 2011 is just starting to heat up. Fresh from his win at the ‘Guy from Balls of Fury’ look-alike contest, Tommy Trash Friday March 4

Look up in the sky! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s hipster demi-god Steve Aoki ! Rumour says he can obliterate conformity with a single calumnious sneer. Some even say he owns the world’s only pair of tattered Converse All Stars that can walk on water; who knew Jesus was from Miami? The Dim Mak label boss is making a special appearance at in Wollongong on alongside beat junkies and , and don’t even think about turning up without an ironic moustache y’hear?

I love turning up to work on a Friday with bloodshot eyes and an Alec Baldwin day beard, don’t you? Thursdays are the new Fridays with events like the new ‘Sinful’ soiree at , presented by your pals at . The regular residents are back in new surroundings including your old favourites , , and . If you want a seriously good soundtrack to fuel your Friday hangover, don’t miss the opening night tonight ( Thursday March 3

The Drop

The Kicks team have just announced the first round of artists for the 2011 Warehouse Music Festival, and I daresay it’s an absolute cracker! The current line-up includes beatport king Deadmau5, teenage party anthem machine Martin Solveig, trance deities Gabriel and Dresden, sexy soul sister Wynter Gordon, big room remix merchants Dada Life and my personal favourite, 2010’s most exciting newcomer Skrillex!

Running a successful independent Thursday night club event in Canberra is about as easy as nailing the US national anthem – just ask Christina Aguilera. The lads at Mingle have managed to survive in a competition with the ‘drink until you can’t feel feelings anymore’ university orgies that bigger clubs promote on Thursday nights, armed only with a simple commitment to good music, so help them celebrate their second birthday at Trinity Bar on Thursday Feb 17.

The Summer Rhythm Festival line-up includes some great local and interstate acts including Space Invaders, King Tide, Agency Dub Collective, Dubba Rukki, Raw City Rukus and Ashley Feraude. The festivities kick off on Saturday February 19 at the Goolabri Resort in Sutton. Keep in mind that this is a not for profit event and Summer Rhythm will be making a donation to Beyond Blue.

You love their cheese, chocolate and boxy people movers, now The Swiss prove they can also make killer disco. I am of course referring to the South Australian live act who are heading back to Canberra on Sunday February 20 for an intimate Sunday session DJ set at Trinity Bar. If drinking on Sunday is cool, then consider me Miles Davis.

The Hipster Handbook suggests that you need three things to be accepted into their exclusive anti-society. A Fu Manchu soup strainer, lens-less black rimmed glasses and the Purple Sneakers DJs. The fixie mounted scenesters are back at Transit Bar on Friday February 25 brimming with wolf tees and classic faux indie dance floor weapons. The line-up includes Monkey Genius, Minou, Johnny Segment, Lucky Punk, Eddie Shaggz and Less Than Three.

Sometimes you come across a DJ name which reminds you of a He-Man toy. Hypnagog is one such name. With ‘record box included’, this local action figure is lighting up the stage at the next Effigy event at Hippo Bar on Saturday February 19 alongside Ben Evans, Black Samurai, Biggie, String Theory and Fourthstate. You have
the powerrrrrr!

Finally, after the demise of Lot 33, 4sound has moved to a new home at Monkey Bar. Stay tuned for more information on that soon. Adios mi amigos!

TIM GALVIN
tim.galvin@live.com.au

Mowgli

IN THE JUNGLE

Italian born producer/DJ MOWGLI isn’t one to follow trends. He wears a black shirt to weddings, eats cereal for dinner and has not yet adopted a black child from a third world country, all figuratively speaking of course.

I don’t like playing tracks that everybody knows – I try to have rare records to surprise the crowd,” he says. “I think you can always evolve but it’s getting harder and harder to do something original because everything has been done already but sometimes even just freshening an old school sound, it has to be considered new.”

It has been a big year for the artist, lugging his jungle book sobriquet all over the world, spreading the gospel of house music to all corners including a memorable tour of Australia in early 2010. “My Oz tour, I always love it so much, but also some other shows I had in the US and Brazil. It has been a great year for me music-wise.”

Interestingly enough, in a world where DJs are embracing hardware more and more, Mowgli has remained true to the art of mixing rather than layering sounds using a bank of machines, a trend which some say has threatened the long lost art of crowd interaction.

, still DJing with CDs,” he says. “I don’t think technology will take away from DJ experience but it can actually take us in new directions and make better shows. I am thinking myself now to integrate video with music as well, but it will take a while.”

With enough recent frequent flyer miles to secure a window seat on Virgin Galactic, somehow Mowgli still manages to remain active in the studio. Not buoyed by the resurgence of the ‘electric noise’ genres so popular in today’s club music, he prefers to carry the torch for purity.

I don’t play just one genre, I believe in playing good music; it could be house, deep house, tech house, techno... I am always producing so I have few tracks I am testing in the club these days.”

Most DJs have an awkward request story and while the bulk of those anecdotes are merely built around a drunken solicitation for a Britney Spears record, Mowgli was once approached at a show by a cassette wielding maniac.

The walkman thing was funny because that guy, who I don’t think was fun but just very wasted, came to me and asked if I could play the tape inside the walkman… and, I mean who the hell has a tape recorder to DJ, are you serious? I looked at him to see if he was joking but he was very serious! So funny.”

Mowgli returns to our shores this month for a series of shows, although he has more than music on his mind when asked what his favourite things about our country are. “The weather, the people, the ladies.”

A man after my own heart really.

Catch Mowgli live at Trinity Bar on Sunday February 6. Entry is free so get there early!

Accidental Aussie

When Dr Cyril P Callister used waste from brewery vats to whip up a thick brownish paste which we all know today as Vegemite, I’m sure was he was blissfully unaware he was creating an Australian legend. Similarly, when Jim Eoin McKeown stepped on stage for the first time at an amateur comedy night, I’m sure he never imagined it would lead to him becoming a household name on a pointy slab of rock 1000 miles away from home.

The storytelling vein runs deep in the McKeown family, Jimeoin crediting his dad for providing him with robust jesting genes.

When I talk to my father, he is just fantastically abstract about things, and it’s just pure stand up. You could just put him straight on stage because he just has that train of thought.”

Irish by birth and Australian by popular adoption, he explains his indifference to nationality with his familiar thick accent.

I certainly identify with people who live in this country, but as far as that idea that they are different from any other people, that’s just nonsense. The biggest differences I find [between countries] are people’s facial expressions. Polish people are a bit hard to read - I think it might be as a result of Communist rule having slightly suppressed their facial expressions.”

There is no doubting that Australians share a deep connection with the Irish both in blood and beer, a kinship Jimeoin attributes to geography.

I think it’s just because they are a long way away from each other - Brazil gets on fabulously with Scotland, but if they were next door to each other like Australia and New Zealand I think it might be a bit different.”

One of his latest projects, the aptly named ‘Over the Top’ TV series, follows the entertainer on a tour of the Northern tip of Australia, taking in some interesting locations.

Yeah it was good to go where you’re not wanted and see how that works, to see how many jokes I really do have. It turns out it’s just the two, and one was my head” he laughs. “What was really nice was when I got to the point where I didn't care anymore you know. I like that frame of mind, and if I can get myself into that frame of mind for a gig it’s just fantastic.”

With Australia day behind us and St Pats day looming like a warm pint of Guinness on a cold bar, I ask Jimeoin whether has any special plans for celebrating this year.

Actually Irish people annoy me on St Patrick’s Day, you can’t be more Irish on a particular day. It’s like being more Australian on Australian day, like saying “G’daaay’, ‘Crikey’ and ‘Fair Dinkum’ more.”

Jimeoin takes the stage at the Canberra Theatre on Saturday February 5. For bookings contact 02 6275 2700.

Freestylers

When the Armed Tender’s bow crashed into the golden sand of Botany Bay on the 18^th of January 1788, a new tradition was born. The first fleet not only heralded the birth of Australia but also the yearly migration of Englishmen wishing to exchange the bleakness of their dire winter for a pint of lager on our pristine beaches.

Over 200 years later not much has changed; as the first rays of sun emerge, so they carry with them the descendants of our forefathers, most of whom are have swapped their cattle and seed for Samsonite luggage and UDG record bags, well at least that’s true for Aston Harvey and Matt Cantor who you know as the FREESTYLERS.

Unlucky for them, they dropped anchor on the ‘Sunshine’ Coast (I use the term loosely), where sunburn and topless models have been replaced by chaotic flooding and debris. “[We’ve] just arrived in Brisbane, on our way down to Byron Bay for a week. Been told the weather is going to be shit, so not a good start, Oh well, apart from that the tour has been going fantastic, some really great shows. Think Breakfest has been the highlight so far.”

In a period where the tired broken beat genre has been reintroduced as Dubstep and Drumstep, the last 12 months have been especially productive for the Brits, who are almost ready to drop their fifth studio album.

“We’re working towards a new album, but in the meantime we’ve been releasing quite a few tunes, the biggest one being Cracks. We’ve just upgraded our studio in London with a seriously loaded up Mac, so looking forward to going back and getting my head round it all,” says Cantor. “Also every two months we’ve been releasing DJ mixes on our SoundCloud which have been great fun to do and have been going down a storm with our fans.”

For those of you old enough to have followed the perennial party starters through their entire career, you will know how well renowned Harvey and Cantor are for their rocking live shows, something which has now been boosted with the addition of a new visual element. With this new technology, not since Thorpe Vs Van den Hoogenband will we have witnessed two Freestylers battle it out with as much gusto.

“A friend of mine in New Zealand did it for us. Looks great! It’s the first time we’ve ever had visuals, so be good to see how we can it develop it now. It’s just a plain simple DVD that’s been crafted with a load of random madness.”

Our viral international tourism campaign promised them sun, but even without our big yellow melanoma lamp in the sky, the lads will endeavour to deliver a bottom heavy smack down to the genre of breaks. “It needs a kick up its arse. I think all the boundaries are very blurred these days, so it makes for an interesting mix of music!”

Catch the Freestylers DJs live at Trinity Bar in Dickson on Sunday January 23. Free entry!

Dance: The Drop

I’m not going to drink as much, I want to get more sleep, I’m going to save more money, I will do more things outside on the weekends, I want to be fresher at work. Unfortunately I can’t help you with any of those new year’s resolutions; in fact, I am the evil voice in your other ear that whispers “it’s okay to spend all of your paycheck this weekend.” So next time a guy in women’s track pants and a ripped free promotional t-shirt comes up to you at the bus interchange asking for money, don’t go for your wallet, go for a high five instead because he probably just had a cracker of a weekend.

People keep asking me “is Dickson the new Kingston?” to which I respond “not until I’ve been woken up there in the gutter by police wearing only jeans and a Guns N Roses singlet.” However you may choose to quantify the emergence of a new local bar district, you have to acknowledge the return of Trinity Bar as one of the major players in the local scene. Next up on their agenda is Atlanta-based Stripper Disco champion Treasure Fingers on Saturday January 22. For those who don’t know, he was 50% responsible for the biggest hit of 2010 Coma Cat so this is a show you will probably tell your kids about… if you sober up enough to have any.

You trust me, right? After a few years doing this column I feel like we have some kind of mutual musical certitude going on, so you can feel safe taking the next piece of advice as gospel. The Stanton Warriors are up there with the best and most entertaining dance music acts on the planet. Dom B and Mark Yardley are returning to our city for a massive headline show at Academy on Friday January 28. For those of you on the water and sleep diet, this is definitely the one to break your ill fated 2011 detox for.

Things just keep getting better and better for our local heroes The Aston Shuffle. Vance’s beard has him being compared to a young George Michael and Mikah looks as if he could bench press Kim Beasley. Physical attributes aside, their achievements are also piling up in the studio as the duo have just completed initial work on their long awaited artist album, a feat you can help them celebrate at the InTheMix Sounds of Summer party at Academy on Friday February 4.

Bass lovers unite! Lot 33 has a freshly tuned sound system which has the potential to release your dinner early – that’s right, fear the brown noise, people. Be sure to pack a fresh pair of knickers for upcoming nights featuring ex pats Archie (Saturday January 22) and Jono Fernandez (Saturday January 29) and for my favourite Merimbula road trip, Stage Fright, which is coming to the dark red room on Saturday February 5 featuring sexual outlaws Team Wing.

We’re here, it’s a new year, welcome back to club land.

Tim Galvin's Top 10 Albums of 2010

10. Balance 016 – Agoria [EQ Recordings]

Techno expert Agoria provides a master class in sonic synthesis; two discs of absolute bliss mixed like a murky cocktail on a faraway beach. It’s like that little scruffy puppy at the pound, imperfect and yet alluring in all the right ways.

9. Pendulum – Immersion [Warner]

It was only a matter of time before our finest broken beat export produced something really special. Immersion proves that metal guitars and illegal drugs really do mix.

8. LCD Sound System – This Is Happening [DFA Records]

James Murphy is a fucking genius and if you don’t agree I will fight you in the face. Take all the coolest genres in the world and mash them into a shiny disc shaped object and I present to you This Is Happening, aptly titled because, well, it really is… right now.

7. B.o.B. – B.o.B. Presents The Adventures of Bobby Ray [Grand Hustle Records]

I could handle listening to commercial radio if every cheesy chart smash featured B.o.B. The best thing about him is that he doesn’t pretend to be anything but a well marketed hook monster, kidnapping your ears with catchy melodies and recklessly infectious lyrics. My guilty pleasure of 2010… shhhhh.

6. Slash – Slash [EMI]

Maybe I’m just a huge Gunners fan, maybe I was all hopped up on his awesome autobiography but I just liked this album a lot. This long awaited solo effort is perfect windows down cruising music for the aging ‘90s chart metal guru.

5. Eminem – Recovery [Aftermath/Shady]

Taken from my own review in BMA: “I can say without a shadow of a doubt that the lyrical delivery on Recovery is the best I have ever heard, and I am a huge hip-hop fan. Recovery is raw, honest and complete.” Nuff said really.

4. Cee Lo Green – Lady Killer [Elektra Recordings]

Brilliant, soulful, funny, loves a late night rendezvous and knows how to have a good time in a navy blue suit. My review of this album reads more like a lonely hearts advertisement.

3. Janelle Monae – The ArchAndroid (Suites II and III) [Bad Boy Records]

The strength in this debut release from newcomer Monae lies in its warm diversity. This is nu-era pop perfection; I have a lot of high hopes for little Miss J in 2011.

2. Caribou – Swim [Merge]

Swim is like the musical equivalent of a girl who wears her underpants on the outside; it’s attractively quirky in all the right places, namely the groin. This is baby making music.

1. Rusko – OMG [Downtown Records]

Rusko has been the most impressive purveyor of dark alley grime in 2010, and this long-player is a testament to his abilities as a gutter genius.

Dance: The Drop

December is a month of excess; a raucous last gasp effort to consummate your annual self contamination masterpiece before repenting your sins to the invisible priest who only appears inside the toilet bowl for the first few hours of the new year (Camode Confessions? Let’s pitch this one to MTV). So what have been your favourite moments of 2010? Don’t answer that question just yet because there might be some fresh additions to the list, beginning with a different kind of Ministry.

Gotta Make a Move was definitely one of my most played records this year, so caps off to Sydney-based hit machine Hook N Sling. It is no surprise then that the prince of progressive disco returns to Academy as a headliner for the 2010 Ministry of Sound Annual Tour on Friday December 17. Tickets are only $18.50, so it’s either this or a packet of Winfield Blue, and I know which option won’t give you yellow teeth.

The Vacation Records stable has produced a handful of genuine superstars over the years, none more so than audio wunderkind fRew. The 4Sound crew have managed to secure an exclusive show featuring the talented caps-lock accident on Friday December 24 at Lot 33. Can you put Santa plus one on the door list for me? Thanks.

Effigy just haven’t impressed us all enough this year, or at least that’s what they think, with another immensely over the top lineup squeezing into the comfy confines of Hippo Bar. Their next special event is a kinky all male threesome headed by German tech trance subduer Jerome Isma-Ae and featuring Canberra ex-pat Jaytech and interstate icon JML. Local supports for the night include Peekz, Fourthstate, String-Theory, Gabriel Gilmour and Brenton Kalisch, so take some advice from Green Velvet and ‘whip out your $15 and enter club land.”

Stop the press! If you were with me last issue you would have read my concern over the whereabouts of local promoter Hubert (PANG) – well it turns out that the big bear has just awoken from his winter hibernation and taken the reigns of swish Dickson nightspot Trinity Bar. Not one to waste any time, PANG’s December roster includes some early stocking stuffers like Sam La More (Syd) on Friday December 17, Bass Kleph and DJ PP (Uruguay) on Sunday December 19 and a special Xmas Eve party featuring former #1 DJ in Australia Ajax. Welcome back!

Those of you who aren’t making the holy pilgrimage to one of the many oversold interstate events on New Year’s Eve will be happy to find that Canberra can also provide a few satisfying options for your official ‘welcome to 2011’ celebrations. Academy have secured the services of MOS headliner Goodwill for their NYE event and the New Paradigms crew are set to unleash another stellar event out at Caloola Retreat featuring a swag of local and interstate performers.

To all you readers, I wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I’ll see you all back here in the year of flying cars and alcoholic robots, 2011.

Dance: The Drop

What do we care if it’s summer? Weekend UV is like kryptonite to any true disco disciple, racing home at 6am hiding behind our emergency service station sunglasses as the big yellow sphere threatens to break the horizon through the misty windshield of our comforting metal cocoon. Early morning joggers and dog walkers are our arch nemeses – how dare they live their healthy lifestyles right up in our pale faces! I beseech you to rise up o’ army of darkness and join me in blotting out the weekend sun, Death to Illumination!

Some of you may have seen Hubert’s mug on Canberra Milk cartons as a missing person. It’s just not possible to hide a ten foot Sasquatch slash male model in a city as small as ours and the reason he hasn’t been spotted by concerned locals is because he isn’t here. His PANG dynasty lives on in Wollongong at mega venue The Grand Hotel, with the next exciting instalment bringing break/funk legend Krafty Kuts to the fray on Saturday December 4, supported by Steve Lind, Cheese vs Offtapia, Bounce Crew DJs, Squeak N Bleep DJs, Aka Vs Lachlan Holland, Ruslan vs Wizz Fizz Kidz and Down to Joust vs Narrator. Hit up Moshtix for your $20 + bf slice of interstate heaven.

God I love good house music, it gives me a feeling similar to the one Joel Monaghan gets when he visits the pound clasping a fresh jar of sweaty breakfast spread. Give or Take is providing us addicts with a truly amazing fix when they usher German ‘erectro’ legends Tiefschwarz into Transit Bar on Friday December 10. Lucky supports for this evening of frivolity include Shepz, Circus DJs, Gabriel Gilmour, Biggie, Tim Heaney, Fourthstate and String~Theory. Do not miss.

4Sound have been depriving us of a lot of sleep lately, so much so that I imagine James Beetham has become Captain Snooze’s bête noire. Things are not looking good for December either, with another round of impressive double headers including tYdi and Marlo on Saturday December 11 followed by Sam Scratch and Kraymer on Saturday December 18. Supports for both shows include Enerv8 and Jerry Seaniger, Kimosabi, Team Wing and B-tham.

So what do you guys have planned for this weekend? If you said anything but “Foreshore!” in an overly excited manner then I’m sorry to hear it. I have harped on enough about the actual festival itself but there is one more fact that you may want to consider – the afterparty! Kicks have locked in a couple of rejuvenation specialists in Art Vs Science and The Stafford Brothers to keep your legs moving well into the next day. The venue is of course Academy and tickets will sell at the door for around $15, bargain!

Finally, big props to local up and comer Skin N Bones for taking out the inaugural Foreshore sound search DJ competition. I’m sure they will provide punters with a special set on the day!

See you all at the festival!

DJ Krush

When Hideaki Ishii pushed the video cassette into his VCR and saw the Wild Style label disappear into the machine, the seemingly innocuous incident would change the young man’s life forever. His introduction to US hip-hop culture in the early ‘80s via the iconic urban film would set off a chain reaction of events that not only redefined the man, but also the industry into which he was reborn. As far as hip-hop is concerned, it would be safe to say that it was more than just a KRUSH.

A true innovator, Krush set about experimenting with live instruments; as more of a soundscape artist than a DJ, he released his first artist album all the way back in 1994. The critically acclaimed Krush gave birth to the genre of trip-hop, a genus which, rather than constrict the boundaries of hip-hop, gave it exponential potential as an art form. Fast forward to 2010 and Krush is still pushing the boundaries of urban music.

“I’m working hard for new productions. I’ve got a single coming out next January and a new album coming out next July,” he says. “Also I’m joining the band Method of Defiance and playing with Bill Laswell, Bernie Warrell, Toshinori Kondo, Dr Israel and Gy Licata. And MOD’s album was just released this October and I will perform for the release party in NY tomorrow! I hope to bring this band to Australia in future.”

Krush’s sound is as indefinable as it is concise; his emergence as an artist in a scene previously dominated by US influences was a significant factor in the rise in popularity of hip-hop music in Japan, although Krush remains prudent on the subject. “Some of them still follow the American scene but there are many original Japanese artists coming out and it looks interesting for me.”

He also feels a real responsibility in his position as an international ambassador for not only his own culture but also for the evolution of hip-hop. “Yes I’m putting a message in all of my productions! The message is different and depends on the tracks but I’m always keeping my originality in my tracks,” says Krush. “I’m always travelling all over the world so I’ve got many influences from my family, people, views, smells, nature.”

The Krush live experience is augmented by both his talents as a turntablist and his unique ability to defy logic, to ignore convention and provide a truly new experience for the listener. A true man of modest words, the artist simply sums up his ability by saying “[it’s] just feeling.”

On the live front, Krush is excited about his impending return to Australia, a country which he has a deep affection for. “I’m always having a great time in Australia when I perform. I am going to play many new productions and maybe some will be included on my new album. So don’t miss it!”

DJ Krush will be playing an intimate show live at Transit Bar on Thursday December 2. Tickets are $25 + bf through Moshtix and doors open at 8pm.

Dance: The Drop

The very first thing you need to do to become a superstar DJ is to come up with a name. You need a snappy alias, something that says ‘I am a god, but I also bleed’ – something celestial but approachable. Do not make this decision lightly or you will end up on the lost island of idiotic stage names alongside lackadaisical luminaries like ‘Whisker Biscuit,’ ‘DJ Samoan Carebear’ and ‘DJ MuffyMcSnatchFace.’ And just in case you were wondering, oh yes, those are real.

One artist who managed to forge the right balance is DJ Krush. His moniker suggests that he will pulverise his opponents with so little as the breath of air from his cross-fader, but it is spelt with a ‘K’ and is therefore hip and non-threatening. You can test my theory on Thursday December 2 when the Japanese wizard will be appearing in a special intimate show at Transit Bar. Tickets are only $25, so you pretty much have no excuse not to attend, right?

Canberra’s very own hetero life mates, Paul Beohm and Paul Richter (better known as Karton) have just released their long awaited artist album, entitled For All Seasons. As the title suggests, this epic anthology contains a mixture of future sounds and is a testament to their passion for electronic music. Grab a digital copy on iTunes now or if you like holding things in your clammy hands, you can also wander in to Landspeed Records for your chance to pick up a limited run CD. Support local music!

Now, I promised you last week that I would hunt down one of the Kicks Directors for an exclusive chat about Foreshore 2010, which as we go to print has officially sold out! I checked my carefully laid bear trap the next morning and found co-founder Paul Azzopardi to be quite conversational for someone with a bleeding leg.*

“The layout will be even better than previous years. The event site has been expanded and moved to be able to hold the massive production of Tiesto and The Temper Trap as well as providing more trees and lovely green grass!” says Paul. “The expanded event site, East and West Lawns, is one of the most unique event sites in the country.”

And on the inclusion of a few hip-hop acts, he adds “the Block Party stage has also been added to create even more diversity on the line-up... when Pharoahe Monch and Chip Fu from Fu Schnickens became available we knew we had the ingredients to make a stage that would have fans of this sound losing their minds! I think we have the recipe for the best Foreshore yet and the best event Canberra has ever seen.”

Finally, from local legend to future kings, Loose Youth are fast becoming one of the hottest electro tag teams in the ACT. You can catch the duo dropping heat at Stage Fright at the Merimbula Lakeview Hotel on Saturday December 18. Adios!

• No Foreshore promoters were hurt in the creation of this article.

Dance: The Drop

It is a well known fact that Canberrans love to party. Gift us with us a Monday off work under the clever guise of a public holiday and we will find a way to justify spending most of our 72 hour hiatus with a vice-like grip around a frosty mind-altering beverage.

But now that the season of the three day party pass has subsided, we must focus all of our giddy mind powers back onto our old pal ‘the weekend.’

The Purple Sneakers DJs must have a thing for Canberra. They visit the capital more frequently than our venerable Prime Minister and probably have a bigger fan-base than our copper-haired commander to ‘boot.’ You can catch them at their second home, Transit Bar, on Friday October 29 for an explosive special event including Stonefest headliners Bluejuice, who are performing an exclusive DJ set. Indie high five!

What’s this? A Sunday party? But you have work tomorrow! You can’t possibly… ah who am I kidding, its Superpitcher! The German Kompact label legend is appearing for one night only at Transit Bar on Sunday October 31, proudly presented by Lollygag and Effigy. Biggie, Bobbin, Tim Heaney, Brenton K, Pete Canell, Ced Nada and Anjay will be your co-pilots for an evening of ‘f*ck Monday’ mayhem.

Those of you who spent a large portion of 2007 trapped in clubland will be familiar with UK producer/DJ, D.Ramirez. His chart topping remix of Bodyrox – Yeah Yeah made him one of the hottest properties in dance music and the 4Sound team have managed to lure him into the red belly of Lot 33 for a special intimate show on Friday November 5. Supports include Fourthstate, Skin N Bones, Team Wing and B-tham and all they ask for is a measly $10, get on board!

Well shiver me timbers, the lads at Effigy must be all hopped up on Mountain Dew! The new kings of the underground are putting on another top quality event at Hippo Bar on Saturday November 6. This installment brings yet another duo of headliners, with Moshic (Israel) and Kayla Scintilla (aka Merkaba) appearing behind the square table. Regular locals Peekz, Eukali, String Theory, Yohan Strauss and Gabriel Gilmour promise to make your evening a regular progressive hoedown.

One of the big finds of 2010 has been local music manipulator Jared De Veer. In only a few months he has gone from relative obscurity to headlining gigs at Academy and appearing on the Foreshore lineup. You can catch him rocking the main room at the old cinema on Saturday October 30. Big ups!

Finally, I have a bit of ‘just to hand’ news here. I know a lot of you are as excited as I am about the 2010 Foreshore Summer Music Festival and that you may have a few questions about what this year’s massive event will be like. Well, I managed to corner Kicks co-founders Paul Azzopardi and Ryan Phillips for an exclusive insight, so tune in for that next edition!

Timo Maas - Balance 17 [Balance Music]

The Balance CD series has provided a platform for some of the most exciting international dance music producer/DJs to dig into the dark depths of their record collections and provide listeners with a unique insight into their avant-garde persona; and German ‘percussive funk’ legend Timo Maas’ effort is no different.

The most appealing attribute of the Balance format is that it gives the artist two discs in which to build a club symphony. On Disc One, Maas weaves us through a morning chorus into stellar tracks like Solvent - Lost for Words (Vector Lovers Remix), Deetron - Sing, The Crystal Ark - The city never sleeps and one of my all time favourites, the classic Danny Tenaglia - Elements. The throbbing hum of the finale leads us into Disc Two, where Maas ramps it up into full club mode.

The evilly haunting Mutant Clan (one of Maas’ side projects) remix of Mark Romboy and Stephan Bodzin - Luna wastes no time in getting its groove on, setting the scene for a more housey techno sound. This is perpetuated by Alex Dolby and Santos - To be Large and The Mole - Nervous Disid before the disc slowly shifts back into early morning techno with several more Mutant Clan originals and re-edits. Maas closes off the epic two hour performance with a hands in the air redux of Placebo - Ashtray Heart, a fitting end to an impressive journey.

Rhys Darby

If you were to examine a Fantale wrapper containing clues like ‘born in New Zealand’, ‘served in the armed forces’ and ‘Hollywood movie star’, you’d probably have a fiver on Russell Crowe. It might surprise you then to learn that the answer to that particular cryptic confectionary catechism is in fact Rhys Darby.

It has been quite a spiffing year for the genial kiwi, who has appeared in several A-list features alongside actors like Jim Carrey and Phillip Seymour Hoffman.

“That’s what this live show is all about; It’s about me telling everyone how brilliant my agent is!” Says Darby. “It’s a bit like Paul Hogan’s success in the 80s, Crocodile Dundee and that kind of thing... Shit I better make Crocodile Dundee 4 or something like that!”

Most fans of visual tomfoolery will know Darby best for his role as bumbling band manager Murray Hewitt on Flight of the Concords, a typecast he has found hard to avoid.

“The number of times people basically want me to be Murray again, I mean it’s going to happen but it’s all about trying to change onto another track now and then a little bit later on when people are bored I’ll go back to what’s brilliant” he laughs.

Lucky for him the offers just keep rolling in, with Darby even being rumored to replace Steve Carell’s character in TV’s The Office. As far as confirmed roles go, Darby is injecting a bit of testosterone into his resume by playing the lead in an upcoming feature film called Love Birds.

“(A character) that’s more attractive to ladies instead of just being a nerdy dick. I thought, ‘why don't I just do my hair up a bit and work out a couple of times at the gym and be sexy?’” says Darby, “so now we’ve done that, we’ll see if people believe it”.

The first few pavers in Darby’s yellow brick road were laid in the smoky confines of New Zealand's small comedy clubs, his energetic routines highlighted by a penchant for rib tickling sound effects; a talent he mastered as a kid in the sand pit.

“Whenever I played with my cars or my Star Wars figures I would do the sound effects of all the laser guns and space ships. I thought anyone could do it, but a bit later on when I started doing comedy people would come up to me and say ‘wow how did you do those sounds?’ and I was like ‘what? You can’t do them?’” he laughs.

Finally, I ask the electric copper-haired larrikin: who would prevail in a battle to the death between him and the man he is often compared to, Ricky Gervais?

“Oh me hands down, although I don't know about a dance-off, probably even Stevens!”

Rhys Darby appears at the Canberra Theatre on Sunday October 24. For tickets phone 02 62752700 or visit www.canberratheatrecentre.com.au

Dance: The Drop

Contrary to popular belief, the life of a die hard disc jockey is not an easy one.

Sure, you get free drinks, a high five from the bouncers and a healthy pay packet at the end of the night but the price for all the beguiling fringe benefits is that you are reduced to an eternal night owl fueled by MP3s and imported beer. Your weekends revolve around dark rooms and loud tunes, an underground world of high heels and sweaty foreheads where seas of square toothed vampires huddle in loose circles to avoid sleep. To live where other people come to play is a demanding profession, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.

One of the main motivating factors for any DJ is a love for music, and my love for music came from listening to artists like Hybrid. The UK two piece are legendary in these parts for their amazing extended sets and are returning to the bush capital on Friday October 15 for an unmissable show in the Academy main room. Local lads Karton are also rocking the support slot so it is guaranteed to be the best $10 you will ever spend!

On the same night on the other side of town, The Maram is being shaken to its very foundations by a night of broken beat mayhem called Junglism 8 (now with more sequels than Police Academy). The sonic earthquake is headlined by none other than drum n bass star Mechwarrior (Canada) who is ably supported by a plethora of local talent including Benjammin, Dred, Escha, Twisted System, Shifty Business and Rabid Munkeys.

Rounding off another epic night of clubbing mayhem is a special edition of 4Sound Sessions at Lot 33. This particular event plays host to the long lost art of break beat, featuring exclusive breaks sets from Tim Galvin, Rideckulous DJ’s, LYLT and Legodancer.

The party doesn’t stop there, with the red light district backing it up on Saturday October 16 with Sydney based house music connoisseur John Glover, who will be heaving a flight bag of exclusive new material up to the Lot 33 turntables alongside your regular flight crew of Captain B-tham, First Officer Team Wing and Flight Technician LYLT.

What do Phife Dawg and Ali Shaheed Muhammad from legendary US hip-hop gods A Tribe Called Quest, Chip Fu (Fu Schnickens), Krafty Kuts, Diafrix and local lads Koolism and D’opus & Roshambo all have in common? They have just been added to the already ridiculously impressive Foreshore lineup for 2010. I warned you that we were in for a treat this year! Tickets are flying out the door, so make sure to grab yours as soon as your cheque clears to avoid disappointment.

To round off the issue, I’ll leave you with a top prediction for your summer clubbing season. Local electronic producer/DJs Peking Duck have proven themselves to be one of the best young acts to come through our scene since Chris Fraser first grew facial hair. Keep an eager eye out for the strapping duo in a dark throbbing room near you.

Josh Thomas

Josh Thomas’ brand new Barry Award nominated stand up show is called ‘Surprise’, so it shouldn’t come as a shock to many of you that the performance may contain a satin glove-full of social curveballs - such as coming out to his parents via text message.

“I just think a big sit down, coming out thing was a bit too 90’s for me, and I didn't want to be old fashioned, so I sent them a text message. I just couldn't be bothered really. I think I have the same attitude when I do my taxes”.

Thomas, or, as your mother would know him, the Gen Y ‘team captain’ from Channel Ten’s hit TV show ‘Talkin’ bout your Generation’, built the theme for his stand up show around his experiences of his first serious relationship; one that has since dissolved, forcing him to switch a few words around in his routine.

“I just use the past tense and I get away with it. It’s been nice, we had our official opening night last night, all this media were there and I thought they would all be big idiot douches but they were enthusiastic and they laughed and even clapped at the end.”

Back in 2005, Thomas took the gong in the Melbourne International Comedy Festival’s RAW Comedy Competition, which was no mean feat for an impish 17 year old.

“I don't think I really had any confidence, I don't really know why I did it. The first time I did a gig I almost vomited, it was pretty terrifying!”

Since he ‘came out’ as a stand up, Thomas’ trademark shaggy bed hair has become acquainted with all manner of audiences across the world, including Ireland, The USA, Belgium and Scotland.

“The Irish people didn't really like me too much. The older generation in Ireland has had it really rough and the new generation has had it really good, so my comedy, about how much I like Ipods, they didn't really get into.”

On-stage success led to the gig with Channel Ten, and has proven to be a valuable learning curve for the young comedian. “Amanda and Charlie always have to leave because they have real jobs to go to, whereas me and Shaun (Micallef) don't. So we just sit down and eat the sandwiches and he tells me about comedy, and it’s really interesting because he, like, knows about it” he laughs.

But it wasn't all light-hearted banter over complimentary ham and cheese triangles, with the realisation that ‘Generation’ was becoming an unstoppable ratings juggernaut.

“I nearly said no to it actually, which sounds pretty stupid. The first time I did it was in front of 1.7 million people who didn't know who I was, and I could just sense the nation deciding whether or not they liked me.”

Josh Thomas appears at the Canberra Theatre on October 8 and 9. For bookings visit www.canberratheatrecentre.com.au or call 02 6275 2700.

Dance: The Drop

Paul Kelly said it best – “From little things, big things grow.”

As some of you may have discerned via your internet machine, our finest export The Aston Shuffle have taken out the number one ranking in the country in the 2010 inthemix poll.

Mikah Freeman and Vance Musgrove both came from humble beginnings. They were raised by street corners with only a pile of old Mixmags to call their Dad. They dreamed of music, of a better place, so they hustled local basketball courts and beat boxed outside Landspeed Records, finally scrounging up enough dirty coins to buy their first set of turntables. The rest is history. This column, I dedicate to those who have also suffered from an absurd fictional back story, just like the one above.

With summer beginning to coax the Canberra hibernation brigade out of their winter dungeons, so begins the veritable smorgasbord of Sunday afternoon ‘sun, beer and beats’ bar events that make Monday morning into a swear word. 4sound kick things off with Sunday Beats on the Boardwalk on October 3 at Ha Ha Bar featuring B-Tham, Bernie Mac and Ashley ‘Lego Man’ Feraude.

Without wanting to toot my own horn, after a great gig there a few weeks ago alongside the Team Wing boys, I can highly recommend the Merimbula Lake View Hotel as a fantastic venue for those of you who like to party by the seaside. Timmy Trumpet trundles his brass into the main room on Saturday October 2 for his exclusive south coast appearance.

I don’t remember my first birthday, but I’m sure I did a lot of dribbling, clapping and falling over. I’m sure Effigy won’t remember theirs either, but you can! The lads have a duo of internationals performing at their inaugural soiree on Saturday October 9 at Hippo Bar. Headliners Kasey Taylor (Portugal) and Mike Monday (UK) promise to cut you the biggest slice of cake, so don’t forget to bring your presence!

Where did you go to school? Was it Grafton Primary? If so then you might remember the Garden brothers! You know, the ones who were always dressed better than you and surrounded by keyboards? Well they are back in town at The Maram on Friday October 22 with their lifelong playground buddies the Yacht Club DJs; why not make it a reunion?

Interstate crossover warriors the Bag Raiders are lugging their super terrific Shooting Star live show to the main stage at Academy on Friday October 22. The tour celebrates the long awaited release of their debut self titled album and is brought to you by Academy, Kicks, Pang and the number ‘7’ [I love that guy – Bossman].

OK, it’s young gun o’clock. He may sound like someone who dresses up as a fireman for soft porn calendars but Levi Howes is most well known for his DJing. You can catch the rising star weekly on Saturdays at North Bar or at guest appearances for Mingle and Kicks.

Total Eclipse

For most X-ecutioners the weapon of choice is a jagged battle axe or blood stained guillotine, but NYC native TOTAL ECLIPSE prefers two turntables and a mixer for his killer blow.

Keith Bailey, or Total Eclipse to you, was born in Brooklyn where he was raised on the smell and feel of vinyl like most of us were raised on Sesame Street, a fact which played havoc with his father’s collection of R&B and funk records. “When I was born, I became my Dad’s worst nightmare in regards to his record collection,” Bailey says. “At six months old, I started to pull up his record crates, taking a special liking to his vinyl. As I grew older, I began to take them out of the record sleeve and place them on tables and floors to play with them.”

One of the questions we are asked as kids is ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’. Bailey was one of the lucky few with a path laid right from the beginning. “My friends were regular kids who were into sports and girls, which I was as well, but at times I would oddly disappear to hang around older guys who carried a big boom box radio around the neighbourhood playing loud hip-hop, R&B and reggae. I was so attracted to the music.”

Before long he discovered the art of vinyl manipulation. Once he saw a shiny halo appear above the ones and twos, there was no turning back. “The summer time was the best when the DJs, during a street party, would bring their equipment out to sound clash with one another. It was fun to watch,” Bailey recalls. “That was me in Brooklyn witnessing how a DJ can control a vibe whilst riding my bike, doing pop-a-wheelies, playing basketball, and being just hypnotized to the music.”

The teenage Bailey soon found his own style and quickly rose to the top of the stack, taking out some of the highest accolades that a young deck wizard could achieve (including time with battle legends the X-ecutioners), feats that have netted him some impressive silverware over the years including the coveted ITF title.

“I have a lot of memorabilia I keep around that’s not just DJ titles or other awarding accomplishments. Roc Raida gave me a pair of Nas’ One Love DJ slipmats for my turntables that weren’t released to the public,” Bailey says. “My grandmother gave me her entire record collection before she passed away which I felt was pretty special.”

Fast forward to today, the turntable star is bringing his legendary show to Canberra, promising to block out the sun with a 12” record. “When I leave Canberra, I wanna feel proud that I gave the people what they came to see… moving forward, as your Prime Minister would say.”

You can catch Total Eclipse at Transit Bar on Saturday September 25, supported by Buick, DJ DFP and Faux Real. Entry is a mere ten of your Earth clams.

Dance : The Drop

Good things always come in threes. We have The Three Musketeers, The Three Stooges, Charlie’s Angels and, of course, the best thing France has ever contributed to the world in the ménage a trois.  Saturday September 25 is no exception, with three multifarious local parties designed to make your wallet melt. Whether you are a head nodding cap jockey, a Parliament shopping podium warrior or a blog posting chin-stroker, this particular day has enough firepower to satisfy your deepest and darkest dancefloor desires.

Scratch legends The X-Ecutioners were single handedly responsible for progressing the art of turntablism in the mid ‘90s. Like a big ol’ eight-armed octopus, the dream team defied physics with its mind bending display of inconceivable vinyl trickery, none more so than scratch master Total Eclipse. The New York native is lugging his bag of tricks to Transit Bar on Saturday September 25 supported by locals Buick, DJ DFP and Faux Real. Transit Bar; where $10 will buy you more scratch than your local newsagent.

Gotta Make A Move is undoubtedly one of the biggest club anthems of the year and a personal favourite in my recent sets. There are two people you can thank for that, being Hook N Sling and Snob Scrilla, and both talents are appearing together at Club Chaos at The Hellenic Club in the City on Saturday September 25. Towing the line in the two room extravaganza are DJ Sal, Peking Duck and UC Cows, who will be blinding punters in a specially constructed UV room. Lasers are so 2009.

4Sound have been building the infamous Lot 33 weekend roster into a most impressive cache of late, the most recent ‘X’ for your clubbing calendar being Melbournite Muska on, you guessed it, Saturday September 25. The techno aficionado will be transforming your feet into burning embers alongside B-tham, Samdup and Mus Mus. Do not miss!

If you have ever said ‘whoa man, that orange knows what I’m thinking’ then you probably already have your ticket to the annual Dragon Dreaming Festival. This yearly celebration of colour, sound and togetherness returns to the Old Kowen Homestead over the weekend of October 1-4 with psychadelic acts like Hyperception, Twilight, Lost Keys, Sun in Aquarius, Bent Intent and Mental Extensions making your $90 contribution worthwhile.

Speaking of festivals, have you guys heard of Stonefest? Of course you have, it’s been around longer than your dad! The soirée of choice for goon guzzling Uni students comes right for us on Saturday October 30 with another strong line-up bulging at the seams with local and international talent including Pendulum, Bliss N Eso, Spiderbait, The Funktrust DJs Silent Disco, Purple Sneakers DJs and my personal favourite Does it Offend You, Yeah?. Tickets range from $94.40 to $171.40. Does not come with free beer hat.

Remember Beverley Hills 90210? If you said yes, then you would also remember plastic American dreamboat Jason Priestley. His possible half brother, 19-year-old local lad Chris Priestley has been making his own waves in the local dance music community, with a swag of impressive progressive house releases landing him a spot on the roster at Marcus Knight’s Generation Records. Check him out on Sound Cloud by searching ‘Chris Priestley music’. Holler at ya boi!

Dance : The Drop

Yeah, I know, it’s cold.

Hell, you could easily while away your weekend two days off with your feet up on the couch thumbing through your iPhone and living vicariously through your friends’ status updates if you really wanted to. Or, you could just join them.

Would you like to know more?

The ever so smooth disco ballad Crave You has been on high rotation on triple j in the last few months, solidifying interstate duo Flight Facilities as one of the hottest acts to appear on our clubbing radar in the new financial year. The debonair Party by Jake crew have been clever enough to coax the pair down to Canberra for an exclusive performance on Friday September 3, at Transit Bar. Entry will set you back a paltry 16 Euro (or 23 AUD if you want to get all ‘patriotic’) and doors open at 8pm, but tickets are available through Moshtix if you want to get in early.

What do you know about Turkey other than its exquisite pide bread and the word Gallipoli? Know this: it turns out they also churn out top quality DJs, most notably Bosphorous Underground Recordings honcho Ahmet Sendil who, thanks to the lads at Effigy is dragging a record bag full of rolling minimal techno up the stairs into Hippo Bar on Thursday September 9.

But wait, there’s more! Effigy will be back at it again and in conjunction with Lollygag to present German rising star David Keno at Transit Bar on Saturday September 18. He is either the namesake for the fun-when-drunk pick-a-ball-out-of-the-rolling-cage-gambling-game, or the Berlin based house and tech house super producer. I’m guessing probably the latter.

Now that those darned road works are gone, Academy can finally prove to passers by that it is still open for business and with a September as big as this one planned, that’s surely a good thing for you club kids. Friday September 3 sees The Stafford Brothers spread their trashy antics all over the main stage, Friday September 17 heralds the ACT debut of Belgian drum ‘n’ bass maestro Alix Perez, Friday September 24 brings a little piece of Parklife to our fair city with UK fidget kings Jack Beats tearing the roof off the old cinema, and just when you thought this monstrous sentence was over, Magik Johnson (UK) is also stopping by on Saturday September 25 for an exclusive DJ set.

And now for something new, with the plethora of talented young artists busting through the cracks of our local scene it is only fitting to show some support with a few final words in each issue’s dance column. First cab off the rank is The Bedroom Bangers, a local duo comprising of part time models and full time party animals, Kim Eaton and Jarred Smith. Their debut set at Lot 33 last month raised the roof; make sure to check them out at their next performance!

To all you other young DJs or producers please feel free to send me a mix or give me your info and I’ll do my best to provide textual love. Adios!

Eminem - Recovery [Interscope / Shady Records]

Recovery is a statement. A statement of what is really up to the listener; for me it’s all about vindication. One thing you realise on the first listen of Recovery is that everything that has happened in his whole career has happened for a reason: experience.

After being disappointed by the direction of The Eminem Show and Encore and only slightly reignited by Relapse, true fans of the trailer park troubadour have finally been served a decorous dish in the form of his new album.

Although some might say the use of several different producers on the record takes away the ‘album’ feel and makes it sound more like a collection of songs, I think it works as an advantage. Tracks like 25 to Life, Spaceman, Going Through Changes and Cinderella Man are just brilliant. Recovery is Slim Shady at his most re-listenable; this is a rap album with character more than a pop chart album laced with street poetry. The real strength of this album lies in the combination of catchy choruses, the variety of flows and the consistently unbelievable rhymes.

I can say without a shadow of a doubt that the lyrical delivery on Recovery is the best I have ever heard, and I am a huge hip-hop fan. Recovery is raw, honest and complete. This is Eminem throwing his critics the microphone and saying ‘tell these people something they don’t know about me’.

Lee Coombs

LEE COOMBS is like an urban volcano. For years he lays dormant, bubbling away under the crust of his Orlando studio, and only once in a while will he release a puff of steam here or a rumble there. But it’s just to remind the townspeople that he is still here, still hungry. He is never forgotten.

Just when we least expect it, when our lives appear calm and invulnerable, he explodes back onto the scene with a cataclysmic eruption, this time around shooting out a lava-hot artist album full of tech house and break beat, cordially named ‘Light and Dark’.

“I wanted it to be a proper album, I wanted people to be able to go back and appreciate it a few years down the track” says the UK native. “What I didn’t want to do is put out an up-to-the-minute album that dates really quickly. I think I have been able to produce the complete opposite with this album” he admits proudly.

His past few years have been defined by a change of scenery, as Coombs deserted the bleak surrounds of England and made his way to the endless American summer that awaited in Florida. Here, Coombs has cultivated a deep appreciation for an entirely new way of living. “It’s very tropical here. It’s a great place to be and the sunshine helps a bit with inspiration, but I guess when I was back in the UK with the weather being so bad all the time it really forced you to stay inside in the studio so it was also good in a way” he admits with a laugh.

Away from his home life, Coombs’ American experience has been ruled by a deep connection with the city of San Francisco, the artist choosing the bay area as his regular haunt for club gigs.

“It’s such a vibey place” he says. “I just love going there. I love the attitude and the spark of it; it’s just different to anywhere else. You can find everything that is good in that city, whatever styles of music you like, that’s why I keep going back.”

When not living on the road, which Coombs admits is rare these days, he spends most of his down time in a new studio where he is currently reinventing his most famous incarnation as a break beat icon, exciting news for us older fans.

“The strange thing with that is that there are a lot of kids out there now who have never heard that stuff before so my finest moment to date is completely irrelevant to them” he laughs. “I have been inspired to get back into it recently. A bunch of us got together and decided that there is going to be a bit of a revival so we are going to start releasing a bunch of brand new underground breaks soon”. Just when you think the eruption has finished…

Lee Coombs will be playing at The Maram on Friday August 20. Tickets are available through Moshtix $10 + bf or $20 on the door.

Paqman

It’s true to say that if PAQMAN had affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in dark rooms, munching pills and listening to repetitive music. With tongue now firmly planted in cheek, I welcome one half of the electronic duo Hayden Quinn onto the page, who explains why the ex-Canberran is now sporting a nifty (Melbourne) tag beside their moniker.

“Really, we aren’t too fussed” he says with a laugh. “Melbourne is a much more exciting place to be living. It’s culturally much more interesting, especially over our side of town. Footscray is buzzing with interesting people and cultures, and the food! But, we are very much looking forward to coming back to Canberra; it’s always a heap of fun seeing friends and family.”

The duo bounded onto the scene several years ago after winning a DJ competition and quickly generated more buzz than Disney’s doll factory after the release of Toy Story.

“Jaytech was judging it [the competition] so was really nice to receive positive feedback from him at such a young age. I think we were like 16 or something” says Quinn.

Known for their mature and somewhat eclectic sets, the duo’s electronic epiphany was realised in their early teens. While class mates were still being lulled by top 40 auto tune, they had moved on to classic Fatboy Slim and Chemical Brothers records.

“I think the deal was that because we got into that “commercial shit” really early, we were also on an earlier route to expanding those horizons. In 2001, James and I would go out every weekend, to Sanity or Revolution CD and even though we had no money, we would pick out about 20 CDs, take them up to the counter and inform the poor 17 year old girl behind the counter that we would very much like to listen to these to decide if we would buy them. We never did.”

As soon as they realised it was probably cheaper to make music themselves, the duo began fiddling with Ableton and finding their ‘sound’, which Quinn explains is still hard to generalise.

“We have always stressed we don’t make “dance music” we make electronic music, and are inspired by so many different genres. The goal is never to make a track that “goes off on a big system”, but to make interesting music that you can listen to over and over again” he says.

“I think we enjoy ourselves most when mistakes are made” he says “If you see James giving me an earnest smile, it means he’s just done something the two of us find hilarious, but probably sounds unbelievably confronting on the dance floor.” Quinn also warns “We have a noise fetish and aren’t afraid to drop out into incohesive loud noise every now and then, it’s nice to hear our machinery making noises.”

Catch Paqman as part of Ug Beats on Saturday September 4, at Floriade Night Fest on Friday September 24, and on Saturday September 25 at the all ages Digbyfest at the Woden Youthie with Pleased to Jive You and Astrochem.

Dance : The Drop

Ladies and gentlemen this is tonight’s main event! Introducing, in the red corner, from Commonwealth Place Canberra, the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world, the shake and bake by the lake, the three stage malaise, the bureau of fluro, the 2010 Foreshore Summer Music Festival!

Remember when you were walking out of the gates in 2009 and you turned to your friend and said “Mate, that…whoa! Hang on, that’s a tree! Man I’m hammered” then you turned the other way and said “Mate, that was the best day of my life. I already can’t wait until next year.”

Well guess what? You don’t have to wait much longer.

The boys at Kicks Entertainment have dropped the first round announcements like a ton of bricks. The only question I have is, who the hell is the headliner? With an unbelievable array of equally deserving talent including the world’s #1 DJ Tiesto, The Temper Trap, Calvin Harris, Benny Benassi, Major Lazer, Afrojack, Luciano, Caspa, Art vs Science, Cut Copy and Miami Horror, the festival just keeps getting mind bogglingly bigger and better, like Jason Statham’s lateral obliques.

Words can’t explain how monumentally excited I am about this… So much so that I don’t even want to talk about anything else. If it’s OK with you I’m just going to sit here and you can talk amongst yourselves for the next 300 words or so.

Well actually in all fairness, there are a few months to fill between now and Saturday November 27 so I might just run through a few of your current clubbing options while I have you all here with me.

A Night of Prog makes a long awaited return to Mercury Bar on Saturday August 7. The night is a unique event in our city, loaded with the best in underground classics for your eardrums. The line up for this instalment includes Amplidyne, Jonesy, Gabriel Gilmour, String~Theory (AKA Beat It), Ryz, Sølsta, Miracle Blue and a special Vinyl Only classic progressive record battle between Peekz and yours truly, Tim Galvin.

I have had a lot of people ask me recently “What happened to the hard scene in Canberra?”. Well it’s probably wherever you left it last, down the back of the couch or next to your keys in the refrigerator. Until it resurfaces, the team at Effigy are presenting a huge Sunday session at Transit Bar on August 8 featuring none other than the prince of perpetual motion himself, John 00 Fleming. Get your tickets at Moshtix or at the door from 2pm on the day.

Holy shit, it’s Lee Coombs! Sorry, I just couldn’t think of any other way to introduce the second last paragraph. The breakbeat and tech house master is flying into our city for one night only at The Maram (for those of you who don’t know it’s on Gartside Street in Wanniassa) on Friday August 20. If you love the Plump DJs and The Freestylers, do not miss this!

I’ll leave you with this last thought just to bookend this column with juicy festival goodness. Please, please, please buy your Foreshore ticket now because it will sell out soon and I would love to see all of you there.

TIM GALVIN

Scissor Sisters

There are bands and there are phenomenons. Without doubt the SCISSOR SISTERS fall into the latter category. The American five-piece exploded onto the charts way back in 2003 with their poppy redux of the classic Pink Floyd track Comfortably Numb, which garnered praise from both commercial and club cliques alike. By 2007, the group had achieved iconic status after the release of two chart-topping albums loaded with hit singles. Strangely then, they disappeared into the depths of creative evolution and have now returned to reclaim their identity in the form of Night Work.

“There wasn’t really a hiatus other than Jake going to Berlin for a while,” says co-founder Babydaddy. “It was just us being us, making the most of our downtime like sitting down and writing a story or making art to fulfil our creative side. It’s good to get our heads out of the music for a while so we didn’t get too obsessed with the album.”

Luckily for the group, for their latest incarnation they managed to secure the services of uber producer Stuart Price, who DJs will know better by one of his many monikers including Jacques Lu Cont, Les Rythmes Digitales and the Thin White Duke.

“We have actually known him longer than most people. He took us on our first tour back in 2004. We aren’t the kind of band who just gets given tracks by a producer, we have kind of created a sound ourselves and he understands that,” he says. “In that way it’s great to work with someone as talented and strong-minded as he is.”

During their two year demiurgic break, the void left in their absence was quickly filled by a handful of imitators riding on the sequined coattails of their success. Rather than becoming beleaguered by these newcomers, Babydaddy seems much more pragmatic, even when I bring up the word ‘Mika.’

“If I had to quote, imitation is the greatest form of flattery. I mean it’s good to know you are successful and that you have influenced other people.” Though he adds coyly, “it also gives us that added motivation to be better and not just clichéd, like others.”

As they are well known for their overly elaborate live performances, the process of putting together a Scissor Sisters show is nothing short of incredible. Holding a ticket to one of their concerts not only guarantees you a good time, but also a completely unique experience, as Babydaddy explains.

“A lot of back and forth goes into our shows – it’s a huge collaboration and not something that is just delivered to us,” he says. “We always decide on an individual basis what is best for each campaign because we want to show people we are a great live band.”

See Scissor Sisters either at the Big Top at Sydney’s Luna Park on Tuesday July 27 (tickets via Ticketmaster) or at Splendour in the Grass.

Richard Vission

Prior to the release of his hit single I Like That alongside Static Revenger, RICHARD VISSION wasn’t exactly what you would call a household name in Australia. In a similar case to artists like Ian Carey and The Bloody Beetroots, the industry has proven that all it takes is one track to open up a whole new world of opportunity for a musician – although there is no such thing as overnight success, explains the Canadian born artist.

“I spend a lot of time in the studio, sometimes up to seven days a week. I don’t have a window in there either because if I could see the sunshine outside I wouldn’t get any work done.”

The hit single provided a platform for Vission to share his music with the world, but the process by which it came about was not meant to actualise a top ten hit. “I don’t think that there is a real recipe for commercial success,” he says. “The only thing that I can say is that if you think you can have a top ten hit without a chorus then you are out of your mind. My biggest thing is that a song has to work on the dance floor – there is no use making dance music if it’s not going to rock the floor.”

Vission’s résumé isn’t something to be sneezed at either, with an impressive list of previous work including a successful collaboration with the Material Girl herself.

“Madonna was actually a fan of my remixes and I got a call from her manager one day and he asked me to remix one of her records. Here I was thinking ‘wow, I get to work with the biggest artist in the world’ and then he told me that the song I was doing was American Pie,” he says with a laugh. “It was a fairly bittersweet moment. I said I would do it if I could make a dub version with no vocals as well and they said yes.”

The pointy breasted wonder isn’t the only superstar that Vission has twiddled knobs for. He’s laid down quality arrangements for U2, Lady Gaga, The Black Eyed Peas and Timbaland to name but a few, but the LA-based producer isn’t done yet, with more A list artists in his sights.

“U2 were at the top of my list – they had basically been the soundtrack to my life growing up, so to work with them was awesome,” he says. “There are a few people left that I would love to add to my list like Coldplay, and I know it sounds weird but Mick Jagger as well. I just love his vocals.”

Club-wise, Vission finds himself enjoying a new beginning, able to introduce himself to new international audiences, many of whom have never enjoyed the Vission experience before. “My style is still the same – I always play music that I like. It’s always a bit of house, progressive and electro.”

Catch Richard Vission live at Academy on Friday August 6.

Kidda

Bristol producer Ste McGregor (aka KIDDA) knows what it’s like to have your whole life change. As recently as 2004, he existed solely on the meagre wage of a budding graphic artist and animator. It wasn’t until urban soul label Catskills Records took a shine to his hip-hop and funk demos that his musical career began to outshine his nine to five.

“Well I haven’t quite reached that stage yet,” he laughs. “I’m pretty sure it’s coming though because I have just signed a publishing deal with the guys from Snow Patrol, so I’m sure the royalties will start rolling in soon.”

The collaboration he mentions is part of an exciting new album project, following on from his critically acclaimed introduction Going Up. “I’ve been locked away in the studio working on this second album,” says McGregor. “With the success of the first album there is no real external pressure from a label or anything but I’m really pushing myself on a personal level to release something even better this time around.”

His first album wielded a number of indie hits for the artist, most prominently the radio friendly worldwide smash Under the Sun, the genesis of which, he explains, was a magnetic experience. “When I heard the loop [for Under the Sun] – it’s from a cover of a Marvin Gaye record, I think – it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I took it away and tried to recreate that feeling in my version. The remix [by Herve] was amazing – I mean the part in the breakdown is a huge ‘hands in the air’ moment – but I guess a good tune is a good tune.”

If he never managed to break through into the world of international musical notoriety, McGregor explains that, after tasting the life of a musician, he could never go back to the isolation of graphic art. “Yeah, music definitely, that’s where I started so it will always be my biggest passion. I mean you can see a car driving past and hear something coming out of it that could make the hairs on your neck stand up. You can’t get that immediate immersive effect from graphic art.”

With such an eclectic sound, McGregor found the transition from studio to club shows a breeze, as he was thrown into the scene at a time when clubbers were becoming impatient with generic programming. “I play house music, electro, bass-line, anything really,” he says. “I remember back a few years ago when dance music was really exploding around the world and you could really play anything in a set. It’s diversity that works.”

Asked whether his own perspective on life mirrors Kidda’s ‘everything is going to be okay’ mantra, McGregor provides an honest response. “People always ask me that. I guess like everyone I have been through some difficult situations and I think that my music is an antidote for that,” he finishes. “The darker side of music never appealed to me. I don’t really want to hear that, it’s all about the positive sound.”

Catch Kidda live at Academy on Saturday August 7.

Low Freqz

From the depths of the shadows in the darkest of nights, a creature stirs. For years it has laid dormant; waiting, watching and learning from us. Every one of our mistakes, a lesson. Every one of our setbacks, fuel for its insatiable hunger. Its rise signals the end of an era of capriciousness; an anaemic candle snuffed out by the first breath of a new dawn of music. The fervent eyes of our new future are opening. Welcome to the age of the Freqz.

“LOW FREQZ is an open minded night of bass music for music lovers run by music lovers,” explains Rowan Thomson (aka Ced Nada). “It aims to showcase quality electronic music from around the globe to open minded Canberra audiences, with a strong emphasis on bass and beats – all that low end frequency goodness. The night will pioneer both new and classic music from all the sub-bass oriented genres – I’m talking dubstep, grime, UK funky, future garage, D ‘n’ B, hip-hop, IDM, glitch as well as some proper wonky beats.”

The muse for the aural awakening of Low Freqz was the Mercury Switch crew. They are a rag tag bunch of musical misfits better known for their ties to hip-hop in the capital, but they have also got love for other styles that go “boom,” as Rowan clarifies.

“MS is a record label, a promotional company and a studio, as well as being a like-minded group of music lovers who like to share their passion for classic and future sounds,” he adds. “Basically, if you like your bass heavy and reverberating, you’ll find something to love in Low Freqz. There will be plenty of sounds that cater for both the dance floor as well as for those train-spotting, chin-stroke, shoegazey moments.”

The fervent commercialism of our new iGeneration has diluted the musical pool to the extent where it is becoming harder to cater to niches anywhere outside our major cities. The Mercury Switch crew are looking to change all that.

“Contextually and conceptually, the night aims to bring to Canberra what is now already happening in numerous cities across Australia. We are striving to exemplify and introduce the thriving dubstep/funky scene. It is a real ‘movement’ at the moment and we want ensure that Canberra is a part of this innovative musical shift.”

The inaugural evening plays host to a handful of local legends like D’Opus, Jemist and Escha, foreshadowing the crew’s focus on quality Canberra artists.

“There’s a bunch of other locals out there who we know play bits and pieces of bass music in their sets, so Low Freqz will provide an outlet to really move down that sub frequency path with a set that they maybe wouldn’t get a chance to play at other great local nights,” says Thomson. “Future Low Freqz extravaganzas will also play host to some special headliners too, so stay locked for that. [It’s basically] low end sounds for highly evolved apes.”

Low Freqz takes over Hippo Bar on Saturday July 10. The lineup features D’Opus, Jemist, Faux Real, Ced Nada and Escha, and tickets are $5 on the door.

Dance : The Drop

The abysmal winter months in our city take a lot away from the dance music scene. The outstretched arms of a familiar couch and DVD combo seem instantly more appealing than braving an arctic expedition to your local music venue. Wardrobe selections are extremely limited, with sexy mini skirts temporarily shelved in favour of less aesthetic winter denim. Although on the flipside, club cloakrooms are shelving more coins than a three breasted beggar. For those of you that do make the effort to get out of your comfort zone, local promoters are still packing the heat with some sweltering ‘X’s for your clubbing calendar.

Got techno? The lads from Lollygag and Effigy have been unloading some serious international firepower on us of late, none more immense than the legend of bleep himself Stephan Bodzin. Half man, half machine, the German maestro will be championing the very latest in audio and visual technology at his exclusive intimate show at Transit Bar on Friday July 9. The man-bot will be ably supported by Gabe Gilmour, Yohan Strauss, Tim Heaney, Pete Canell and as a massive ‘blast from the past,’ local legend Anjay. Miss this and I guarantee you will regret it for the rest of our miserable winter days.

Canberra needs more nights strictly for pure music lovers, I hear you say? Well fret no more young electronic connoisseurs, for Mercury Switch has unveiled its latest project, Low Freqz. On Saturday July 10 the pimp limpin’ combination of D’Opus, Jemist, Faux Real, Ced Nada (aka our own hip-hop don Roshambo) and guest player Escha will be dropping only the dopest in bass and beats for yo’ ass. Hippo Bar. Be there.

Are you a fan of smashing it up on the white powder? I’m talking about snow of course, not the ill fated early ‘90s ‘Informer’ but rather the cold and slippery kind which requires a messy road trip to Jindabyne. On Saturday July 31, the infamous Lake Jindabyne Hotel plays host to our most famous duo The Aston Shuffle for another instalment of BLIZZARD alongside Sydneysider Waxmotif and locals Chris Lawrence, Ryzer, Harrison and Wizzy. Hot Tub Time Machine eat your heart out!

LL Cool J said it best when he spat out “don’t call it a comeback, I’ve been here for years” as Pang! returns like a phoenix from the flames of Lot 33 with not one, but TWO new venues for its stellar club night.

North Bar and Meche will play host to Pang!’s July roster including a mouth watering array of interstate and international talent. First up is an international double header with German label Dim Mak’s latest superstar GTronic and Haezer (South Africa) set to annihilate North on Saturday July 10. Next up is an all local lineup including Hubert, Cheese, Offtapia and Dept of Defiance on Friday July 16 at Meche followed by a Canberra reunion for old sparring buddies Steve Lind (Syd) and Mikah Freeman on the Friday July 23. Stuff your best kicks on the end of your legs and show some support for the best club night in town!

Until next issue, I leave you with my clubbing tip for July. Save hundreds of dollars by getting your favourite club nights entry stamp tattooed on your wrist. Not only will you have more drinking money, you will also prove to your kids that you once enjoyed a fruitful social life.

Dance : The Drop

Now I’ve returned, with lessons learned on sunburn, from an island paradise to our city on ice.

It’s hard to swap jager shots on yachts for nine to five slots, waking up at 6am to a frosty graveyard and not bikini tops. But one thing that makes the winter months much easier to take is the shipshape bunch of mates providing weekly escapes.

For those of you out there thinking ‘what the hell does that mean?’, I’m alluding to the magic of our local dance music scene.

Proving that Grimace isn’t the only one with Purple Sneakers, the Transit crew have been nice enough to invite the indie brand back for another round of alcoholistic mayhem on Friday May 28. This particular event welcomes the Architect DJs, who are having their hair held back by locals Celebrity Sex Tape, Princi and Chairman Wow.

Australia has an ever aging population, it’s true. Soon DJ booths will be overrun by hordes of turkey-necked codgers in skinny leg golf pants, that is, unless Academy has anything to say about it. The newly birthed Young Blood series of Friday nights in the Candy Bar, beginning on Friday May 28, has been developed to showcase the new breed of DJs coming through the ranks. The inaugural event will see ageist militants such as Peking Duck, Cheese, Ben Colin, DJ Bricksta, The UH-OH! DJs, Aeon and Yohan Strauss prove that you don’t need facial hair to play great tunes.

Now to one of my favourite nights on the clubbing calendar, the lads at Effigy have secured the services of Czech Republic duo Shades of Grey and DJ Schwa for Saturday May 29. The Beef Records crew will be showing you what music is all about with a stunning live set sure to erupt into the atmosphere like an unpronounceable volcano of awesome. Supports for this fine evening include Fourthstate, Biggie, Yohan Strauss, Beat It, Bobbin and Gabriel Gilmour.

On the weekly tip, for lovers of cocktails and sexually attractive house music, Kinky Electro is a new weekly Saturday night at North Bar including Tim Galvin, Nathan Princi, DJ Baker and Jacob Howes on the fun end of the turntables. Come and say hello, we won’t bite… hard.

Saturday June 12 heralds the return of Soundtrap to Transit Bar. This particular evening delivers QLD techno duo Digital Divide to us on a sonic platter. Locals keeping up the pace alongside are Alex Cleary, Mikey-G and B-tham.

Lastly, I have to acknowledge a major incident involving one of the leading promoters here in our capital city. Without naming names, there was a recent development involving a club and one of our most respected and hard working contributors to the scene. All I can say is that greed and stupidity does not equal money and success in our small community. I really hope that punters vote with their wallets and teach this particular club owner that loyalty and persistence is the way to succeed in Canberra.

Tim Galvin

Skool of Thought

Some people might say that the art of broken beats has fallen by the wayside, destined to ruminate in a forgotten corner of the dance floor beside hard house and the leathery carcass of Tara Reid. Luckily for hardcore fans of the genre, there are certain producers out there that rely on a different SKOOL OF THOUGHT.

“There’s a lot of amazing breaks being produced right,” says the Against The Grain head honcho. “People like Ctrl Z, Specimen A, Splitloop and Afghan Headspin are pushing the boundaries and outshining other genres, but it’s kind of flying under the radar at the moment. The feeling is you’ll see breaks re-establish itself again this year. There was a large void where breaks left off and nothing has replaced it. That said, genres seem to be less important at the moment, lots of people are playing a mixed bag and that’s healthy too.”

The UK native, known to the tax office as Lloyd Seymour, has recently set up shop in Australia where he is juggling his time between performing club shows and running the world’s most recognisable break beat label. “My Natural Selection compilation is being released in four parts over the coming weeks,” he explains. “We’ve had amazing reactions so far. I’ve decided to give the final DJ mix away for free to anyone who is a member of the Against The Grain mailing list. [Go to againstthegrainrecords.com to join!] There will also be exciting singles from the likes of Splitloop and Freestylers, and Krafty Kuts’ new album is ready to drop very soon too.”

With new genres popping up faster than pimples on Justin Bieber’s forehead, Seymour states that he has been experimenting with a few new styles of music, with mixed results. “I’ve tested the water with a bit of dubstep. It was an interesting format for a while but already I’m bored with it! I’m a diehard breaks fan really, it’s in my blood.”

Having rinsed out heaving crowds all over the globe, I ask the delightful pommy scamp where his favourite places to play are. “Either the Concorde 2 in Brighton [UK] which is my hometown,” says Seymour. “I have played so many amazing shows there to sold-out crowds who are so passionate about their music. Or Villa in Perth, a super sharp club with a great DJ booth and enthusiastic crowd, run by great people who love breaks. Can’t ask for more than that really.”

Returning to our nation’s capital for the All Our Friends festival, Seymour explains that he has fond memories of our little city. “I had a great gig last time I played in Canberra at Foreshore. The city seems to have a real hive of activity around dance music, it’s great to see. I’m looking forward to getting back there!”

Catch Skool of Thought at the All Our Friends show, held at the UC Refectory on Saturday June 5. Tickets through Qjump.

Dance : The Drop

Something occurred to me on the way to work this morning. If you fast forward to the year 2040 and find yourself browsing through a music store with your children, imagine picking up a ‘Drum and Bass Hits of the Noughties’ compilation from the five dollar sale rack and popping it into your nuclear powered super neon disposable I-bag.

This album is wicked. Andy C, Pendulum, Grooverider – they’re all there. You congratulate yourself on a great buy and can’t wait to get back to your hovering residential platform and enjoy it.

Your kids see it and laugh.

I guess what I am trying to communicate is that essentially the cool music that sustains us now is fated to become daggy old people music in the distant future. Lucky we aren’t there yet.

We have all heard enough about the Warehouse Winter Music Festival right? WRONG! This epic event is finally here and hopefully readers would have already purchased their tickets because by the time this goes to print, the last few will probably have been snapped up by lucky patrons. If you are one of those unfortunate latecomers and do find that the on-site ticket booths have shut up shop by the time you and your gaggle of homemade novelty singlet wearing jokesters mosey on down, you need not stare longingly through the fence at the throbbing AIS Arena. Why not go home and prepare yourselves for the after party at Academy? Kicks have utilised their trademark zeal to secure Devotion headliners the Bingo Players and one of my personal favourites, French producer/DJ Lifelike who, I might add, is not playing a set at the festival itself. Do not miss!

Let’s face it people, thanks to the chutzpah of local promoters we now have more new music festivals than you can poke a severely reduced bank balance at. One of the top notch virgins is the All Our Friends Festival which is basically a mini We Love Sounds in our town. On Saturday June 5, the University of Canberra will be shaken to its very foundations by an unbelievable lineup of artists including Steve Aoki, Laidback Luke, Tiga, Concord Dawn, Joachim Garraud and many, many more. Get your last minute tickets from Moshtix, Landspeed Records and Q-Jump.

Regardless of the fact that it sounds like a vernacular expression for something that would be frowned upon in India, the Groovin’ the Moo festival is making its Canberra debut on Sunday May 9 in The Meadows at the University of Canberra. Apart from the raucous rock headliners, there is also a healthy contingent of electronic artists for all your bovine pleasures including Empire of the Sun, Miami Horror, Bag Raiders, Ajax, Yacht Club DJs, Killaqueenz and The Only.

I’ve rambled, haven’t I? Let’s not forget the other gigs in and about town! Club-wise, keep your ears peeled for dates in May at Academy, with appearances by TV Rock, Emily Scott, Chris Fraser and Adam Bozetto, while PANG! charges ahead in the merry month with tYdi, Strip Steve and Das Glow, The Aston Shuffle, Yolanda Be Cool, Dcup and Marlo. Phew!

Unfortunately that’s all we have time for this week. Thank you, you’ve been a great audience!

Concord Dawn

“One coffee please,” crackles down the phone line, followed by an inaudible reply from a Czech waiter. The momentary lapse in conversation allows me to approbate the mental image of a bearded Kiwi wandering the streets of Prague. Such is the life of drum and bass virtuoso Matt Harvey, one half of the exceptionally auspicious New Zealand duo CONCORD DAWN.

“Sorry, I’m about to go to lunch,” says Harvey. “I’ve been living in Vienna for the last few years. I’m doing a gig here on the weekend in a castle – I think we’re actually staying in the castle too, which is pretty cool. I’m back here now after spending some time in New Zealand at the beginning of the year where I did lots of gigs and drank lots of beer.”

Twenty ten has been a crazy year for the beat technician, juggling the stress of a European tour schedule with an inundation of new production work to complete without his usual partner in grime, Evan Short.

“At the moment I’m taking some time off to write on my own,” explains Harvey. “This is the first record I have really done by myself and I think I’m dealing with it okay. I’ve taken a breather from the whole DJ thing because I’ve been gigging the whole time and it doesn’t give you enough time to do both things. You end up going through tunes on Thursday, playing on Friday and Saturday then recovering for the rest of the week!”

At this point in the conversation I drop what certain game shows would refer to as the ‘word of the day’ but instead of a cavalcade of coloured balloons raining down from the ceiling, I’m met instead with a hilarious oral tirade of epic proportions, thanks to the simple idiom ‘dubstep.’

“I do like some dubstep,” says Harvey, “but when it comes down to it, it’s really still in its infancy. It’s a bit like music for children, really. It’s music produced by people who have failed at drum ‘n’ bass; it only uses one idea at a time, like a bassline and doesn’t incorporate any harmony or chords at all. It started off as kind of black music and now it’s really white,” he laughs.

Harvey returns to Canberra soon for a rare local festival set, although one might think he would be more at home in the safety of a club. “I do like a bit of both, really, but if I had to choose I would say clubs. I think I would go mad if I only played festival gigs because they can be a bit of a pain in the ass and you always get your shoes dirty. The Big Day Out this year was bananas though… it’s good to get around and show people that drum ‘n’ bass is alright, y’know?”

Catch Concord Dawn live at the All Our Friends Festival at the UC Refectory on Saturday June 5. Tickets through Qjump.

The Bloody Beetroots

Imagine for a moment that the four horsemen of the apocalypse, conquest, war, famine and death were devilishly furled into two enigmatically masked hominids. Creatures so devoid of morality that their mere presence starves the immediate area of ambient light like an odious black hole. To their creators they are known as Bob Rifo and DJ Tommy Tea but to the world which lies burning at their feet, they are the BLOODY BEETROOTS.

Just two days ago a dusty tape recorder and shredded notebook were unsheathed from the rubble of an obliterated building, the former site of an infamously rare face to face interview with the dastardly dyad. Until this moment, the story was thought to be legend. The grievous facts were too startling to retain any ounce of truth, the lone journalist was nowhere to be found; no trace of a body, no blood and no sign of anything resembling life. The air around the makeshift crypt smelt of burnt flesh and death, an anomaly of horrific proportions.

The following extract is all that could be pieced together from the fragments of audio and text recovered from the warped devices. Please note, it has been censored in respect for the families involved and for your own sanity.

Play.

“Quality is anarchy,” scathes Bob from behind his infamous black mask, a faceless Rorschach canvas that gives away nothing, no allusion apart from absolute anonymity. He notices my stagnant gaze and offers a response. “I protect myself from UV rays. They are bad for the skin.”

Phew, humans have skin right? If they are just like us, maybe I can reason with it.

I adjust my collar to allow a single bead of sweat to trickle down my neck. At that moment, my eyes harden with an impetuous plan.

Have I happened upon their Achilles heel? Of course, the sun!

I avert my gaze to the crack in the curtains, a small sliver of yellow light confirms the presence of my new ally, but for now I must fill the widening void of heavy silence.

“So, you ghouls… I mean, guys are from Italy, the partisan capital of the world!” I stutter. “Love one another, passion and romance, right?”

“I am proud of Italy’s artistic heritage but I don’t feel Italian. Italy is imploding because it’s not able to generate ‘true culture’ any more. It’s stifling and I need a wider platform.”

Yes, yes, keep him talking. Divert his attention away from your flailing will.

“So, you guys are a duo, where is your other half today?” Off killing babies and eating human flesh? I add with an almost inaudible mutter.

“Bloody Beetroots is not a duo; Bloody Beetroots is my electro persona. It became a duo when we did DJ sets. I work in studio alone – it’s a very complicated process.”

Oh god, don’t make it mad, I tell myself. For all I know it is already thinking of a fine marinade with which to accompany my freshly chopped internal organs. Throw in a compliment for Christ’s sake! I recoil with a fake smirk, the corners of my mouth jagging upwards like a broken roller door.

I finally manage “your first album was extremely successful. Warp has to be one of the most popular club records in recent times. So what are you planning to do with your recent recipe for success?”

“I always do different things and I’m just worried about dying,” he coughs. “Romborama’s not yet finished, I’m releasing some ‘Spares of’ that will support it till the end of the year. So 79 minutes just ain’t enough.”

I fumble through my notes like a startled gazelle, careful not to stare into his eyes, or at least the seething black smear where eyes probably fear to exist.

Can it see me?

“So, you are bringing your seven-piece ‘Death Crew 77’ live band to Australia for the Creamfields Festival, also stopping over in Canberra for the Warehouse Festival. Your last appearance at Foreshore in Canberra must have been quite memorable – do you prefer to play at big festivals or smaller club shows?”

The creature stirs for a moment and leans forward slowly. I will myself to calm but still manage to flinch at the sound of creaking leather as its deep voice sprays me through the mask like a shotgun blast.

“I love playin’ in the clubs but festivals are great too… maybe too big for me, no?”

My nervous demeanour forces a jittery impish laugh from the depths of my gullet.

Was that a joke?

I think of my family back home, safe and warm in their beds and wonder will I ever see them again. My hands shake as I toss the page of my notebook, sweaty fingerprints pierce the lined sheets leaving a translucent smudge.

Now, how to lighten the mood?

“What… ah… what would give you greater joy; writing a track that sets a club audience on fire, a home cooked meal from your mother, or a proposition from one of the world’s sexiest ladies?”

The dark figure retreats momentarily into the hard comfort of its chair and offers “maybe I could write a track inviting one of the world’s sexiest ladies to come and eat at my Mum’s… that should do the trick.”

A deep breath fills my lungs and exits calmly through my nostrils.

The devil has a sense of humour, I scribble on the page.

Fuelled by foolish mental acquisitiveness, I allow my inner monologue to grab at my vocal chords like strapping reigns just long enough to murmur “so what is it exactly that you do… eat?”

The light in the room flickers ominously, the dull pop of the overloaded bulb showers the room in complete and silent darkness. A bloodcurdling snarl rattles me to my very bones as I stop in mid-breath.

“H-Hello? Mr Rifo?” Inaudible noise.

End of transmission

The tales that are told through flashlights on warm summer nights to scare young children are all true. We live in a world where monsters really do exist; some are small fanged blood suckers, others huge and murderous monoliths. But one thing they all have in common – like us, they all fear the Bloody Beetroots.

The Bloody Beetroots will appear at Warehouse Music Festival at the AIS Arena on Saturday May 1. Tickets through Ticketek.

Darren Emerson

Thank god for DARREN EMERSON. The infamous UK native is one of a handful of aural educators responsible for emancipating me from the gateway world of pumping neon rave music in the late ‘90s. His contributions to the Global Underground mix CD series provided a perfectly clever mixture of tech, progressive and chunky house that lulled me away from regimented candy music into the purist universe. I must also mention that Emerson was one of the founding members of legendary anthem factory Underworld; although having left the group in 2000, he has forged a stellar solo career and hasn’t looked back.

“Music is always what I’ve wanted to do so I’m very thankful,” he explains. “Of course [I am proud of Underworld] but that was in the past – it’s all about the new music for me right now and that’s what I want to focus on. It’s not something I want to play in my sets.”

And finding new music is what Emerson does best. His Underwater record label launched the careers of house music stars such as Tim Deluxe, Paul Woolford and Steve Mac but now, as Emerson explains, with changing priorities it is time for a new evolution in his career.

“I’ve not had Underwater for the last couple of years which is why I’m starting my new label Detone,” he says. “I’ve been working constantly in the studio the last few years and I’m looking forward to getting the music out there but I also have my family and the time I do get I want to spend with them.”

With the annual Miami Winter Music Conference tractor beam locked on to his hard drive, Emerson has a few surprises up his sleeve for the music masses under the humid Florida sun, including his much anticipated longplayer. “I’m promo-ing my new single from my new label in Miami called Hard For Slow. I’ve several new singles coming out on the label over the next few months and I’ve just finished my artist album which is more Balearic and song-based.”

His Uruguay, Singapore and Bogota Global Underground back catalogue hints that he is a true journeyman of the scene, rarely appearing in the booth in his home country. “These things come in waves, don’t they? I had my residency at the end for years and when that closed it was really upsetting; it had been my spiritual home for such a long time. We’re looking at putting on a new night and hopefully it’ll be as successful, if not more so.”

While only stopping over in Australia for a few short dates during his whirlwind world tour in April, the powerhouse technician is already looking forward to a longer visit in the future. “I’m away from my family for five to six weeks as I’m touring the US, Australia and Asia. I’d love to come back for a longer tour of course, I love Australia and have a lot of friends there.”

Catch Darren live at Academy on Friday April 2. Tickets from kicksentertainment.com.au.

Dance : The Drop

Let me tell you a tale about name dropping. The story Kicks off in a Warehouse, where I sat watching the latest episode of Tool Academy. My stomach rumbled, a hunger Pang that screamed out for some Cheese on Toast. The hungering Heartbeat in my chest made me hallucinate and the Effigy of the impending meal appeared before me like Voodoo. At this moment I decided to head to the kitchen but in Transit I happened upon a large bag of Sherbies, ultimately my One Love in life and a more than acceptable substitute Fore-shore. I was so delighted that I crammed so many of those bad boys in my mouth at once that it acted like a Lollygag.

I bet you are wondering what this has to do with dance music. The answer is ‘everything!’

Everyone knows that the ‘it’ sound at the moment is big room disco and our Australian representative on the international council of ‘getting’ on down’ is Bang Gang 12” stable mate Cassian. The Heartbeat crew have thrown together a blood pumping evening of swirly brass fuelled mayhem featuring the man himself on Saturday April 10 at Transit Bar, underscored by a chic streetwear feature by Henry Holland and Josh Oldfield’s ‘Eleventh Commandment.’

Underwho? Whatworld? If you haven’t heard of Darren Emerson then we can’t be friends. The international superstar DJ and former Underworld member is appearing for the first time in Canberra thanks to Kicks Entertainment and Lollygag. Make sure to mark Easter Friday April 2 at Academy into your clubbing diaries as this is a once in a blue moon chance to catch the living legend in our city.

Effigy have been churning out the quality underground gigs at Hippo Bar of late and the next instalment brings UK techno star Shepz to the fray along with a surprise international guest who I am advised (by an unreliable source) will be leaping out of a giant cake. Supports for this momentous event include Gabriel Gilmour, Yohan Strauss, Beat It and Hubert.

For those of you that have been to Melbourne and not visited Brown Alley, shame on you! Luckily, the Soundtrap crew have been kind enough to hand deliver two of its residents, Craig Pringle and Muska to Transit Bar on Friday April 23 alongside residents B-Tham and Mikey G. I’ll warn you now though, do not go if you do not like quality music.

Finally, I may as well mention PANG!. I mean they do deserve a little hype, right? With more epic gigs under their belt than you can poke a hangover at, the trend continues tonight with previously separated hetero life partners Kid Kenobi and MC Sureshock back together at last just in time to kick-start your Easter break at Lot 33.

Not satisfied? How about book-ending your chocoholic exodus with a slice of international techno as the PANG! team combines powers with The Likes of You to sock you in the face with Oliver Huntemann on Sunday April 4. KO!

Until we meet again, just remember that sculling a Powerade before bed doesn’t cure your hangover – it just makes your wee blue.

Rob Thomas / Vanessa Amorosi

Change is a wonderful thing. Even a jaded cynic of corporate commercialism has the potential to flip-flop on their ideals faster than a ruminative death-bound Darth Vader. Equivalently, just as Anakin Skywalker had become prostrated by the strictures of Jedi life, so too had I been similarly vexed by the uninspiring state of radio rock and the trite mould from which so-called ‘superstar’ performers were being cast. But, when sifting through a generic daytime radio playlist, there is one name which, for me, rises above the lacklustre hum-drum strum of artists like, oh let’s say… Nickelback, and delivers something more meaningful and prolific.

I know that there are other easy listening anthems out there that resemble Rob Thomas arias but they just aren’t. People love Rob Thomas. People love Matchbox 20. They have almost defined a new era of sing-along pop rock like Bon Jovi did back in the ‘80s, although Rob Thomas has managed to do something that Jon never really fully accomplished and that is to maintain an on par solo career.

This is a persona that sits comfortably with Rob Thomas. He exerts every part the cool of a John Mayer without any of the quirky narcissism. He projects ‘good guy’ vibes just as emphatically as Buble without the effervescent smugness. He is almost the perfect marketing tool and for that, one must admire rather than potentially chastise.

A true artist in her own right, Vanessa Amorosi (who Rob Thomas would later refer to on stage as a “genuine Australian bad-ass”) played second fiddle on the bill tonight. Her new blonde-ish locks rounded off a welcome modern image for the starlet, who played to a near full house and warmed the lungs of the audience in fine style with hits like Absolutely Everybody, Shine and Perfect in preparation for the man of the hour.

As the interval was nearing an end, the entire floor area in front of the main seating started to flow and expand like an impatient cloud willing a storm. Finally, the main lights disappeared and deafening cheers directed our eyes instantly to the long stage where the band was illuminated in front of a large cinema screen. The rhythmic pounding of a drum announced that it was time for the main event and within seconds the blazer-clad American icon was skipping onto the stage with the first few bars of Give Me the Meltdown.

The first few things that became apparent were how clear the sound was, how perfectly balanced his vocals were and how tight a unit he and his touring band seemed to be. With three guitarists, a bass player, drummer, keyboardist and dual backing singers, the harmonies were almost ecclesiastical.

After the first few songs, Thomas stopped to thank the audience for choosing to spend their money and more importantly their time with him and to remind them that life is short, that we should appreciate each moment for what it is rather than worrying about what was to come.

The impressive two hour show was an entertaining mixture of well written hits like Her Diamonds, Little Wonders and Lonely No More, new material including Someday and Cradlesong, some extremely decisive band solos and, for me the most impressive part, unplugged versions of Smooth and Something To Be.

He explained later in the show that he did not like to include a lot of Matchbox 20 material in his solo show because it would take away from the experience of playing those particular records with the whole band, something, he says exclusively, Australians can look forward to next year!

The show was a special experience and I return now to bookend my original statement by reiterating that people can change, opinions can change and I can say now without fault that I now indeed consider myself to be a Rob Thomas fan.

Tegan and Sara

Twins. The word not only brings to mind a hilarious ‘80s Hollywood comedic vehicle for the future governor of California, but it is also a genuine adjective to epitomise identical Canadian indie sisters TEGAN AND SARA. Their sixth studio album Sainthood, released at the end of 2009, was inspired by the lyrics from the famous Leonard Cohen song Came So Far For Beauty, as Sara Quin explains.

“The songs are about the struggle for love and happiness,” she says. “I mean we never write mean songs; it’s more a collaboration of introspective storytelling with all the elements of love. The songwriting process has changed a lot for me over the years though; these days it feels a lot less accidental. I don’t sit there and think ‘wow I can still write music,’ I believe in myself a lot more and in what I can do.”

The songwriting process for this album was a distinct departure from the norm, with the sisters working on most of the lyrics as a duo, rather than independently. “I think it was beneficial in terms of how we write and how we think of each other – it’s been really organic and I would definitely work with her again,” Quin laughs. “I have never really thought of doing anything differently, I mean we have been writing music since we were 14 years old and we have stayed true to a certain style since we started.”

Tegan and Sara are a pristine example of a borderline crossover band; although their roots are firmly entrenched in the world of indie rock, their upcoming sold out tour of Australia also proves that they have abundant commercial appeal, a fact that Sara attributes to their distinctive live show. “In the past it was harder, we were rarely thinking about how our sound would translate into a live performance, but with this album from the moment we started doing new material there was a real focus on how the record would sound live,” she explains. “We are essentially a touring band and even though our popularity and success has grown over the years, compared to other artists we don’t sell a heap of records and so playing live is a big thing for us because that is what we do and who we are.”

Their last trip down under was partially chronicled in a three book set of photography and writing called On, In, At and the sisters are looking forward to seeing more of our country when they return. “We love coming to Australia because even though we are working, the whole thing always seems like a big holiday,” Quin says. “It’s always great to go to the major cities but this time I’m more excited about doing festival shows in smaller, maybe rural areas that are close to the beach or just basically out of the way.”

Catch Tegan and Sara at the Groovin’ The Moo Festival on Sunday May 9 at the University of Canberra. Tickets through Moshtix.

Ferry Corsten

Dance : The Drop

Warehouse

Boys Noize

Society could learn a lot from German producer and music manipulator Alex Ridha, aka BOYS NOIZE. He has managed to bring together two of the most emulous groups of genre warriors known to man; the internet blog-surfing hipsters and the techno-deifying minimal chin-strokers. Usually dichotomised by a figurative Berlin wall of keyboard heroics, the former enemies have bonded over their love of his loopy futuristic disco. Everybody loves Boys Noize.

Juggling his time between jet-setting superstar DJ and BNR label boss, I managed to catch Alex at home having just returned from some much needed R & R in Puerto Rico. “My holiday was great and I am really relaxed,” he says. “It’s something I like to do every year. My studio was a mess when I came back though – I had to spend the first three days cleaning it up and re-cabling all my equipment!”

As the flux capacitor carries my journalistic Delorian back to the 1980s, we peer through his window in Hamburg to observe the period that shaped the young star into the fire breathing juggernaut he is today, a stature he can thank his brother for. “He was ten years older than me and when he was 17-18, in the mid-‘80s, I used to sit around and listen to all his records, like house and techno and stuff, not really knowing what it was but knowing that I liked it,” Alex explains. “I started buying my own records at about 13 – all the things I loved from my childhood and it just went from there.”

At only 27 years of age, Alex has already been a figurehead in the German techno movement for a whole decade, but alas he is not comfortable with the term ‘the Doogie Howser of Dance.’ “I don’t really feel old now. I mean, I have been through a few generations of music with a lot of things that have come and gone but I guess I was always that guy – y’know, the youngest guy in the club, but now I have a 16 year old producing for my label so it makes me feel a little older,” he laughs.

After dabbling in hip-hop and disco, his move in 2003 at age 20 to the bright lights and dark beats of Berlin was the critical metamorphosis in his career as this was where the real genesis of the Boys Noize brand originated. “DJ-wise I have always had the same attitude towards music – the same style and substance to my music,” he says. “When I moved to Berlin I started playing around on my laptop and making beats. I ended up getting a small studio together so it was really where Boys Noize was born.”

Spying a new Boys Noize remix on Beatport is enough to make any respectable music fan soil their skinny leg jeans and Alex has had the incredible fortune to remain exclusive in his attitude towards who he twiddles knobs for. “It’s actually really hard to choose sometimes. I mean I have always only picked to work with artists I really like – I never do a remix for someone I don’t like. I was really happy in 2006 when I heard that Martin Gore from Depeche Mode was a big Boys Noize fan and I was contacted to do a remix for them. I also always do remixes for friends like Para One, Mr Oizo if they ask me to.”

His studio prowess eventually caught the ear of the Black Eyed Peas, who singled him out to collaborate on their latest album, which was a massive surprise for the Berliner. “That kind of came out of nowhere!” he exclaims. “I found out that will.i.am was a huge fan of my music and they asked me to send some beats over for their album. I sent about three or four of them and they really liked one so they put it on the CD. They are very smart about what they do – they travel to Europe and try to find new and exciting sounds and I was one of the people they decided to work with.”

The release of Alex’s first album Oi Oi Oi in 2007 cemented his hold of the electronic indie disco crown, so when he unleashed the follow up, a throbbing club techno leviathan titled Power this year, some critics were quick to question the change in mood. “It has always been the case for me. It’s like giving someone a little card, a current update of where you are musically right then. I always start fresh with all my music, different sounds, different drum patterns and new ideas so it’s like a fresh attitude.”

With no surprise, he tells me that returning to our great southern land after a five year hiatus is an exciting proposition, mainly due to his eye-opening experience in 2005. “Australia is incredible,” he says. “I was so amazed when I came here last time and everybody was rocking out really hard to my music and they knew it so well. It was not on radio or TV and wasn’t really even promoted here but obviously other DJs were playing it and that was fantastic. It’s what it is all about, so that was really nice.”

Boys Noize is playing at the UC Refectory on Friday February 26, along with Cheese, Hubert and Offtapia. Tickets through QJump and Landspeed Records.

Boys Noize - POWER [BNR]

Power, the very aptly titled follow up to Oi Oi Oi,heralds a distinct transition in sound for German producer/DJ Boys Noize. His debut effort was brimming with strummy indie-disco and modish techno, a long way from the futuristic bleepy robotica of Power.

Contrast is a wonderful thing though, and this collection of Dalek karaoke really shows off the depth of his ability. After a good listen in the headphones, the first thing you notice about the album is that it really sounds good; each individual track exuding the same fullness and energy.

This makes the whole package feel much more whole rather than just a forced mish-mash of production work. The journey takes us through a myriad of substance, up and down, light and dark, welcoming and dismissive like spending a day as Keith Richards’ other half.

Highlights include the evolving vocoded monster Transmission, the downtempo Nerve and darkly evil Kontact Me.

Fans of ‘that remix of Bloc Party’ may feel a little alienated by Power due to its lurid inaccessibility, but ironically this is also its most endearing quality, a definite middle finger to mainstream club music.

Dance : The Drop

Balance Presents Electric 05 - Mixed by Emerson Todd [EQ Recordings]

From the opening few records alone, you can tell that Emerson Todd is an extremely experienced audio engineer, his bio impressively lauding that he has previously twiddled knobs for marquee Aussie groups The Presets and Pnau to name drop but a few. His other day job is as an internationally successful techno DJ/Producer and the latest in the famed Balance series is a fitting platform for him to display a seamless progression of deep sounds which welcome you like a warm fireplace and frothy cocoa.

Electric 05 is one of those true journey albums that will have you staring in disbelief at the LCD panel on your stereo wondering how it is that the mix has progressed through five tracks without you noticing a thing.

The lush opening of the album is smoother than Larry Emdur at an old peoples home, with killer records like Doomwork - Fresh and Oxia & Nicolas Masseyeff - Trying Out really setting a great foundation for the latter half. Here, Emerson uses one of his own productions (Jacob) as a fork in the road, guiding the mix down a techier path from that point, with bouncy numbers from Guy Gerber and Gavin Herlihy injecting a bit of much needed ‘jack’ into its veins. Fans of minimal (and I mean MINIMAL) will enjoy the journey, although I guess I could compare this CD to Canberra. It is beautiful in parts but there really isn’t that much happening.

DVDevotee Dead Snow

The Boxer Rebellion

Dance : The Drop

As I figuratively bowed over the Ed's desk at BMA headquarters almost three months ago and dipped my jet black ray bans with a subtle "I'll be back," I never imagined that my hedonistic overseas hiatus would be over so soon. First of all, big ups to Staky for so ably stepping in as your gig guru. I have a funny feeling you will be hearing a lot from Miss Manson in the future.

I guess my journey can be summed by three of the items I managed to gumshoe past the militant lady in Australian customs - a bright orange G-string emblazoned with the Eiffel tower, a pink feathered Oktoberfest beer hat and memory stick full of wicked European space disco, the latter being a supremely convenient dance music segue.

PANG!! What the hell was that noise? Oh, it's only Jamie Lloyd and Deepchild shivering on our doorstep patiently awaiting their chance to headline the ghoulish Friday November 13 slot at Lot 33. The event marks the Canberra leg of Jamie's Beware of the Light album tour, a must for you kids who like their house and techno as deep and groovy as a Nimbin dinner table conversation. Solid supports are Biggie, Gabriel Gilmour, Staky, Drew, Hubert and Cheese all for just 20 beans on the door.

Not one to pigeonhole themselves, the PANG crew are also hosting a monumental trance event on the following night featuring tYdi and Marlo, reach for the lazors!

If neon euphoria ain't your thing, why not fill your gurgling beer bellies with a menu of tasty broken beats at the next instalment of Bite Sized BBQ on Saturday November 14. What better place to hold the tune chowdown than at A Bite to Eat in Chifley; the two were simply made for each other like Jordan and any E grade celeb with moderate notoriety and a set of abdominal muscles. Your master chefs for the evening will include Shifty Business, DJC, Mkat, Escha, Tidy, Posar, Buick, Centaspike and Chils. Bon appétit!

There is nothing that truly slaps you in the face and yells "summer is here!" quite like the launch party for Sound Baked Sundays at Trinity Bar in Dickson. Even though the event never fails to coax the hibernating 20-somethings out of the woodwork for an afternoon of catch up cocktails on the sunset terrace, Friction and Lexington have generously bolstered the inaugural beef and brew soiree with UK break beat maestro Splitloop and Yolanda Be Cool, who headline an impressive local roster including Mikah (soon to be daddy) Freeman, Vance Musgrove, RyFy, D'Opus, Jemist and Michael O'Rourke. Mark Sunday November 15 in your Outlook calendar just so you can remember to start practicing your best sick voice for the following morning, 'cough.'

Finally a reminder that the biggest date in 2009 is approaching faster than Marcus Einfeld toward a speed camera. The Foreshore Summer Music Festival is just around the corner so don't forget to slip on your singlet, slop on some fake tan and slap on your Gucci sunglasses - it's gonna be mega!

DJ Tydi

The last 12 months have been a dizzying experience for 21 year old Queenslander Tyson Illingworth, known to everyone but his grandmother as DJ TYDI. Taking out the coveted number one spot in the Sony In The Mix top 50 DJ poll in 2008 led to a lot of recourse for the trance mogul - signing a record deal with Armin van Buuren's label Armada, having his productions play-listed by international heavyweights like Above & Beyond, Sander Kleinenberg, Andy Moor and Markus Schulz and also touring around the country, playing in some of Australia's biggest venues that had in the past predominantly only played host to electro house acts.

"The best year of my life without a doubt!" enthuses TyDi. "I've been sharing my music to crowds as big as 40,000 and playing all over the place. I released my debut album this year too - that was pretty special for me."

TyDi's production skills were honed whilst studying at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music where he focussed on music technology, incorporating his love for dance music with a desire to move forward in the industry. "The study has been vital to my career and has really accelerated the learning process for me," TyDi explains. "Electronic music has always been my main interest, melodic dance especially. I'd say that it was always going to be my focus but I am now branching out a lot into other areas of the music industry too."

Well known for the boundless energy and emotion he projects in his DJ sets, it's interesting to divulge how he translates this into his studio work. "My own productions are an example of what I desire in a track; I create energy and emotion using certain chord progressions, rhythms... everything! The main way to create energy in a track is through 'tension and release' - building certain elements up until one massive peak and then releasing it into something beautiful."

With the rise and rise of other forms of house music dominating the club scene across the nation, he remains optimistic about the trance scene in Australia. "Trance in Australia is certainly getting bigger, and I am trying my best to make it massive!" TyDi exclaims. "We do have a very healthy dance scene and I have been able to play trance every weekend in different cities, so that's a good sign!"

The young master returns to Canberra for the Ministry of Sound Trance Nation tour, following the release of the much anticipated compilation of the same name. "Honestly, I love Canberra! The first time I played in Canberra was at a small club but the energy was amazing. I can still remember that gig like it was yesterday! Canberra clubbers are very friendly and extremely open to music. It's great to see clubbers who are open minded and ready to hear something that is not the same old commercial stuff. I love playing in Canberra and I am very excited to come back!"

Reach for the lasers!

TyDi will spin some magic on Friday August 28 at Academy. Tickets available through QJump, Parliament, Landspeed Records and inthemix.com.au.

The Drop

As the post-winter sun returns to blind weary clubbers through the taxi windscreen on their way home from a Saturday night bender, I prepare myself for a two month hiatus overseas. Unfortunately this means that I won’t be able to continue with this column for a few issues, but the lovely team at BMA have secured the services of local superstar Stacey Manson, who brings her love of all things ‘doof doof’ to the street mag from mid-August.

While I am sunning myself on summery American beaches and traversing all across Europe with reckless abandon, I will have to come to terms with the reality that there are some exciting events coming up on the Canberra dance music calendar that I will be missing out on.

Fortunately this does not include one of the most anticipated gigs of the year for me, Hybrid’s long awaited return to Lot 33 on Saturday August 8. Supports have just been announced as Peekz vs Hubert and Scottie Fisher vs Biggie, adding to what promises to be an education in grand scale electronic music.

The busy guys at Friction and Lexington are teaming up with Fuzzy to bring us 360, a rare 15+ event at the UC Refectory on Friday September 25. The absolutely mouth watering all Canadian headliners include Tiga, MSTRKRFT and A-Trak along with locals Jeff Drake, RyFi and DJ Bricksta. This is definitely one of the best non-festival lineups I have ever seen in this city so you better get in quick! Tickets are on sale now from the normal outlets.

Speaking of festivals, the first round of Foreshore 2009 artists has just been announced and to celebrate, I caught up with Laurence Kain from Friction and Lexington Music to see what all the fuss was about.

“We went after a mix of the hottest and most current artists along with a bunch of big name long stayers. We aim to provide a broad range of genres, hopefully everyone at the festival will have a new and interesting musical experience at some point during the event and rock out to an artist they have never heard of!”

With the fallout from the Winter Warehouse Festival still upon us, it’s interesting to see how they can keep the quality improving with each spectacular event they put on.

“We have made some changes to the site. We are selling less tickets this year and putting in more bars and toilets to eliminate lines! We have also made some deals with KRudd and Obama and they have agreed to turn on the sun! So bring your bikinis and dance Foreshore style on a national monument!”

This first round lineup defies belief, including massive internationals Deadmau5, The Stanton Warriors, Crookers, Axwell, Dubfire, John Dahlback and Miss Kittin & the Hacker. You heard it here first kids!

Festival fans will also be excited to hear that we have yet another large scale event planned for 2009. Playground will bring acts such as Hook N Sling, Acid Jacks, Elmo is Dead, Ivan Gough, Minx, Yogi B and Bedrock Beats to an old school warehouse location near you. Visit Landspeed Records for more details.

Finally, laser lovers will be chomping at the bit in preparation for the return of Australia’s number one DJ, TyDi, who heads up the next instalment of Alliance at Academy for the Ministry of Sound Trance Nation party on Friday August 28. Fire!
Until next issue just remember: sleep is for the weak and we control the night.

Stanton Warriors

As the silvery ice maiden of winter licks our faces with her frosty morning tongue, the promise of a warm summer sun seems but a hazy memory; made all the more obscure by months of cold nights in with a little too much beer and puerile television.

My recollection of last year’s Foreshore Summer Music Festival brings to my mind’s eye a mental picture of shoulder-saddled semi-naked girls beating each other around the head playfully with fluorescent pool noodles amongst a sea of hands reaching into the deep blue ocean of sky stretched right across the horizon from the Kosciuszko ranges to Mt Ainslie.

It is truly a spectacular location and a fitting throne for the undisputed kings of festival party music, British breakbeat barbarians the STANTON WARRIORS (aka Dominic Butler and Mark Yardley), who return to the capital after their last successful tour as part of the Good Vibrations Festival roadshow. Dom B explains: “Good Vibrations was great. The crowds were huge, the rain made us think of home and hanging out with Q Tip, Deadmau5 etc was hilarious. We even made a track for the tour which has since become one of our biggest tunes.”

The lure of the international festival circuit has enabled the duo to ravish thousands of partygoers across the globe, although it seems Australian audiences have their own unique way of leaving a lasting impression on the guys. “We have done festivals all over the place from beach parties in Spain and Thailand to major events like Glastonbury and Global Gathering, through to Ultra Festival in Miami and all over North America and the Far East,” Dom says, going through the band’s broad itinerary. “Australians tend to drink a lot and bare their sun-kissed bodies more than, say, in Kazakhstan or China. Aussies are generally a friendly lot who simply love to party.”

The Stantons are to breakbeat what James Brown is to funk music; they have perfected and championed their art in an era when other genres of music have been popularised by mass consumerism. So what’s their secret? “We have always brought in tracks from anywhere and everywhere to be edited/remixed/retouched to fit into our sets alongside our own material,” Dom explains. “We love all good new music and we love slamming beats. We simply try to put these things together to create sets which make people enjoy being in front of very big speakers.”

Back in the early noughties I remember being introduced to the congenial art of broken beats when a friend handed me a fresh copy of the Plump DJs’ seminal A Plump Night Out. However it wasn’t until I garnered a copy of the now famous Stanton Sessions Vol 1 mix CD that I really chomped down hard on the shiny lure of funky breaks which is why it excites me to hear that the Warriors are working on a new album. This news is sure to leave cap-wearing beat boffins salivating in their air force ones.

“The album is nearly finished and we are very happy with it so far,” says Dom. “The sound is hard to categorise as each track is different in its own right. We have worked hard to bring bouncing beats, heavy basslines and dirty sonics matched up with a whole plethora of collaborations and extra ingredients. It’s certainly different from what we have made before and most importantly the demo tracks work well when we play/test them out.”

For those who have had the sweaty pleasure of wobbling their way through a Stanton Warriors live show, they will understand when I say the word ‘bootleg.’ No, not the Levi cut that falls nicely over your fake crocodile skin boots for a night out at a faux pub. I refer to, of course, the cheeky re-edits of well known tracks that the duo are famous for including in their dancefloor-friendly sets.

“We will have a few but we have a lot of tried and tested new original material from others and ourselves that we will be dropping,” reveals Dom. “It’s an exciting time for music at the moment and I can’t wait to drop a lot of the stuff we have on the Aussie crowd, who more than most enjoy new sounds. Deekline is doing some great ghetto house cuts at the moment and Diplo is making some slamming world beat-y numbers. There are lots of interesting dubstep-ish un-categorisable rolling vocal tracks out there from various spots.”

But these are just some of the tools that the Warriors frequently brandish from their sonic utility belt specifically manufactured by Wayne Corporation for their endless war on grime. Their reputation as big game players precedes them, having smashed big crowds on most continents with all the ease of a hungry Mike Tyson. Although constructing some of the world’s most danceable DJ sets doesn’t just come from years of practice downing liquor shots under massive canvas tents.

“A set needs form. Too many DJs go in with all guns blazing with their biggest tracks and then run out of steam halfway through,” Dom feels. “A set also needs a variety of sounds, tight mixing, momentum, excitement, tension in parts, exclusive bangers and lots of Jack Daniels. Without these parts, things can quickly get dull.”

Returning to Canberra for the Foreshore Summer Music Festival is an exciting prospect for the UK duo as they have some unfinished business down under. “It’s been a while since we have come to Canberra but we have great memories of the city,” recalls Dom. “The best being hijacking a hot air balloon after a gig. Canberra never looked so good from the air. But in regards to playing, people can expect some block-rocking booty bouncing bad ass punking bass music.”

Stanton Warriors will play at this year’s Foreshore Festival on Saturday November 28. Tickets can be purchased through Lexington Music, Moshtix, Ticketek and Landspeed Records from Thursday August 13.

Hybrid

Without wanting to sound like a 'back in my day' clubbing dinosaur whose best bar-hopping years are well past them, remember when dance music was made to invigorate the mind and stir the soul rather than providing a loose platform for laptop superstars to have a crack at music television? In those days of absolute dance floor utopia, we were given HYBRID, and now they are back after their performance at the 2008 Warehouse Winter Music Festival to show a whole new generation of music fans what they have sorely been missing.

Their fusion of stirring string-laden breakbeat and tech house has birthed two albums - 2000's seminal Wide Angle and the 2003 follow up Morning Sci-Fi. The latter surprised many by progressing their already futuristic sounds even further, and now once again it's time for a new direction.

"We have loads of new material on the way!" reveals Chris Healings, one half of the duo. "We're in the studio as we speak working on our fourth album, whittling down the number of tracks and feverishly getting different mixes polished off. We're in the final stages so it's not far off completion. [We're] dead excited...This time we're working with our live band who've been playing with us for years - no guests, just the band as you'd see us live."

With the ease at which the duo manages to manufacture such a relative symphony of sound that would be as at home under a pulsing strobe light as it would soundtracking a science fiction space battle, it's no surprise that Chris and the pairing's other half, Mike Truman, have used their skills to work on different kinds of media over the last few years.

"Our approach to making music has altered because of the diversity of the work we've been involved in," Chris says. "Each style of writing has had some impact on our overall sound. The band material has a more eclectic edge thanks to a lot of the film sound design we do. They all draw off each other, really. For us it's all about using the right instrument for the job and making it sound as vibrant as possible."

Chris explains that he is looking forward to a more intimate club show this time around, following Hybrid's epic performance in 2003 at Lot 33 which many labelled as the best DJ set of all time.

"[I remember] playing for a very, very long time and also some people crying when we played Symphony," he reminisces. "Last time we loved the Warehouse Festival but what with it being a big warehouse you can't get close enough to your audience. I like to see the whites of their eyes and be with them as one right down on the dancefloor. It's gonna be a killer and I just can't wait to play some of the new Hybrid album 4 tracks and see what happens close up."

Hybrid will play their intimate show at Lot 33 on Saturday August 8.

Dance : The Drop

In this digital age where you can have more meaningful conversations on a keyboard than in front of an actual person and judge how many real friends you have not by who calls you to come out on a Saturday night but rather by how many adds you have on Facebook, a competition like the in the mix Top 50 DJ poll is a confusing prospect. Is it a true indication of who is the best in each category or a glorified popularity contest? Probably a little from column A and a little from column B. Every club kid with a pair of shiny headphones and a beatport account seems to be sending through "vote for me" email spam this year. You the people can decide the winners by heading to http://www.inthemix.com.au/50/2009 and selecting who your favourite producer, event, festival, DJs and street press dance columnists were for 2009 (psst, you can find my name in the DJ section).

Blatant self-promotion aside, there are a lot of new up and coming events that could also warrant a mention in this year's competition like +one. The energetic lads bring a dirty rucksack full of breakbeat, hip hop, dubstep and drum n bass to Transit Bar on Friday July 31, the night is hosted by local deck destroyers Shifty Business who comprise two DJs (Dubdeckerbuss and The Crunch) and MC Harlequin playing on four vinyl turntables, 3 mixers, 2 laptops, effects units, synthesizers and a microphone. Guests for the evening include Faux Real, Karton and Fourthstate and the cover charge is a handy $0.

August at Academy saddles up with a plethora of exciting acts take the stage starting with 'so hot right now' MTV lesbian vampire killer Ruby Rose and sidekick Ritty making their first appearance at the disco theatre for a night of chunky girl on girl beats on Saturday August 8. This is sure to be one of those ridiculously busy events so the lovely guys at Friction & Lexington have organised presale tickets so you don't have to worry about being stuck out on the chilly pavement. Head to Parliament, Landspeed or online at inthemix for yours at $20 a pop plus booking fee.

Following this, local boys done good Grafton Primary return to the capital on Friday August 14 with band members Joshua (vocals), Benjamin (synths/keytar) and Robbie (drums) manifesting their magic indie dance show in a rare appearance on the Academy main stage.

The fresh pairing of promotional powerhouses Sideproject and TJS combine for a new night simply called Genre Pollution taking off at Mercury Bar on Friday July 31. With a roster of local DJs bulging at the seams like the late John Candy's slacks, this is not one to miss for fans of speaker shaking DnB and dubstep.

Finally the date for the much anticipated 2009 Foreshore Music Festival has been announced. Saturday November 28 will see the enigmatic event return to the coveted lakeside venue with a lineup that is promised to be even more jaw-dropping than last years. Is this even possible? Just wait and see.

August is upon us Canberra, why not take your minds off the debilitating cold by checking out my hot tip for the month - Nari & Milani. These tech tribal masters have been releasing some mouthwatering records lately, perfect for late night dark rooms and sweaty dance floors.

Juan Kidd

He is a bit of an enigma, really - a sonic cipher whose identity is slowly being delineated by each successful club release as it slides under his locked studio door like a jailhouse dinner into the eager hands of his booking agent. His personal anonymity is contrasted by the success of his alter ego and he is definitely the JUAN KIDD that is destined for bigger things.

Now You're Gone has been one of winter's biggest club hits, reaching the adamantine heights of the Australian club charts for back to back weeks and proving that Juan is more than a one trick pony. The rising house star has followed it up with front of box favourites like Burning, Off the Hook and Bang the Drum.

"[I've been] hitting an in between market of sounds, it's what I was looking for and I think many others," he states. "[I've] spent loads of time in the studio this year, I have tracks forthcoming on Size, Defected, Toolroom and an artist album on CR2 which will be coming out by the end of the summer. I did a bootleg of Faithless' We Come 1 with Bobby Tee that is due for release 17th July. It got three plays at Space opening so we are hoping for big things."

Juan personifies what it is to be in demand as he has already released monsters for Steve Angello, Erick Morillo and Mark Brown on their labels Size, Subliminal and CR2, along with tracks on Mark Knight's Toolroom and David Piccioni's Azuli Records. If that isn't a dream roster of dance label bosses then my name isn't Denny Crane. But it hasn't all been beachfront villas and cocaine badgers for the star producer as experience catechised his judgement.

"I have done a couple [of mixes] just for the money and realised it was the wrong way to go," Juan reveals. "I only remix something if I know I can play it in one of my sets, otherwise I pass on it." The aforementioned bootleg of Faithless' We Come 1 is about to detonate over club land this party season, getting the personal thumbs up from Faithless frontman Maxi Jazz himself.

Juan's unique style has earnt him a disc alongside The Bloody Beetroots and Andy Murphy on the latest Smash Your Stereo One Love compilation CD, adding his patented raw tech edged sound to the club cauldron which he promises to emulate with Australian audiences.

"I was hanging with Frank from One Love in Miami and he asked me to do it," Juan recalls. "There was no hesitation in saying yes. Australia is very open-minded when it comes to music. Europe seems to be very genre-led and purist where as I like to cross boundaries. It's all house music to me - I'll be playing anything from tribal tech and underground tones to uplifting hands in the air, depending on where they let me take them."

Juan Kidd will be paying a visit to Academy on Friday July 10.

Dance : The Drop

Friday June 26 marked the passing of our generation's greatest dance/rnb artist Michael Jackson. As much as the middle-aged plastic version was mocked for his bizarre antics, reclusive eccentricity and seemingly endless rhinoplasty, we must celebrate his legacy as an entertainer rather than a preternatural man child, just as our parents celebrated Elvis for his plethora of hip-shaking hits rather than the fact he died whilst eating junk food on the toilet.

Now onto something that is very much alive and kicking. The Canberra dance scene shuffles its way into mid-year with some massive shindigs beginning with UK superstars the Drummatic Twins, who bring their electric show to the capital to defibrillate the chest of the break beat genre on Thursday July 9 at Transit Bar. The guys are ably supported by locals Karton (who are about to unleash their long awaited artist album), the Rideckulous DJs, Dubdeckerbuss and Staky.

Prepare yourself with some light stretching as the Ministry of Sound Sessions roadshow returns to Academy celebrating the release of the Sessions 6 compilation CD on Saturday July 18. Dual interstate headliners Goodwill and Tommy Trash are backed up by local DJs Hugh Foster and Tim Galvin and this night promises to be another monumentally blurry occasion if previous MOS parties are anything to go by.

Pang! keeps up its reputation as the ACT's best with another round of awesome events at Lot 33. Sunday July 26 will see indie favourites Yuksek (France) lugging their famed club show to the small stage alongside Mikah Freeman and Vance Musgrove (from the Aston Shuffle), Bobbin, Biggie, Mr. Wilson and Hubert. Tickets are $25 plus booking fee, available from Landspeed Records and hurry because they are strictly limited to 200! The much loved In The Mix dance music website celebrates its yearly Top 50 poll with a party on Friday July 31 including Mighty Fools (Holland) and the rocking Funktrust DJs (triple j, Sydney). Locals on this night include Timtulip, Cheese, Hubert and Beat It.

For those of you that are addicted to white powder, you may be interested to know that the Lake Jindabyne Hotel are holding another one of their in season Blizzard dance events on Saturday August 1. This year's lineup includes The Bang Gang Deejays support by the newly formed electro outfit SavagePants, comprising of Amber Savage and Andy Brownscombe, DJ Keli Hart, Chris Lawrence and Harison. Get your goggle on!

In breaking news, one of my sentimental all time favourite acts Hybrid (UK) have been confirmed to play at Lot 33 on Saturday August 8. The guys are most famous for bringing the emotion back into electronic music with massive records like Finished Symphony, If I Survive, I'm Still Awake and True to Form along with blinding remixes for artists like Radiohead, Sarah McLachlan, Energy 52, BT and Future Sound of London. Whatever you do, DO NOT miss this show as their last Lot 33 appearance back in 2003 is still regarded by many as the best club set of all time (that set is available on www.hybridized.org).

Until next issue, I'll leave you with this quote.

"Don't blame it on the sunshine, don't blame it on the moonlight, don't blame it on the good times, blame it on the boogie." Michael Jackson, 1958-2009.

Wayne Brady / Kitty Flanagan

The mixed crowd left the Convention Centre with smiles on their faces like half-drunk relatives on Boxing Day. Foreshadowed by the CDs available for sale in the merchandise stands welcoming you into the foyer, Wayne Brady had finished the stellar final performance of his Australian tour with a selection of R ‘n’ B songs from his latest album. He sings? Yes, and dances too. As if the man needed to add yet another string to his bow, I mean he had just held the sold out crowd in the palm of his hand for almost two hours with improvised comedy and what were essentially live drama school games. That is the crux of a real entertainer.

The sound of laughter filled the room as one particular game involved asking the crowd for some random  occupation names that he advised he would be turning into song numbers, first as Creed, then Rod Stewart, then Prince and so on. His impressions were spot on and were received with much aplomb by Saddam Hussein to my left (who unleashed backdoor chemical warfare on the surrounding four rows – or Kuwait, as I referred to it – every ten minutes) and Captain Shout-a-lot to my right (who seemed to think he was funnier than the host).

His interaction with the mixed bag of an audience was a real highlight as Wayne informed us before the show that if no one volunteered, he would pick people at random who he stated “better not run away, because I’m black and therefore faster than you.” It also must be said that the support act, Aussie expat comedian Kitty Flanagan, opened the show with one of the most hilarious spots I have ever seen. It set up the night brilliantly (albeit for the 20 minute interlude before Wayne actually took the stage) and cemented this particular evening as the most complete and satisfying belly rattlers of my recent experience. Whose line is it anyway? It’s yours, Wayne Brady.

So You Think You Can Dance

SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE, the reality TV series responsible for augmenting terms like 'Arabesque,' 'cabriole' and 'finding the light and shade' into Monday morning water cooler conversations all across the country, is transporting its 2009 top ten directly from your flat screen to within frenzied pre-teen grabbing distance in a series of exciting live stage shows around Australia.

I caught up with excitable victor Talia Fowler to get her reaction on winning the show and to also pose the seminal question, what comes next?

"It still hasn't sunken in, I haven't even really been home yet!" she reveals. "I got ten minutes to see my family after the final and then we were straight onto Rove, then all the other media commitments. It's a really amazing recognition and a massive reward because I know I deserved it after all the hard work."

Reality TV shows are fast becoming the soap operas of the new millennium, but within the growing pile of trashy urban game shows So You Think You Can Dance definitely demands the most mental proficiency from its contestants, as the final four, in particular, stage some extremely involved and exciting routines displaying some amazing talent both in performance and choreography.

"I knew that I had a real chance but that I also had to bring something else to the competition at that point," Talia says. "I had to really do something special with the routines I was given, they even told me that I had to cry on stage when I did one of the contemporary numbers and that was really hard!"

Having to learn new routines quicker than you can say 'what the hell is quick step?' was one of the more difficult requirements in the programme, but it provided for some enjoyable dinner time family bonding over the boob tube.

"There was a lot of pressure," Talia states. "The first day we learned routines was very stressful because you have to learn these new styles so quickly and then go home and work on it most of the night and come back the next day and make it happen. The hardest thing I had to get used to was talking to the camera all the time because we had to really open up, but it got easier as the series went on."

From quiet, petite ballerina to fire breathing sex kitten, Talia's own transformation over the course of the competition was a catalyst to her rising popularity with judges and more importantly the Australian public.

"I guess that came from seeing myself as being successful and having all this support from people. You have to be yourself and be natural but also be able to change into a sexy temptress for routines like the salsa and really put yourself out there. You get totally lost in the moment! You forget it's actually a TV show, its really surreal and I was always like 'wow, this is really happening!'"

The So You Think You Can Dance road show is the next step for this young talented dancer who will then prepare for her own appearance on the finale of the American version of the show.

"I'm so glad I am representing Australia," Talia gushes. "It will be in front of 20 million viewers but I have had so much support so I'm really looking forward to it. For now I'm just concentrating on the road show, where the biggest thing I am looking forward to is seeing the people who supported me throughout the competition."

The So You Think You Can Dance spectacular will roll into Canberra (specifically, the AIS Arena) on Tuesday July 7. Tickets through Ticketek.

Dance : The Drop

When temperatures drop below zero degrees celcius, it is common for the capitalis teenagus, colloquially known as the Canberra teenager, to retreat to his or her well heated local sports club or parochial watering hole for cheap refreshment and wall mounted entertainment in the form of ubiquitous male dominated team sports.

The trend towards this yearly migration is being fought off by a team of skilled promoters who, from their isolated mountainside lair, have devised a devilishly clever winter strength programme of events to lull the masses back into the city centre.

The well loved Purple Sneakers crew lug their monthly swag of indie dance specials back to Transit Bar on Friday June 26. These cosmetically competent boozehounds will be joined by local superstars Talihina Shan and Will Eat Brains on a night which also, thanks to our lovely friends at Shock Records, celebrates the release of Placebo's new album - Battle For The Sun.

Eat your heart out Ministry of One Love! TV Rock's record label has become self aware and is launching its latest 'must have' dance compilation Neon Essentials with a slew of parties across Australia. The next port of call for the raucous roadshow is our very own Academy nightclub where Melbournite Chardy will be rocking your sweaty socks off on Saturday June 27.

Just to round off seemingly the biggest weekend of the year, on Sunday June 28 PANG! provide permanent ear damage in the form of noisy Italian electro kings The Bloody Beetroots. Take it from me, if you like filthy French style house music with a side of sonic techno, this is not one to miss! Supports also include Hubert vs Beat It, Offtapia vs Cheese, and Kiz vs RyFy alongside the fabulously sexual Aston Shuffle who will be celebrating the release of their new radio killing single from the long awaited Do You Want More.

To kick off Ron Kovic's birthday weekend in style, the boys from Friction & Lexington have joined forces with Lollygag Productions in a tongue-twisting night of frivolity in the form of Llik Llik Llik featuring Kazu Kimura on the Saturday July 4 at Transit Bar. The infamous Japanese 3 deck techno wizard returns after a brilliant performance at last year's Foreshore FestivalScottie Fischer, Biggie, Gabriel Gilmour, Nick Smith and Staky. with local supports

On the very same night, the Lighter Massive crew set the Indoor Rock Climbing Centre alight playing host to the aptly named Neverest all ages hard dance event. The lads scale new heights with headliners including Soul-t (PHD/Melb), Suae (Syd), Tom-ENomad, Tempa (Syd), Enerv8, Selby (Syd), Germ (Syd), Nasty and Mike Mayhem. Tickets are a paltry $25 and are available presale from Landspeed Records. (Syd) supported by your favourite local and interstate talent

The best way to get warm on those cold Canberran June winter nights is with a BMA dance column hot tip for July. This edition it focuses on the latest offering from the mega successful Global Underground Nubreed mix CD series. Over the years it has unearthed some of the biggest and best progressive talent the world over, from Steve Lawler and Anthony Pappa to Sander Kleinenberg and Danny Howells, the series continues to exhume new superstars by the boothload. The next in the series focuses on rising Brit star Jim Rivers and it is one of the most impressive yet, coming highly recommended for your post-party soundtrack. Enjoy.

Reggie Watts The Folkus Room Friday June 5

It’s hard to put into words what the Reggie Watts experience is like. You sit in a dark room in front of what appears to be the love child of ?uestlove from The Roots and a comedic Bill Gates. Between the astonishing live improvisational songs, his diatribe is both nonsensical and scintillating to the point where if someone asked me why I was roaring with laughter I wouldn’t be able to offer comment. To attempt a review of the show will be a test of my own mental quintessence, which in laymen’s terms simply means he completely and utterly blew my mind. Let’s go back to the beginning.

The Folkus Room is a bit of a social melting pot. Young, old, outgoing and socially modest alike gathered amongst the tables with beverage in hand awaiting the arrival of ‘that guy who was on Good News Week’. I could see his infamous loop pedal and array of microphones which made me more eager to see what two hours with the man would unveil. He finally appeared around 8:30, fashionably late, which for a seemingly unfashionable man seems quite ironic. He seems almost a caricature of himself; big beard, massive hair and the stage presence of an entire band, which due to his unique vocal talents as a musical comparison does not fall far from the absolute truth.

Over the next two hours he performed both the role of comedian, lecturer and musician, never once losing the folkus of the crowd. He has this uncanny ability to deliver the most intelligently structured gibberish while still somehow managing to come to a hilarious point and never missing a beat, but it is his own beats that make the show something I will never forget.

asterfully crafted incantations about famine, the music industry and my personal favourite A Fuck/Shit Stack had the audience in the palm of his microphone tethered hand. His vocal ability is absolutely prodigious, and at one stage I experienced dry mouth simply because he had my jaw on the floor for so long. I don’t care who’s running for government in the next election, I’m voting for Reggie Watts.

Dance : The Drop

I woke up this morning realising that we are smack bang in the middle of 2009, six months away from 2010 and a whole lot of neon skyscrapers and flying taxis away from the future as predicted in classic ‘80s science fiction movies. Just as time passes more quickly when you’re having fun (which by all accounts would make this year the most jocular in history), so does it also move in cycles. The cyclical nature of music is most apparent in electronica with its roots in the ‘80s spawning 808s, big hair and ludicrously audacious apparel to the naughties where we have come full circle, re-visiting our love for analog synths, helmet hair and brightly coloured clothes. (Segue Alert!). Speaking of cycles, we are back into Winter clubbing season!

The Mercury is rising on the city strip thanks to the Nemesis crew who present Energize on Friday June 12 at Mercury Bar. Fans of hardcore and gabber will be excited to see that they have secured the services of interstate gun slingers Danny J (Melb) and Gurty (Bris) along with locals Haks, Cotts, Nomad, Kataklizm, Nasty, Fi-end, DJ Happyy, Harlequin MC and Side Scratcher Rushnosh.

Mark Friday June 19 in your tattered dance diaries as it heralds the homecoming of two of Canberra’s favourite expats. Chris Fraser and Typhonic hit the highway from the big smoke headed for a special adults only double act at Lot 33, this is followed with the exciting arrival of Italian minimal tech wizard Alex Kenji & Bass Kleph appearing together on Friday June 26 rounding off another month in the Pang calendar. I caught up with the Captain of the ship Hubert for an update on his 2009 club calendar. “I think it’s essential to have a good mix of international and national acts. There also needs to be some consistency with music without overdoing the one particular genre… We have a lot of great acts locked in for the coming months, we feel that there’s a lot of variety and all the acts will be really exciting. We have some big internationals such as Alex Kenji, Bloody Beetroots, Yuksek, Mighty Fools, Sidney Samson, and will see return visits from national guys like Hook N Sling, Bass Kleph, Bang Gang DJs, and Funktrust DJs.” Adding to their stellar array of headliners, he adds that the Pang DJ comp was extremely successful in unearthing some fresh faced music manipulators. “I think that the new crop of DJs in Canberra is very impressive; the 2009 Pang DJ Comp has definitely exposed guys that wouldn’t normally have a chance to get in a club environment and play…

One of the big things that I have noticed is the variety of great DJs coming through; we have already seen amazing techno, house, tech and electro DJs display their talents. I have to also mention the dubstep that has been played at Lot33; this is a new genre to the club, but it went down really well. You will be seeing a lot more of this genre in coming months.” Stay tuned.

Finally I’ll leave you with my hot tip for this month. Man of the moment Avicii; Youtube his tunes, you will thank me.

tim galvin
tim.galvin@live.com.au

Laidback Luke

There is actually nothing laid back about Dutch super-producer/DJ Luke Van Scheppingen at all. He has utilised his supernatural 'windmill skills' to sit atop the sparkling podium of house music for the last 12 months as the industry's most in demand remixer, churning out big room re-works for the likes of Roger Sanchez, Steve Angello, Martin Solveig, Underworld and Tocadisco just to name a few.

Although to children of the early '90s it may seem as though he has just popped up overnight like some kind of pre-prom facial anomaly, Luke has actually been releasing successful records for over a decade beginning with his 1999 self penned release Psyched U. It wasn’t until 2002 when he unleashed the massive Rocking with the Best that he truly presented himself to the international community as one to watch and since then he has been wading through enticing offers for remixes and collaborations like a teenage girl in a room full of fluffy kittens.

“(When I get offers) I just listen to the original and see if there are elements I like and I can use. If the elements aren't there, most of the time I refuse a remix.”

His DJ name is derived from a Snoop Dogg track which highlights the influence that hip-hop had on his early on his career which then transitioned him into the world of house music. “Before I became a househead I listened and partied to a lot of hip-hop. The tipping point for me was hearing Technotronic's Pump Up The Jam which transitioned me into house music. It had that hip-hop badness combined with the party energy I was looking for. A close friend of mine introduced computer music making to me by stripping down Pump Up The Jam on his Amiga. From there I just started with house music!”

Previous to his now famous big room Swedish sound he was known for producing a much deeper style of house music; one of the many musical metamorphoses in his long career as he explains. “I had quite a few transitions in sound in my career. I started doing really housey Strictly Rhythm style stuff, gradually moving into tougher and tougher techno. Then I became really Daft Punk-ish and moved into poppy electroclashy stuff. And after came the big Swedish style sound. I do like the change, I'm bored very quickly and I always like to do something different than what I did before. I do think all the styles still hold my typical Laidback Luke touch though.”

Heading to Canberra for the Warehouse Winter Music Festival, he promises to shake the foundations of the AIS with some massive new party rockers. “I always bring the Laidback Luke Bootleg Machine. I'm still making a lot of bootlegs between tracks and remixes! I do try to bring a lot of energy to a party. I like to have a good time with the crowd when I'm playing. To me it's also about interaction; we should make a good party together!”

Laidback Luke is a part of the mind-bogglingly awesome line-up of the Winter Warehouse Music Festival on Sunday June 7 at the AIS Arena. Tickets through Ticketek (or by clicking on the Warehouse banner at the very top of the page).

Riva Starr

Metamorphosis is a wonderful thing. Just as the caterpillar enters a cocoon to become a beautiful butterfly and angelic teen Barbie dolls enter a nightclub to become messy harlots, so has Stefano Miele experienced a ponderous transformation of his own. Previously celebrated as international breakbeat superstar Madox, in 2008 he did a musical Megatron and switched to producing bouncy tech house under the guise of provocative new kid on the block, RIVA STARR, although it hasn't been such an instant switch. "I have always been producing and playing house music so with the common elements it has been quite natural," explains Starr. "When you think that someone like Locodice started out producing hip-hop and are now producing what they are, it shows that you can be really diverse."

His profile was really catapulted into the stratosphere with appearances at the 2008 Miami Music Conference, where he caught the ear of most of the big name DJs with some well timed hot releases and blinding DJ sets. "I didn't go this year [but] it was a really good experience when I went in 2008. I played at the Dubsided after party with Switch and Sinden, Jesse Rose and Claude Von Stroke which was insane! It's such a great place to be, the streets are filled with all of these big DJs with one thing in common: they are all drunk!" he laughs.

One thing that separates him from other tech house producers is that he is always trying to change up his sound so he doesn't keep churning out the same sounds over and over again. "I am working on an album at the moment," reveals Starr. "There is a lot of groovy housey stuff on there as well as something with breakish elements too."

Having had such continuous success as an artist, performer and remixer it would be safe to say that he would feel some pressure to create big records every time he stepped into the studio. Not so, Starr replies confidently. "No, I don't feel pressure to make hit records. Some producers are scared that they do not want to disappoint people and just make tunes for the club. I see it as being more about fun and not just 'business.'"

Having played at massive festivals all across the globe, it begs the question, which does he prefer - the intimate confines of a club or the balls out hedonistic nature of a music festival? "Actually I have fun at both. At festivals you can play the more banging stuff and you get to hang out with lots of other DJs and it's really fun but to play in a darkish club with a more intimate vibe is really good too. I love to play a lot of after parties so I can get the best of both!"

Keep busy this upcoming Queen's birthday long weekend by checking out Riva Starr as part of the awesome Warehouse Winter Music Festival lineup. It's on Sunday June 7 at the AIS Arena. Tickets on sale now from Ticketek and Landspeed Records.

Dance : The Drop

This is a desperate final broadcast for all survivors of the dreaded swine flu pandemic. We have survived, we are still here. We have alcohol, music and night clubs. I repeat, alcohol... music... and... nightclubs. If there is anyone out there, please, please come before midnight to take advantage of our half priced drink specials and free tapas. Bah! If three days without sleep doesn't kill us, why should we worry about some sniffly Mexican hogs? Bring on the parties!

Stuttering sonic soldiers llik llik llik proudly present Melbourne Techno Collective regular Craig McWhinney on Friday May 22 at Transit Bar. Entry is on the cuff (free) and local supports come from Rory Bobbin, Biggie and Gabe. This event is followed by Hancock Basement's 7" launch on the Saturday night and even though John Holmes was 12", that's still mighty adequate.

Saturday May 23 at Lot 33 features successful Sydney professional ping pong duo Brendan Fing & Matt Nukewood for Ping Pong Pang while Pang! goes it alone, presenting Dutch tech masters the 16 Bit Lolitas on Friday May 29, ably supported by ace Chinese Laundry resident Club Junque.

Hippo Bar is proving that it's more than just a haven for gob smacking cocktails with Voodoo on Saturday June 20. This will be a night of luscious soulful drum 'n' bass featuring DJ Dred and The Crunch, so get on down (or up in this case) and support some local freshmakers.

The full lineup for the Warehouse Winter Music Festival has been announced with French techno god Popof being added to the amazing roster along with a local contingent consisting of Jaytech, Tim Galvin, DJ Kiz, Trent Richardson, Scottie Fisher, Hubert, RYFY, Sean Kelly, Jamie Vale, Offtapia, Mark Nichols, Escha along with Sydneysiders Chris Fraser, David Beres and A Tonez. With internationals like Armand Van Helden, James Zabiela, NASA and Laidback Luke on the bill, this event will sell out fast so don't forget to get your ticket soon or else you might be one of those sad faced fluoro fanatics stuck on the other side of the AIS fence!

After achieving massive success with their last few events, the promotional powerhouse that is Alliance (Friction & Lexington Music) returns to Academy on Saturday May 30 with the Canberra leg of the Ministry of Sound Housexy tour, featuring chart topper Mobin Master, whose crazy massive Show Me Love has been the crowd pleasing favourite of choice for all club DJs for the last 18 months.

New bar on the block Tongue & Groove has started up its own Saturday night house music event with residents Tim Galvin and Raw FM's own DJ Tori Mac taking the reigns every weekend alongside special guests so come down from 10 pm for some dance floor friendly favourites. Finally I'll leave you with my hot tip for May - Dutch rising star Chuckie has been jammed into my CD player for the last few weeks with some awesome bouncy club rockers. Since coming at us full force like a groggy Australian swimmer with Let The Bass Kick earlier this year, he has been churning out some great tech and electro house music. Check out his latest mix compilation Dirty Dutch for a double CD of quality club music.

Until next issue, just remember when the media tells you to stay away from Hog's Breath it doesn't mean you can't go and enjoy some pre-club curly fries and a slow cooked vertebrate with your lovely dinner date.

Dance : The Drop

To the near sober drinker with only silver change left in his pocket, yes he can. To the nightclub princess with no shoes to go with her new dress, yes she can. To the sweaty DJs who swear to the birthday girl that they forgot to bring their only copy of Britney’s latest hit, yes they can, and to the thousands of young music enthusiasts struggling their way into the month of May, together, yes we can.

Steer your glistening skulls into the warm shower mist and recharge for another month of booming dark parties starting with everyone’s favourite R rated TV show come club night The Aston Shuffle N Friends at Lot 33 on Friday May 8.

The dubious duo have just returned from an extended tour of our planet (and beyond, Mikah tells me after one too many nights on the absinthe mind wagon) and for this event they are joined by the music manipulating man train of Hubert, Bruisa, Mig.L, Ronnie Gordon, Scott Fischer and Shunji.

Due to popular demand, Academy are bringing back one of their more successful interstate superstar guests in May. Club shaking, record making, drink card taking all round nice guy Tom Piper returns on Saturday May 9 followed by the One Love sound machine CD tour featuring sexy sound siren Minx on May 23. Both are ably supported by residents Sean Kelly, Staky and Ashley Feraude.

If you promise not to tell anyone, I’ll give you the hot tip on the next big thing in crossover dance. I came across this awesome small time electro act called ‘The Presets’ while I was in Sydney the other week and… who I am kidding, its not 2006 anymore.

If you haven’t already bought your tickets to the charismatic chart toppers last Canberra show for 2009 at the AIS Arena (note: no longer at the ANU Bar) on Wednesday May 27 I suggest your only option would be to stand outside the throbbing arena yelling “OMG Julian and Kim I love you, your catchy lyrics and your wacky sense of dress!” because I dare say it, as this goes to print the show would have already sold out. Oh and they are being supported by Van She, just to rub it in a little bit more.

For those that have a hunger Pang for some underground international action, May is another excellent month to get your late night fix at Lot 33. Friday May 1 sees Brazilian duo The Twelves playing a live set, while May 7 is Round 4 of the Pang DJ Comp, so grab your pom poms to cheer on your local undiscovered superstar friends then back it up on Friday May 15 with the Canberra debut of fidget star Lee Mortimer (UK).

Mingle’s back to break in the new term this Thursday April 30 at Transit Bar, featuring techno extraordinaire Alex Caminer (Syd) and with support from Cheese, Nolly, Biggie vs Gabe Gilmore, Yohan Strauss and Chrisye. Witness Canberra’s best VJ crew - RTFM - with their camera helmets and hectic lighting by Aztech Productions.

Finally to leave this issue’s column with a bit of an interstate taste in its mouth I would like to give a big shout out to ex-Canberran promoter Paul Azzopardi whose club the Chinese Laundry has just been named #67 in international monthly music bible Mixmag’s Top 100 Clubs in the World.  It was Australia’s top ranked club in the globe and is my personal home away from home when I’m not sipping margaritas poolside in the capital. To celebrate this along with myself getting a year older, I will be playing a special birthday set there on May 9 so if you happen to be harbourside come say hello and supply me with some liquid gifts and a toasty Canberra hug.

Wayne Brady

Everybody makes shit up. From “I’m sorry officer, I thought this was a 140 kph zone” to “my dog ate my homework and then regurgitated it onto your desk with the wrong answers.” The art of improvisation is a skill that cannot simply be learned, it is a rare quality ingrained in a chosen few who are destined to either become terrible politicians or extremely convivial comedians. WAYNE BRADY is from the latter.

For those of us who survey their widescreen TVs from beneath a Foxtel dish, he would be most well known as the star of the hit ad lib show Whose Line Is It Anyway? alongside Drew Carey, Colin Mochrie and Ryan Stiles, although he has spent the last 12 months touring his extemporization spectacular Making S*#t Up all across the globe, including a stint in Las Vegas.

“Vegas was wonderful, it’s such a great place for entertainers to be. Everyone that comes through there loves it!” explains Brady. “The tour itself has been amazing. I have done shows all over the world and I’m coming back to Australia. Australian audiences are very improv-savvy, if that makes sense, in that if I make a literary reference or something like that, people tend to get it every time which is great. You can expect improv like on Whose Line, audience participation, physical humour, a few songs from my album – we have dancers and a live band so it’s pretty much like having a Vegas show wherever I am on stage.”

Growing up, one would assume that Wayne would have been the centre of attention, utilising his quick wit to impress the ladies and entertain his friends. Not so, says the talented performer, although it did land him a role as Tigger at Disney World.

“I think that’s a general misconception. People think ‘surely you were the guy always trying to be the centre of attention.’ I was not that guy at all! I think people would want to punch that guy,” he laughs. “When I auditioned at Disney World, you had to audition in general rather than for an actual character. They look for animators who would suit each character individually and I played everyone from Captain Hook to Tigger, it was great being in a costume and being able to become someone completely different each day.”

More recently Wayne has had worldwide success as the host of the US game show Don’t Forget the Lyrics, and I mention how much I enjoyed the special episode starring one of my boyhood sentimental favourites Boyz II Men.

“It really was one of those times when I just thought ‘I love my job.’ The show has been so great, its been so well received in other countries like Australia as well and people just love it. It’s also just about to air in New Zealand and Asia and there is even a French version – it’s very funny to see the show being performed in French. It’s a great gig!”

With a professional resume so long it should be rolled out on a papyrus, it’s hard to make time in the interview to go over all of his achievements although there was one burning issue that I just had to touch on: his hilarious Chapelle Show cameo.

“There is always that one person per day who thinks they are the first person to ever come and say it to me. I have had ten year olds who have come up to me and said ‘are you really going to choke a bitch?’, it’s weird. But people always get it wrong though, so I have had people come up to me and say ‘is Wayne Brady gonna tie someone up with rope?’” he laughs. “At least watch it and get it right!”

Emmy-winning actor, Grammy-winning R’n’B singer, TV host, Broadway actor, pseudo pimp – Wayne Brady has it all. Is there anything he can’t do?

“Well I don’t cook as well as I would like, I can’t play the piano and I haven’t had much luck with relationships so they are all things I would like to work on.” You heard it here first ladies.

You can see the hilarious Wayne Brady perform live at the Royal Theatre on Saturday May 16. Tickets through Ticketek.

Guy J

Out the front of the quick stop in downtown Israel stands a man clutching a small laptop with one arm and a cool glistening bottle of imported beer with the other, his pristine record bag pressed up neatly on the wall beside him.

Next to him leers a stocky bearded figure in a long black trenchcoat wearing a backwards baseball cap and smoking a cigarette. That was my picture of GUY J and Guy silent Bob. In actual fact my daydream image is only a half-truth, as Guy J is more the international superstar DJ and less the loitering aimless layabout with mute overweight sedentary sidekick.

Along with artists such as Guy Gerber and Sholmi Aber, Guy J has spearheaded the Israeli dance music revolution with a new wave of stirring progressive records, an art which he has cultivated through experience. “I’m not trying to put myself in any group or keep myself out, I’m trying to improve myself in each production and each track,” J muses. “I think I’m still rising and directing myself to somewhere. I always find emotion in music. The most special part, if it’s happy, sad or angry – it means it’s done with a reason, with feeling. I try in each track to express something; sometimes it’s hard and sometimes it’s easier.”

After releasing a handful of tunes in 2006, he caught the ear of electronic overlord John Digweed who made the releases part of his essential mix playlist and eventually signed the artist to his own label, Bedrock Records. This led to work on his seminal long-player Esperanza that was released this year to much acclaim.

“I was always preparing myself for an artist album, so all the time I was working on different material as well, so it was fun,” says J. “Also to get out from the routine of making club music – it’s good. Each track from the album is expressing something and I think the way the album [is] built and the order make it sound like a story that each listener can find something in. There is opening, there is sadness, there is anger, there is happiness and there is finale with Esperanza.”

The collection has been likened to Nathan Fake’s masterpiece Drowning in a Sea of Love, which tops the list of many epic sonic soundscape fanboys’ wishlists and is indicative of the sound you could expect from one of his DJ sets. “My sets are very melodic and I always try to keep up with a good build up to get the crowd into the music. I use Ableton live sometimes but I still wouldn’t call it live as for live sets you don’t need only a computer – there is more to do, but I’m working on my live show.”

In 2009 Guy has taken his driving beats and shimmering synths to all corners of the planet and heads back to Australia soon for a series of shows that are a welcome return for the globetrotting artist. “I’ve had a great time in Japan, South America, Holland is always fun and Australia – I can’t wait to come back! I have new material including new remixes and editing for tracks, warm sound and of course lots of emotions.”

Dance: The Drop

With the holiday season all but a segmented flashback in a Summer Lovin’-style musical montage, this time of year heralds the term where we take our usual break from the heat of the summer festival season and direct our battered wallets towards the sudoriferous wombs of our local dance halls.
In a big step away from their usual musical stylings, Academy are hosting UK drum ‘n’ bass legends Roni Size & Dynamite MC on Friday February 20. Supported by Canberra DNB favourites Escha and Kilojulz, this night is set to reduce the old cinema building to a quivering mass of debris as drum ‘n’ bass will be heard through the colossal sound system for the first time ever, innit! This is definitely something for all fans of DNB to come and support if they want to see more of their fave acts through the biggest sound system in our fair city.

Mercury Bar as hosting the Big Lu Ruff Craft Mixtape tour on Friday February 13. Management have advised me that you will not be allowed in while wielding a machete or wearing a blood-stained hockey mask. Supports include DJ Dphy, Nikkita, Convict and the Rhyme Ministers.

Proliferous party planners Pang have another round of tasty headliners appearing at their newly established free Thursday night sessions at Transit Bar. February 12 sees The Proxy and Thomas Von Party hit the stage, followed by UK superstar King Unique on February 19. Local support is provided by The Aston Shuffle, Scottie Fisher, Fourthstate, Hubert and Tim Galvin.

The newly refurbished Monkey Bar gives you somewhere to dance off your international indigestion with an Official Multicultural Festival Afterparty on Saturday February 14 with live latino band Mi Tierra performing. In the following weeks, MDX (AKA Mark Dynamix) returns on February 21 and former Australian #1 DJ Ajax makes his Monkey Bar debut on February 28.

In breaking news, the lads from Friction and Lexington have advised me that the much anticipated O in the Park music festival has been cancelled. The huge outdoor fiesta included acts such as Sneaky Sound System, The Herd, Van She, KRAM (of Spiderbait fame), TV Rock, Hermitude and Art vs Science. The promoters have assured me that most of the acts will be appearing in separate shows later in the year so that punters won’t miss out on this glittering selection appearing in Canberra.
Lastly, I wanted to give a shout out to local superstars The Aston Shuffle. Mikah Freeman and Vance Musgrove have spent the last 12 months spreading their wobbly love around the globe with massive European and Australian tours, and the duo have brought back a lot more than just an array of exotic diseases and paternity suits. They, along with The Stafford Brothers and Basskleph, have just mixed a disc for the latest Ministry of Sound Clubbers’ Guide compilation. This is a massive step forward for the - as their bio states - former mad scientist slash male prostitute and truck driving ex-action hero. For more details, just type this into your futuristic internet machine - www.myspace.com/theastonshuffle .

Until next issue I’ll leave you with a sexy tip: to celebrate your passionate love for dance music, why not provide a bunch of flowers, chocolates and saucy poetry to your local DJ on Valentine’s Day. Personally, I prefer roses, Ferrero Rocher and the romantic musings of William Wordsworth. Thanks in advance, you really shouldn’t have.

Tittsworth - We’re not worthy

Tittsworth

TITTSWORTH kicks back and adjusts the brim of his pristine Yankees cap, tilted North East in true Baltimore club fashion towards the dimly lit Coke machine that provides the backlight for my notes as I thumb through the interview questions.

“It’s my real last name,” he responds to the obvious first query. “Painful childhood turned lucrative DJ branding. I had a fellow Tittsworth reach out via Facebook (Josephine Tittsworth in Houstin, TX). She reminds me, ‘Remember that there are two ts because they come better in pairs.’”

This DC native has become infamous as a true party starter; trying to lock him down to one genre would be as hard as finding a modest Kanye West interview. “I grew up on all types of music. I really liked Nirvana, but also couldn’t get enough golden era and ’90s hip-hop. I was really inspired by a bunch of local bands and the whole DIY thing that was going on around it. At one point I was a DNB/rave DJ for about seven years and then really started to focus hard on (Baltimore) club. I’ve lived in the DC/MD area for 15 plus years or something like that so go-go and club music both have a big place in my heart.”

His DJ sets are predominantly a high energy one-man musical circus; jaws drop as the ringmaster takes you on an eye popping journey into foot stomping club bangers. “I use Serato via turntables with a Pioneer 800 mixer. Even as a vinyl DJ, I could mix very fast so Serato makes a lot of sense for me. I really like the live looping features and live sampling via cue points. The Pioneer is nice too with all types of fun filters, rolls, reverses and reverb to add extra drama. I like to mix hard, fast and dramatic. I think it’s the raver in me, backed by a little bit of American club/hip-hop swagger. It’s all about having the ability to drop a record a minute when need be but knowing when to twist, turn or slow down depending on observation.”

He has previously released a bunch of popular bootlegs on blogs but his debut album Twelve Steps has been the most acclaimed of his studio work to date. “It was my first release where I couldn’t depend upon samples, which is especially difficult in my genre. It was also one of the first times I had to consider audiences a little more outside the usual DJ/nightclub crowd. Though frustrating at times, I welcome the challenge and it’s something I am continuously improving and upgrading. I was really happy with the end result, especially this being my first attempt at traditional songwriting. I think it was important for me and more importantly the genre to bridge the gap.”

He visits the nation’s capital to light the wick at the Trinity Block Party, where he promises to make the yearly institution a memorable one with this prediction. “My laptop is covered in alcohol splatters, missing a control key and the frame is dented. The funny thing is, I don’t drink and the computer isn’t even that old. The last time I played Canberra, it was a lot of scuffed shoes, yelling, screaming, singing and dancing. All I can say is that I’m the type of cat that doesn’t stay happy unless I step my game UP, so watch out!”

Tittsworth will play alongside P-Money, The Bamboos Feat. Kylie Audlist, Good Buddha, and many more at Trinity Block Party, in the Trinity car park, Dickson, on Saturday January 10 from 2-10pm.

Dance : The Drop

Welcome to the end of another stellar year full of boozy late nights and neon club lights. You will excuse any slurs or tear shaped dribble patches as I recover from my post-Foreshore haze to celebrate the end of another fabulous party season. The year has seen some of the biggest and best events Canberra has ever staged along with some that were made infamous for all the wrong reasons.

The recent Crookers incident at Lot 33 was one definitely from column B. Due to the event being oversold this left a lot of disgruntled ticket holders standing in the ‘line ride’ all evening, so I spoke with Pang promoter Hubert to get to the bottom of the issue. He had this to say: “The overcrowding problem was mostly due to the fact that my Jeep was broken in to earlier this week and about 150 leftover tickets were stolen… we decided to go ahead with the existing tickets… Please accept our humblest apologies and rest assured we will be doing everything in our power to ensure that this will never happen again.”

Looks like someone really put the ‘crook’ in ‘Crookers’. Pang keeps rocking towards the new year with Australia’s #1 DJ TyDi (Qld) appearing on Friday December 19 along with Enerv8, Peekz, Scottie Fischer and Hubert followed by Random Soul (Syd) on Saturday December 20 and a special Xmas Eve all nighter featuring Canberra superstars The Aston Shuffle playing from open till close on December 24!

Monkey Bar keep the punters going bananas with the half man/half machine Harris Robotis (VIC) appearing on December 13 follwed by Victoria’s #1 DJ Adam Bartas on December 20  supported by Trent Richardson, DJ Kiz, Tim Galvin and B-Tham.

Following the much talked about ‘perspiration palace’ evening with Booka Shade last month, Transit Bar back up with another massive international guest Atomic Hooligan who will rock the bassbins on Friday December 12. Proving that they love keeping the backpackers awake well into the evening, LLIK LLIK LLIK returns on Friday December 19 featuring Gavin Keitel followed by Scott Burns’ (SYD) Day 1 album launch on the following night.

Proving that Academy are popular for more than just their ridiculous drink specials, the big acts are coming through in December faster than a meth addict on a motorcycle. Fridays see Mr Timothy return on December 12 and Carl Kennedy makes his ACT big room debut on the 19th. Love Saturdays present Alan Thompson on December 13 and super sexy Faraude Vs Fraser showdown on December 20. Oh and a little birdy told me that Dutch Maestro Fedde Le Grand will be making an appearance on Saturday January 3 so don’t demolish your brain cells too much on New Year’s Eve!

Friction and Lexington return in 2009 with yet another impressive festival, O in the Park, featuring the return of Sneaky Sound System, The Herd, Van She and KRAM from Spiderbait, tickets are on sale in early December but stay tuned for more details!

Just to keep your liver unhappy until then, the seemingly unstoppable promotional juggernauts bring the next instalment of Our House back to the pristine Senate Courtyard with the Ministry of Sound Annual tour. John Course and Kid Kenobi & MC Shureshock are supported by Chris Fraser, Derty Rich, Ashley Feraude and Michael O Rourke. The party begins on Sunday December 21 at 3:00pm and tickets are available from normal outlets.

According to early ’90s science fiction movies, 2009 will see the earth transformed into a massive prison island ruled by a Mohawked megalomaniac with a savage half naked biker army so until then, thanks for reading and I’ll see you all at Cell Block Four.

The Drop

Schools out! Well for most of you institutionalised whiteboard watchers, the end of another year is cause for celebration with more events than you can poke a two for one drink special at. In the coming weeks you may see haggard looking youths stumbling around our city centres like zombies, but fear not Canberra, for these are not the undead hunting for flesh but rather the future of our nation being unleashed from their yearly studies, with the only brains they will be harming being their own.

Movember sees one of the most talked about gigs this year happening at Transit Bar with ‘Germany’s Daft Punk’ Booka Shade squeezing their live show into the popular venue on Thursday November 27 for the unbelievable price of NOTHING. That’s right, Pang , Bacardi and Coopers have combined forces like promotional power rangers to allow for free entry on the night. Not one to be missed for fans of quality music. In the following weeks, Transit also hosts one of many after parties for the Foreshore Summer Music Festival on November 29 and Kid Confucious and Casual Projects land on December 6 with their live funk/hip-hop extravaganza.

And speaking of after parties, Academy will be also be hosting a Foreshore after party, featuring Bang Gang DJs, The Vandals, The Hump Day Project, Chris Fraser, Ashley Feraude & Sean Kelly.

To the disbelief of some local media moguls Friction and Lexington music managed to hand back the Old Parliament House courtyard in the condition they found it after the mega successful first instalment of Our House so the guys have put together another great lineup for December. The House of Senates Courtyard will play host for the Ministry of Sound Annual Party on December 21 featuring Kid Kenobi & MC Shureshock, John Course and Chris Fraser supported by Derty Rich , Ashley Feraude and Michael O Rourke.

The lineup for the 2009 Trinity Block Party on Saturday January 10 has been announced with headliners P-Money (NZ), The Bamboos ft Kylie Audlist (live), Good Buddha (Live), Sampology & TheTom Thum MPC Beatbox Show being joined by The Hump Day Project, D’opus & Roshambo, DJ Just 1, and Goldfinger who is hosting the event. Just like previous years, all ticket profits go to Oxfam so you can help fight world hunger with your powers of drinking and dancing. Take that Angelina Jolie! Tickets go on sale from the usual outlets on November 20.

A Bob Marley famously said, “I shot the Sherriff, because he didn’t support the Reggae scene”; lovers of smooth beats and cocktails should head down to Hippo Bar where Capital Dub Style & Hippo are cool running their monthly One Love Sessions on Thursday December 4 with DJs playing reggae / dancehall / roots /dub from 8pm.

Finally, with Canberra being famous for politicians, porn and producers I thought I might throw in a few updates on what local music makers are up to, if only to prove to their girlfriends that all that time in front of the PC wasn’t watching adult cinema and downloading Heroes.

Cool Weapon have been signed to a non-exclusive deal with Fat Northerner, a Manchester dance label, who have also included their track Keep On in one of their latest compliations Digital Northerner Volume 4 which is available from iTunes and most major digital retailers. Local DJ/producer Dale Baldwin has also released an EP on Elektrax Progressive which can be purchased online from beatport or related sites. I have sent you my account details guys, I think we agreed on 20% right?

Until next issue I’ll leave you with this helpful tip: never add your parents on facebook. They might not have any idea how to send an email or program a VCR but they wont have any problems finding that dubiously tagged half naked photo of you dancing on a table at that 21st last weekend.

DJ Just 1 - 1 for the masses

DJ Just 1

J isn’t the tenth letter of the alphabet, J isn’t Silent Bob’s hetero life partner, J isn’t something you smoke, J is DJ JUST 1 . Known to his parents as Justin Tam, he has more aliases than a crazed Jennifer Garner fan. He is the ACT’s premier hip-hop DJ and has a DMC Championship belt sitting on his parcel shelf to prove it. His 12” medical records list haemoglobin type ‘A1200’ proving he has turntablism in his blood, he is all about entertainment and from a young age J was brought up on RnB and hip-hop like you and me were brought up on Sesame Street.

“I’ve always loved music, especially hip-hop, after I’d heard a few mixtapes I knew that DJing was something I wanted to do; the scratching and juggling was always going to be the next step after learning how to mix.” His bedroom is lined with studio equipment and thousands of records and in 2001 he began his inner club life, quickly establishing weekly residencies at the most prolific RnB hangouts in Canberra, sometimes playing up to five times a week at places like Meche, Sultans and Minque to swelling crowds.

Musically, his style has always gravitated towards the cooler side of black music as J explains, “the main artists I have been influenced by are probably DJ Kentaro, DJ Premier, J Dilla, Q-Bert, Mixmaster Mike, Pete Rock…. to name a few, there are way too many to list.” In 2004 he came out of nowhere to win the ACT DMC Championships with innovative deck work that blew away the competition with what will go down in history as ‘The Green Machine routine’ that had Gary Belcher and Chicka Ferguson asking for post match autographs. “I wanted to come with something different and managed to get my hands on a copy of the Canberra Raiders theme song, so I incorporated that into the beginning of my set and being a big rugby league fan and the fact I’d be repping ACT in the Australian final it just seemed to fit.”

Since taking the crown he has been one of the busiest in the business, becoming a major fixture at RnB and hip-hop clubs all over the city. “I’ve mainly been doing club sets and mixtapes, I got to do Good Vibrations last year in Sydney with Pharoahe Monch and Cypress Hill and I’ll be there again next year in February with The Roots and The Pharcyde; I think the festivals are definitely something I want to be playing more at.”

This month sees J step up to the ones and twos at the Foreshore Summer Music Festival on what is a predominantly dance based lineup. “Foreshore’s going to be massive, I’ll be bringing a bit of hip-hop to the festival with a few tricks and cuts thrown in.” So what’s next for the turntable terrorist? “So far I’ll be at the Block Party at Trinity on Jan 10 and at the Good Vibrations Festival in Sydney on Feb 14, as well as playing my usual residencies around Canberra.” How many turntablists does it take to rock a party? Just 1.

DJ Just 1 will play at Block Party, in the Trinity Car Park, Dickson, on Saturday January 10 from 2 - 10pm. Joining him will be P-Money, Tittsworth, The Bamboos featuring Kylie Audlist, Good Buddha, and more.

Mowgli - The bare necessities

Those born in the ’80s will remember MOWGLI as the kid from Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book, while in the years to come their more fresh faced counterparts will most probably link that particular alias to Italian born producer Michele Savasta.

The Drop

My first thought when taking over this column was “how do I fill the size 10 British racing green Air Max Elites of one Mr Allan Sko?” The truth is I can’t as he is as irreplaceable as ozone and ah, well I’m a size 13. It’s hard to give someone a worthwhile tribute in ink so if you will, could you all please close your eyes and imagine a photo montage of Allan slowly scrolling across the back of your eyelids to the tune of  DJ Hype’s Look to the Future. Speaking of drum and bass, the much revered TJS Crew are saying farewell to Canberra on Friday November 14 at the Holy Grail with Summerslam, an all ages gig labelled ‘the D&B party of the year’ featuring international heavyweights Danny Byrd and the Brookes Brothers direct from the UK along with local deck wizads Buick, Escha, Ben Jammin, Karton and Dred.

2008 is most definitely the year of the music festival; we have more of these things popping up around the country than abortive luxury soft roaders on Kennedy St. Luckily we have a plethora of talented promoters in our small city who bring an overflowing sack of quality acts down our chimneys like a neon Santa Claus. Trackside brings another stellar lineup to the fray with massive names such as Muph & Plutonic, Cut Copy, Bliss N Eso and Grafton Primary rocking the racetrack at Thoroughbred Park on Saturday November 22.
Foreshore, or ‘Glastonberra’ to last year’s attendees, is headlined this year by ARIA winning loose cannons The Presets, PNAU and UK progressive fanboy god Sasha on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin on Saturday November 29. Massive fluoro sunglasses, check. Decorative headband, check. 24 hour party clock set to zero, check. Let’s festival.

Roll up, roll up, get your club nights here! The late night leviathans at Pang are bringing us another mixed bag of aural entertainment in November with Klaus Heavyweight Hill and Jonny Rad getting their hussle on starting at 10pm on November 14 followed by DJ Funk (Chicago) & Will Styles (Funktrust DJs) on Saturday November 22 all going down at Lot 33.

Mercury Bar is setting itself up as an underground favourite with A Night of Prog on November 21 featuring King James, Beat It, Hubert, Alexxx, Peekz, Steve Sobvleski and C.L.I followed by Shockwave II, Canberra’s premier dubstep event on November 28 highlighted by the return of the mighty Bec Paton, supports are Buick, Crooked Sound System, Bowl and Scissors and Harlequin MC.

Academy have Acid Jacks bringing their trademark electro madness to the old cinema on Friday November 14 supported by DJ Kiz and Tim Galvin follwed by Baltimore Bangers Act Yo Age stepping up at Love Saturdays supported by Tim Galvin and Ashley Feraude. These guys have been tipped as the Hottest S**T to hit the scene since sliced Vegemite so it’s not one you would want to tell your grandkids you missed.
Swinging on through November, the Rockout boys at Monkey Bar have another strong month ahead starting with MDX (the artist formerly known as Mark Dynamix) on the 8th , James Ash (from Rogue Traders fame) returning on the 15th and the very sexy Anna Lunoe from the Bumblebeez making her Canberra debut on the 22nd. All events supported by resident DJs Trent Richardson, DJ Kiz, DJ B-tham and some guy called Tim Galvin. Entry is a paltry $10.

Until next edition, hit me at tim.galvin@live.com.au with any future gig info and just remember kids to drink your alcopops in moderation and for the love of god say no to glowsticks.

TIM GALVIN

Crookers - Crooked smile

Crookers

Since the abhorrent death of electro house, the rise of the aptly named ‘fidget’ has seen DJs all over the world embracing the intriguing mish-mash of hip-hop, house and Baltimore, heralding a new age of superstar producers. CROOKERS have been at the forefront of this mind-bending wave of musical progression, having remixed the likes of Armand Van Helden, The Chemical Brothers and Moby to name but a few.

The Italian duo are somewhat of an enigma to Australian audiences as the only thing we really know about them is that they make music for people with ADD. I spoke with Bot to unravel some of the mystery that surrounds them, their long awaited artist album and the story behind their iniquitous moniker.

“We wanted to call ourselves something that reflected the fact that electronic music is so structured and everything is in time but our music is crooked and not the same as this. I personally have a lot of inspiration from hip-hop artists like Madlib and Flying Lotus who also make this music that is not true to your normal structure.”

Their music is hugely appealing to clubbers with short attention spans, I mean it’s 2008 people! Who wants a consistent 4/4 beat, bassline, synth and vocals these days when we can have a sonic explosion of key changes, time signatures and twisted structure to bend our brains under the disco ball on a hard earned weekend. Luckily the guys are much more focused on their own work than partying.

“We are working hard at the moment, in December we will take a break from touring and get into the studio and finish off our album. We have much material and a lot of beats that we have to make sense of. There will be a lot of different sounds on this album, some down tempo, some club stuff and also a lot of different thing like Bmore influences and hip-hop influences; we will look to have it finished by February.”

Solo productions like their heralded EPs Knobbers and Mad Kidz have spawned a veritable hydra of remixes, as soon as one is cut another one appears to take its place. This commitment to their art is embodied in the sum and quality of their work which it seems is fuelled by a dual persuasion.

“Well two things for us, friendship and money! If we are friends with someone or we meet someone on tour who we like we might do a remix for them, for the others it’s just about making money I guess,” he laughs. “It is good for us too if we don’t end up making the remix then it gives us inspiration for a new tune in the future.”

Crookers have always been popular when visiting Australia, with their last tour leaving local clubs resembling the Xavier College oval after a game of Yr 12 Death Ball. “I was very surprised last time we were here in Sydney, it was very busy and the line went around the block! People were cheering loud for us on stage yelling ‘Crookers! Crookers!’ and we were blown away! It is funny because here in my own country nobody gives a fuck who I am,” he laughs. “When Australian audiences like something they really get into it!”

Drunken chants and internationally anonymity aside, Crookers have made a name for themselves for one thing, producing ball tearing club bangers and I’m sure their forthcoming tour will christen a whole new army of fidget fans. “I am very happy that maybe someone over the other side of the world is listening to our music and may be inspired in some way, this makes me very proud.”

Crookers will send thumping beats through the Kingston streets on Sunday November 23 when they play at Lot 33. Joining them will be Dave Norgate, Hubert and Exposed DJs Sean Kelly and Staky. Tickets $20+bf from Landspeed and Lot 33.

The Bangles - Head bangers

The Bangles

As a child I remember waking up on Saturday mornings in the pre-internet era of the late ’80s and lying in front of our 4:3 ratio square tube TV in preparation for my religious injection of Video Hits before heading off to actually play sport (game consoles weren’t big until the ’90s). In those days music was real and without the aid of computers and advanced synthesisers; bands ruled supreme and at the top of that heap were THE BANGLES .

Timeless singles like Manic Monday, Eternal Flame, Walk Like an Egyptian and Hazy Shade of Winter to name a few have survived over 20 years, sounding as fresh today as they did to my pre-teen ears at their conception. The exciting news for all the children of the coolest decade in history is that the band are re-forming and returning to Australia for a series of shows including a stopover in Canberra. I spoke with Debbi Peterson to catch up on the band, the tour and ‘Banglonia’.

“(Everything is) good, we have had time to take a breather and are back on our own terms on different footing and with a different perspective on the whole thing. I mean it’s challenging and everything but very exciting at the same time. A lot of it (the break-up of the band) was exhaustion, a lot of touring and we were just living in ‘Banglonia’ 24/7; I mean we were all in our late 20s and early 30s and had been full on for so long and I needed a breather.” Having experienced their fair share of ups and downs during their career it was a surprisingly easy decision to take their well-oiled show back on the road. “We enjoyed it so much, we enjoyed the music and with eight years apart it was a good space of time to think about it and focus on other things in our life like our families, and all the things that happened in the past were just water under the bridge.”

News that will excite Banglers of all ages the world over is that they have also been back in the studio recording new material. “We have been working on a few new songs, doing a few different things and just getting motivated!” Having produced some of the most timeless music of our generation, I pose the question whether the band ever felt pressured when they were writing new songs or producing new music under the Bangles name. “Not anymore. There was a time when we felt that way but when you are in the industry for a while you get to the point where you just do it the way you want to do it. I think Doll Revolution was a good indicator of us doing what we wanted to do and we were very proud of that. It’s pretty amazing that we wrote stuff way back then that people are still listening to! After this tour we will be concentrating on an album. The show itself will be a nice melting pot of some old and some new. A good mixture of the things people want to hear and some more recent Bangle stuff.”

Grab your tight pants and off the shoulders T-shirt, tease your hair all around your big hoop earrings and join the pop princesses of the ’80s in a show some of us have been waiting for since Mr T ‘waddnt getting on no plane’.

The Bangles play at the Royal Theatre on Saturday October 11, with special guest Monique Brumby. Tickets through Ticketek.

Goodwill - Where there’s a will…

Goodwill

I’m no Robin Williams but I got to do some GOODWILL hunting of my own this week. It’s not very hard to find someone whose natural habitat includes airports, big room clubs and Ministry of Sound CD covers but strangely enough I caught Will having just returned from a well needed break. “I like to mix business with pleasure; I’ve just come back from my third holiday with Ax (Swedish super producer Awell). We usually meet up each year and go somewhere together and this year it was his turn to come over here; we went to Byron Bay and spent a week in Ibiza, whatever happens we usually wake up spooning.”

Will is in the process of mixing the latest volume of the seminal Ministry of Sound Annual. His partnership with Ministry has been a very successful one indeed having made him a household name since its conception years ago. I guess you could say that the label has done for Will what deliciously nutty Snickers bars have done recently for Mr T. “They got sick of me sleeping on their doorstep. No, actually, I was friends with Declan who worked there and I sent in a demo of my production work which was a bunch of French house and some non serious stuff and they ended up signing Happenis. They then asked me if I wanted to come on tour and it’s all gone on from there. I guess you could attribute most of my success up until now to the Ministry connection.”

Being one of the most toured DJs in the country, he still finds time to hone his skills in the studio. Besides his own successful remix work he is currently completing the debut album for his exciting Attack Attack project which looks like being released before the end of the year. “We have written a lot of songs; I understand now what it’s like when people are making an album and everyone is saying ‘why is it taking so long?’. You have to be really proud of it and in love with the songs before you release them to the world. It’s kind of like getting a new girlfriend in a way; I have this fear in me that everything has to be perfect for this particular project. I’m just finishing off the new Attack Attack along with a remix for Nick Muir and I’ve just finished a remix of the new Sneaky Sound System record which is being released soon.”

Not satisfied with having only a few aliases under his fashionable belt he has also teamed up with Australian producer Paul Mac, as Will and Mac, which may sound like a Disney canine adventure movie but is in fact a more underground dance project.

“We have a lot of fun in the studio together; what we come out with is real druggy music. It’s a lot of fun making it.”

On the DJing front, Will is always on the pulse of cutting edge music and his recent attention has been on the local producers who have been setting the world on fire with massive records. “I’m loving stuff from all the Australian guys like Hook n Sling and Klaus Hill; I actually think Sam La More (who just happened to be sitting beside him during this interview) is Jesus Christ returned. The Melbourne guys have had their time and now it’s Sydney’s time to shine. Melbourne artists write ‘tunes’ and we write ‘music’.”

He returns to Canberra with a swag of new music and a challenge that rivals Jungle Jane’s lap dance proposition in Death Proof. “I have been hunting records like a bitch for the new annual so I have heaps of new stuff, oh and I’ll moonwalk on the bar if more than ten people ask me to.”

Goodwill will play at Monkey Bar on Saturday October 11 with Kiz, Tim Galvin, and Trent Richardson.

THE POTBELLEEZ - Pot Luck

The Potbelleez

Like Sneaky Sound System and The Rogue Traders before them, THE POTBELLEEZ have transformed from city-rocking dancefloor legends to international superstars with the addition of new vocalists and catchy as hell club records. “It’s been great having the two guys involved full time, in the studio and on the road; we all have our strengths and weakness and together we cover everything personally and professionally,” states Dave, who joins Ilan Kidron to give us an update on where their recently acquired notoriety has taken them.

Their last two releases Don’t Hold Back and Are You With Me have both risen to the top of the charts and have been heard everywhere from clubs to music festivals and TV (including Channel 7’s recent Bejing Olympic coverage); even a recently elected Australian state politician had them blaring from the house speakers as he took the podium showing young voters that he is in touch with his inner trashbag.

“We get approached all the time by all sorts of different media formats,” says vocalist Ilan. “But we try to be discerning with the choices we make and what our music is representing to the public.” For those that don’t know, the group is, like me, half Irish, with DJs Johnny Sonic and Dave Goode hailing from the Green Isle while their vocalists MC Blu and Ilan Kidron make up the Australian portion of the barnstorming quartet.

They were recently voted some of the top five DJs nationally in the revered ITM top 50 poll which exemplified their impressive calibre as popular club rockers and pop stars alike. This was greatly received as Dave explains. “We were blown away to get in the top five of ITM poll. It is a big milestone for us. We are in Ireland at the moment touring with the band and we’re getting a massive response here which is great. Apart from touring we are getting the album finished.” The bulk of their commercial success originates from the individual talents they bring to the group and the proof that their music appeals to everyone from fluoro clad festival goers to soccer moms and middle aged advertising executives, explains Ilan. “I think that’s the beauty of having four musicians involved in a project that respects our very different musical backgrounds; the process of creating the tracks is a very open and enjoyable process.”

What some may not know is that the story didn’t begin in 2007; as a duo Dave and Johnny began receiving attention years earlier as DJs in Sydney running their own parties at the perennial underground burlesque bunker Moulin Rouge. So did they ever think that their sweaty club nights would lead to being beamed into loungerooms all over the world on music television? “Not quite,” says Dave. “We could never have expected or planned what’s happened, I don’t think anyone could, especially in dance music, we just did what we did, and we grow and learn all the time.”

With the massive success of their singles it is only a matter of time before their debut long player is unleashed to the screams of many a teenage girl… and probably their dads too. “November is the release

month,” says Dave. “I think people will be quite surprised with the album. We are very proud of it, it spans all the music we love. You will just have to wait and see!”

When the guys are on stage they have what I like to call the ‘Summernats Effect’ where girls get wild and shirtless and guys miraculously multi task, inhaling black label vodka cans with one arm while their other arm rhythmically syncopates skyward. I question whether they achieve the same result when they return to Ireland.
“We are in Ireland now and our name is quite known here,” Dave clarifies. “The amount of Irish that come to Oz each year is massive so the word of mouth and Don’t Hold Back getting hammered on the radio has been huge for us; people come up to us here saying they’ve seen us at Family in Brissy, and different Ozzy festivals, and there is always an odd Potbelleez singlet to be seen in the crowd. We love playing to Irish crowds, they’re mental!”

In Australia, Rolling Stone Magazine just labelled them the “fastest rising stars of the dance scene”, which was a huge boost to the band who exist in a time when the market is being flooded with crossover bands and electronic pop as Ilan suggests.

“It’s wonderful to be honoured in such a fashion by the world’s most famous and reputable music magazine but it is really the next few years that will define whether it means anything. We want to be a part of something really big here; we want to transform the way people think of dance music through innovative song writing and awesome sounds and production techniques and that takes time. It takes more than a couple of singles to make a real impact with any sort of culture shift, but it’s the best job in the world and we are in it for the long haul.”
With the world at their feet and much more in their arsenal the future looks exceedingly bright for The Potbelleez, whose name I am assured is not meant to glamorise any form of obesity. They bring their phat beats back to the capital soon and Ilan has a warning for all would be clubbers, “(they can expect) the party of their life. Some unheard crackers! The reactions to a lot of the new album’s material has so far been off the hook, so prepare yourself for mayhem!”

I close by asking whether, between touring, recording, signing body parts and record deals, they ever have time to stop and smell the roses, or in this case probably the four leafed clovers.  “All the time. We are a busy touring band and spend a heap of our time in the studio but we definitely know how to break out the champagne, don’t worry about that!” For The Potbelleez, who are on the musical highway to fame and fortune, it seems that the lights are most definitely all green.

The Potbelleez will be headling the launch of Old Parliament House’s Our House summer parties. on October 5 from 5pm - midnight. They will be joined by Sharam, Dexter, Jeff Drake, and many more!

The G.L.O.V.E.S are off

G.L.O.V.E.S.

Yama Indra is quite an enigmatic force in Australian music; by day he is a member of popular indie group Damn Arms, but once the sky darkens and the horizon releases the cool light of the moon, he changes into G.L.O.V.E.S. I guess the only difference between him and an actual werewolf would be the whole ‘killing and eating people’ thing, though there is still the chance he may wake up naked in a park somewhere with no memory of the night before – but that, my friends, is just rock and roll.

“I think it all started with a huge obsession with music. As soon as I knew how to operate my parents’ turntables and cassette players I was scouring through their collections, reading all of the information I could get from the covers and making cassette mix tapes of my favourite tracks to listen to on my walkman on the school bus. While everyone was getting into Nirvana and Pearl Jam I was listening to New Order, The Carpenters, Beach Boys, Devo and the Human League.

“I played guitar, bass guitar, piano and trumpet in school and then saved up and bought my first drum machine and analogue synthesiser when I was 19. From there I just wanted to play in a band, but no one was taking the new wave/’80s music I was making seriously, so I just programmed everything - without a computer! - and convinced my mate Tim, who I still play with in Damn Arms, to play the parts I didn’t have enough hands to play. I guess what I’m saying is that I fell into the music industry by chance as an artist, rather than consciously deciding to pursue a career in music. I’ve been really lucky!”

His solo career has spawned hot remixes for ‘now’ acts like Amy Meredith, Operator Please and Gameboy/Gamegirl. “The vocal is the main thing I consider, even if their music isn’t really my thing - if the vocal is strong and I can hear some good melodies around it then I’m usually interested, as it means I can create something collaborative and great. I’m just finishing up a 12” for Bang Gang 12”s. They have two originals which I’ve basically finished, just tinkering with them a little before sending them off for remixes. So the 12” will probably make it out around November or so. I’ve been testing out the tracks live and response has been awesome!”

To try and describe the G.L.O.V.E.S. sound would be like asking a butcher, ‘so what’s in the sausage?’; his mish mash of electronic noise and melodic soul is best expatiated by the man himself: “At the moment everything I’m doing is just coming out really pop sounding. I’ve been listening to predominantly ’80s RNB and pop funk for the last six months. To narrow it down, I would describe what I release under the G.L.O.V.E.S moniker as Euro-disco-’90s-yacht-rock-heavy funk. Well, that’s what the originals I have coming up could be summed up as anyway; some of my older work would need another description. I do tend to genre hop a lot; it’s more challenging!”

I close by asking the arcane musical master what his most interesting experience in a club has been. The response was decidedly unexpected. “Playing at Teenage Kicks in Tokyo. It was just really bizarre. It’s all a bit of a blur but the two most surreal moments were seeing groups of girls in fancy dress doing synchronised dances to some of the songs on the floor and then having a confrontation with a seven foot tall Caucasian transsexual who was wearing a motorcycle helmet with the visor down. Oh and this wasn’t a fancy dress party, that’s just the way they roll there!”

G.L.O.V.E.S. plays alongside Infusion, Grafton Primary, Nick Thayer, James Dela Cruz and many more at the InTheMix 50 Party at the ANU Bar on Saturday September 13. Tickets from Ticketek, Landspeed and Stocks.

Nick Thayer - Toasted, nicely toasted

Nick Thayer

If I were to use a current media event as an analogy to describe NICK THAYER (pronounced Tay-ya), it would definitely be that he is the Georgia of Australian dance artists, going against the global superpower of the current electro house trend while carrying the flag for breakbeat independence. He is also ‘pro bush’, but we’ll leave that one for Zoo magazine.

“I must’ve been reading the wrong timetable,” he laughs. “Seriously though, although I don’t find that sound hugely inspiring on the whole, there are a couple of tracks here and there that find I really like, and so I’ll play them. I’ve always just played records that I like, and there aren’t that many records from that scene that I really like.”

Nick has recently been busy showcasing his trademark bumper funk symphony in the guise of a long awaited artist album. “It has been hectic over the past few months,” he confirms. “I cut right back on touring so I could concentrate on finishing my album Just Let It Go. It is pretty much there now, just a little spit polish to finalise it all. It feels great to actually be in sight of the finish line. It is certainly a mixed bunch - just trying to glue everything together into something coherent has been an effort!”

Nick honed his skills over in the UK, where he rubbed shoulders with some of the planets broken beat elite such as the Stanton Warriors, Plumps DJs and General Midi (who we will get too later). “I spent a lot of time at Fabric when I was about 18 and living in London for a few months, so even just to not have to wait in that freezing queue was perks enough. Actually getting to play there a couple of times was a dream, and a lovely ‘full-circle’ moment. The funny thing is though, in those sorts of places, no matter who you are your name just gets lost amongst everything else that goes on, there is just SO much happening.”

A Nick Thayer set is always a grand experience: only ten fake aerial explosions and a miming child model away from opening ceremony prodigious proportions. “I’ve always had the same general approach to DJing, which is that if I like a tune, I’ll endeavour to find a way to fit it in to whatever else I’m playing. I spend a lot of time these days editing out bits of tunes that I don’t like, which seems to make the whole set much tighter too. I recently switched to Serato which I am loving! The flexibility is out of this world, and so that has certainly energised the way I’m DJing.”

His new album comes off the back of a few massive singles like the enormous bass-bin behemoth Toasted, which has been at the front of many a CD wallet across the global breaks fraternity. “There are plenty of club ready cuts like that, and some branching out too. I’ve done my best to make an album that makes sense when you put it on in the car, or the iPod or whatever. The thing I find myself drawn to when I like other acts or bands is musicality over studio trickery, so I’ve tried to reflect as much of that as I can in the music on this album.”

Among his many achievements we can also add ‘renaissance man’, as his biography lists a quote from General Midi that states that he is “the only DJ in the world who’s taken me to the ballet.” “Hah. Well, at the very least, it is true,” Nick says. “I did take General Midi to see Romeo & Juliet in Bristol several years ago. That was before I even met my wife, who dances with Aus Ballet. I grew up around a lot of that stuff and I go as often as I can.”

It would be true to say that Mr Thayer is truly a well-rounded man of the arts who promises to deliver Canberran audiences something special in his upcoming show.“(I have) plenty of new music. I’ve got all the stuff from my album to play, plus loads of re-edits, remixes and a few surprises too. I’m getting really excited about doing some touring again now, having been couped up in the studio so long.”

Nick Thayer plays alongside Infusion, Grafton Primary, G.L.O.V.E.S, James Dela Cruz, Danielsan, Typhonic and many more at the InTheMix 50 party at the ANU Bar on Saturday September 13. Tickets on sale from Landspeed, Stocks and inthemix.com.au .

Bass Kleph - Keep It Low

Bass Kleph

Stu Tyson’s parents weren’t murdered in an alleyway in Gotham City, he wasn’t shuttled to earth from an exploding planet and he most certainly wasn’t exposed to radioactive ooze (that we know of). It was simply subjection to music that evolved this mild-mannered citizen into the polyphonous overlord that we know today as BASS KLEPH .

His achievements span all mediums in that he is a successful DJ, producer, and head of Vacation Records, which has led to a busy year for the young virtuoso. “It’s become a bit of a freight train heading down down to tech-electro town. At the moment I’m really loving music with a lot of energy; something jackin’ and bouncy that really gives you a workout on the dance floor. It’s always a lot of fun experimenting with new ideas and sounds, but I think now I have a much better idea of what I really want and like.”

His unique sound has led to a string of successful releases such as Coup D’etat, Bump Uglies and more recently Helium, which all push the same punchy wobble tech vibe whose genre is harder to pin down than the Great Khali. “From a marketing perspective there are good and bad points about that. I couldn’t imagine doing it any other way though. I just do whatever I feel like and write the music that I think is cool. I think if I did it another way, it wouldn’t be very fun. Sometimes I’ll hear something -old or new - and think ‘wow, that’s really cool,’ and I’ll become influenced by it. On the other hand, more often, I hear something I don’t like and that obviously makes me steer away from sounding like that too. Especially if I’ve heard something too often and it is starting to feel overdone.”

His approach to performing has also shifted over the years, incorporating new world technology and old world party-rocking experience. “I’ve been using Serato Scratch for around two years and I could never go back to regular CDs or vinyl now. This software enables me to find the songs I want so much faster than before, have double copies of every song, and get nutty with heaps of loops and cue points. I also love the effects and options on the Pioneer DJM800. Between these and the CDJs I tend to get pretty busy. I like to just let my instinct guide me and go with the ideas and options I have as they come. This often results in all sorts of crazy mixes, re-edits and mash-ups. I love that side of DJing. These days a lot of DJs play the same songs, so plain old beat matching just doesn’t cut it anymore. I am also considering bringing my own additional FX units along with me soon, too. They may even turn up on this tour.”

His label Vacation Records - with an impressive roster of fresh artists such as fRew, Tommy Trash, Stupid Fresh and local lads Karton - is going from strength to strength in 2008, with bigger plans on the horizon. “Well, so far we’ve put out a bunch of tunes and our first music video. We’re now releasing our first annual mix CD compilation, and have a 14 date Australian/New Zealand tour organised to celebrate. The rest of the year is chock full of more singles already, and I’ll soon be starting work on an artist album too.”

It seems it’s all in a days work for Stu, who promises that everyone who comes along to the show can expect to “wear out their sneakers, lose their voice, stay up all night, and come home smelling funny and feeling great.”

Bass Kleph and fRew hit Canberra on The Vacation Tour, playing Pang! at Lot 33 on Friday August 15. From 10pm, $20 entry. But wait! Get in before midnight for $10 entry and $3 basic spirits at every Pang! party in August.

The Hump Day Project - Their Humps

Technotronic had it all wrong; why Pump it Up when you can Hump it Up?

THE HUMP DAY PROJECT (whose name comes from a message scrawled on the toilet door at The Stonewall in tranny red lipstick) are a rhythmic threesome consisting of Canberra ex-pat Steve ‘Mutha Fuckin’ Lind and ‘The’ Heath Jansson from Sydney trio The Impossibles. At this stage you are probably thinking “threesomes normally have three people, right?” Well, the third member is… you.

With Baltimore bursting all over the face of clubs worldwide, the two Chinese Laundry residents came together in a sonic love explosion which resulted in their initial collaboration. “Our eyes met across a crowded dance floor. At that moment time stood still for what seemed like an eternity. We slowly moved towards each other, drawn together like crack heads to the pipe. Then the DJ played our favourite song and we turned to one another and said ‘Hey, we should remix that,’ and we’ve been doing it ever since. It was a straight up remix of the Potbelleez’ Don’t Hold Back. It went down really well so we decided to share it. The Potbelleez dug it so much they still use it as the intro to all their sets! We love to rework new and classic club tunes. We did a booty of the Chemical Brothers’ Hey Boy, Hey Girl which is currently getting plays by the likes of A-Skillz, Stanton Warriors and The Utah Saints, who recently included it on their mix for BBC radio 1.”

Contrary to the Today Tonight special exclusive, their lawyers have advised me to communicate the message that ‘playing together live’ doesn’t happen in front of a mirror at your house, as they explain: “We DJ back-to-back, tag team style and really just bounce off each other (sometimes literally) using 3 CDJs, mixer and sampler. I think the term ‘live’ is thrown around more than a whore on a damp mattress!”
Like ass-fixated love gods, they have proven that they can turn anything into a booty, having given the hump to artists such as The Chemical Brothers, Fleetwood Mac, Aerosmith, Jeff Drake & Nash T and Stupid Fresh just to name a few. So it was only a matter of time before some original material slid down the pipeline.

“Well we have our first official release coming out on Andrew Friendly’s UK-based label Gulp Communications in the next couple of months. For it we hooked up with these post-punk, hip-hop wannabe, art-school dropouts from New York City called The Black Peter Group and remixed their track It’s Fucked Up. The original has a sorta neo country, rockabilly, rap-rave kinda feel so we turned it into a straight up Baltimore club track. We have just received news that our remix of Gameboy/Gamegirl’s tune Fruit Salad will be getting released on Ajax’s uber-cool label Sweat It Out as well, which is well pimpin’!”

Listing their heroes as ’70s porn, the red guy from Tron and Duck Johnson, it was interesting to find out what swayed them towards the South American wiggle step genres of Baltimore and Miami Bass. “It all kinda started when we met and hung out with Tittsworth when he was out here. Tittsworth is regarded as one of the pioneers of Baltimore club and he has taken on sort of a mentoring role for us. We also just love the rawness. It’s reminiscent of the early days of hip-hop where it was all about keepin’ it real and having a party! Dance music these days can get a little too serious… We just wanna party and put out jams that provide the soundtrack to the best night ever! Laybacks, nudity, gun shots, sirens, air horns, hard claps… and a whole lotta humpin’!”

The Hump Day Project rocks Monkey Bar on Saturday August 2 with DJs Kiz, Tim Galvin and Trent Richardson. $10 entry, doors at 9pm.

Matt Nugent - What a gent

‘Mad’ MATT NUGENT is a true road warrior; his legend was born from the sandy dunes of Queensland, which he left to explore the Eastern Coast of NSW, docking his black pursuit special in Sydney where he has taken on audiences all the way to the Thunderdome and back again, including a rumoured love-in with Tina Turner. But the tale begins much earlier for this prodigal son of syncopation. “I started working in a record store when I left school, then moved into record companies, went back to managing the Central Station Records store in Brisbane then back to record labels. I’ve DJ’d on weekends since I was 18 so it was sort of a natural progression to work in dance music.”

His initial residency at superclub Family in Brisbane earned him the number two position in the state in the coveted ITM top 50 DJ poll, and a top 50 position nationwide, before he made the move to the neon signs and cheaper prostitutes of Sydney.

“I got to a point where I wanted another challenge and to try something new - giving Sydney a shot seemed like the obvious choice. Luckily I was able to score a residency at The Laundry when I arrived and then later a residency at Onelove at Tank. I’m actually originally a Canberra kid though!”

Having built himself a bit of a reputation as a clubbing chameleon at The Laundry, playing hip-hop and funk upstairs then descending into the main room for a grinding electro set, I wonder where his heart does truly lie musically? “Hmmm, that’s a tough one, as it depends on the crowd; no point playing music you love if everyone in the room hates it. If it was a private party for close friends though I love playing classic hip-hop, funk and disco - cool disco, not cheese - and of course house music. So either underground house music or hip-hop/funk and disco.”

Matt has rubbed shoulders with the cream of the crop at his club gigs and during the national summer festival circuit at Good Vibrations, Summerfieldayze, Vibes on a Summers Day, Two Tribes. Being such a festival whore, it’s puzzling to find out that his favourite moments don’t include a trashy blonde exposing her nipples from the shoulders of a shirtless Gucci-wearing orange man-ape in the breakdown of an Axwell classic.

“Warming up for Erick Morillo was definitely a highlight; there was also a Planet Funk gig on an Easter Thursday that really sticks out. Doing main stage at Good Vibrations in Brisbane a couple of years back was wicked, one of Summafieldayze at the Gold Coast was amazing and there has been two awesome New Years Eves at The Laundry.”

Lately he has spent a lot of his time in the studio with partner-in-grime Nick Galea, having achieved chart success with remixes of The Potbelleez’ Junkyard, Mark Dynamix & Jaytech’s Destructor, Scenario Rock’s Skitzo Dancer and Jeff Drake and Nash T’s Rollover Rockstar.

“We’ve got an original on the go at the moment but are currently finding it hard to get time together in the studio as he’s in Brisbane and I’m in Sydney. So I’m looking at working with a couple of people this year; Mark Dynamix and I are working on a tune and I am working on a couple of solo remixes too.”

So what can Canberrans expect when the ‘best hair in Australian dance music’ returns to his home town? “In Australia we have a big mash up scene which incorporates Baltimore, fidget, indie nu rave and French house stuff and it seems to be still going strong, but moving more in a melodic direction. The more international and big room sound to me is going more progressive, techier and deeper, which I really like the idea of. It all goes in cycles so it’s like it’s 1999/2000 all over again and going proggy.”

Matt Nugent plays Monkey Bar on Saturday July 26 with DJ Kiz, Tim Galvin and Trent Richardson. Doors 9pm, $10 before 10pm, $15 thereafter.

Lenny Henry @ Canberra Theatre, Friday July 11

The dapper prince of English comedy was met with a packed house on the one-night-only Canberra stop of his Where You At stage show. Without warning the lights dimmed and the screen lit up with a hilarious ‘tour diary’ introductory video, showing how he prepares for a show and then to rapturous applause the 6’2 star (who turns 50 this year) burst onto the stage with the energy of a track athlete. “It’s great to be in Canberra,” he said, “but where the bloody hell is everyone? You guys are the first people I have seen since I’ve been here!”

Lenny has this seasoned quality of being able to switch between stand up, character acting and live improvisation that I have never seen before. He is pure entertainment. Highlights for me were his story about how he received an MBE from the Queen while wearing damp underwear (stating that he hoped that touching his hand had the same effect on her), as well as his seamless switches into the many characters in a Jamaican family and his hilarious take on the changes in rap music over the last 20 years. The two hour show flew by in a sea of laughter and there were times when I laughed so loudly that my female companion was embarrassed - sorry Jo! The show ended with a huge Jackson 5 sing-along, and as most of the audience gave him a standing ovation, it was clear that I wasn’t the only one who was completely blown away by the experience.

Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow @ Canberra Theatre, Friday June 13

The Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow is of course a more mobile version of the annual chuckle fest held in Melbourne. The line-up is always a secretive affair with the tea swilling pre-show excitement of ‘who will it be’ making the experience all the more provocative.

Writing a review of live comedy is quite difficult as most of the humour is sucked into the ‘you totally had to be there’ wormhole of hilarity, but if I had to sum up the whole night in three letters or less it would most definitely be ‘LOL’.

The host Dave Williams was one of the main highlights of the show. His initial description of a bus ride to Queanbeyan - the most used word of the evening - was hilarious and warmed up well for the first of the acts, Harley Breen.

Harley’s energy on stage was perfect for the start of the show, ironically contrasted with an excellent impersonation of an old man calling up to answer an ABC radio quiz.

He was followed by the stand out of the night for me, Hannah Gadsby, whose deadpan story of her trip to lesbian-ville had the crowd in hysterics.

After a short break we were entertained by the final acts, Micky D and Paul McDermott’s three piece, Gud.
Micky D was definitely the dirtiest of the four comedians and he reminded me of a cross between The Penguin and Bobcat Golthwaite… except actually funny.

Gud was a great way to close the show as their interaction and professionalism shone through with some great songs such as the showstopper Cock on Legs.

In all, it was a great night and I can say that on at least three occasions a little bit of wee came out.

So You Think You Can Dance

First of all, I’ll be honest. I can’t dance. After a few Jagerbombs I sway around to the music with a ‘robot’ here and a ‘say-say what?’ there, but other than that I am the dancing equivalent of a post ’90s Darryl Sommers: embarrassing and useless. But thanks to my housemates’ fantastic obsession with reality TV, these days I wouldn’t be averse to picking apart the choreography in a Justin Timberlake filmclip after sitting through every episode of the inaugural Australian version of SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE .

I know the guys are with me here when I say that our initial interest in watching such a programme is for two reasons: to see the bloopers and to gawk at the girls contorting themselves in extremely tight fitting clothing. But as the programme got to the business end, I witnessed some really incredible moments of physical art performed by some amazingly talented young dancers, one of them being Kate Wormald who, after the smoke and glitter settled, was voted one of Australia’s top four favourite dancers.

“In my late teens I was constantly dancing and it was hard juggling that with study; there was a time when I decided not to hold back on dancing and to focus on that. I have always been a dancer and moved from the Gold Coast to Melbourne, then on to Sydney to do Happy Feet, and have worked in LA for various pop acts.”
With such a gruelling culling process, second only to that of Belconnen-based Kangaroos, many dancers had their dreams shattered like a bare fist hitting a concrete wall (real fans will know what I’m alluding to).

“I don’t know how I got through it to be honest! During the top 100 week with all the people being sent home it was so draining. I think I lost about four kilograms that week. You just want it so badly and it was so good to get into the top 20. I would have to say getting into the top four would be my proudest moment. It was a great feeling because for a while there I thought everyone hated me!” She laughs. “It was really good to see that I had some support out there.”

Seeing the professionally choreographed performances on your TV screen just doesn’t do the experience justice, so the SYTYCD team have put together a national tour involving the top 20 dancers performing around the country in a massive stage show where the pressure is off and the dancers can concentrate on doing what they do best.

“The show is all the best duos and best groups performances from the show. I am doing nine routines myself which will be fun. My favourite of my own from the show was definitely the Singing in the Rain routine. You don’t really think about the pressure of doing it when you are on stage performing, I just embrace the moment. We can all really just let go and not worry about whether we will be there next week or not. The hardest part for me would have to have been the top four shows where we had to learn four routines in four days, so this is all just about having fun!”

The So You Think You Can Dance live show hits the AIS Arena on Thursday July 10. Tickets on sale through Ticketek (132 849 or ticketek.com.au) and Ticketmaster (136 100 or ticketmaster.com.au ).

Shockone - Shock to my system

SHOCKONE - aka Karl Thomas - is one of Australia’s hottest drum ‘n’ bass virtuosos. Coming from a traditionally trained music background, his passion for the genre came about while playing in a metal band with some members of another massive Aussie export.

“Coming from a musical family, I never really had a choice on the whole ‘will I play music?’ thing. At age four I was sat down at a mini drum kit my parents bought for me and that was the end of that. Being a drummer, it was a natural progression to get into the whole metal thing; Jay and I played in a band named Xygen with Rob and Gareth of Pendulum for god knows how many years, and all four of us discovered drum ‘n’ bass through going to raves here in Perth when we were around 16 or 17.”

Having his production getting regular plays from heavyweights such as DJ Friction, Andy C and Hype has given him the opportunity to play all over the world. “There are a few really memorable shows for me; my first touring show in Adelaide at Enchanted Forest was a great one. Middle of the desert, thousands of people, one of my first DJ sets! Also my most recent (and first) tour to Europe was great fun; playing in places like Slovakia and Vienna to packed clubs was an awesome experience. I should mention a couple of shows at Bar Open in Perth too - when that place is rocking there’s definitely a big vibe in there.”

A real turning point for Karl was the release of Silverscreen, produced with former partner in crime Jay Burns, which catapulted them into the international spotlight. “[The effect was] pretty massive really, it was only the fifth or sixth finished tune me and Jay had done together, and it wasn’t like we ever thought ‘this is the one!’ It just happened that around when we finished it was the time that Rob and Paul (from Pendulum) were doing their first show back in Perth after moving to London. Rob gave it a spin and it tore the roof; it was only then I realised we might be onto something. They took it back to London where DJ Friction heard them play it and he wanted to sign it and the rest, as they say, is history…”

With the DNB genre experiencing a bit of a revival of late, it’s interesting to get the perspective of an artist who is right at the centre of its local evolution. “I think there’s a real underground feel to everything at the moment. Everyone is kind of taking it back to its roots and in turn trying to push things forward, and that really excites me. I personally am feeling really eager to experiment with new sounds and incorporate other genres into the sound. I don’t want to say where I think it’s going, but I feel we have a lot of really ground-breaking music to look forward to.”

Junglists will be excited that some new ShockOne releases are on the way in 2008. “A full-length LP has been put on hiatus for the moment as I’ve felt that a solo EP would suit where I am creatively right now. I’m currently working on that and have quite a few new things that I’m testing out at the moment, one of which features MC Spyda which seems to be doing the business in the clubs.”

Karl assures me that nobody should miss the electro funked-out psychedelic love journey that is a ShockOne DJ set. “Well I guess I should mention I’ll be mixing on three decks, so that’s something to watch I suppose. In general I try to keep a party vibe rolling, after all people are there to have fun. I don’t personally go out to stand up the back, fold my arms and list off catalogue release numbers of tunes.”

ShockOne will decimate the beefed-up sound system at Mercury Bar, Northbourne Ave on Friday June 27, with Buick, Dredd, Kilojulz, Twisted System, Benjammin, Escha, MC Harlequin and Anton. From 9pm, $10 entry.

The Chaser’s Age of Terror Variety Hour @ Canberra Theatre, Friday May 23

Everyone had a class clown at their school; you know, the guy who would throw dusters into the fan or moon the substitute teacher. The guys from The Chaser are all from this mould - they have no shame and look at life with the refreshing mantra ‘how can we do this again, but naked?’

I was a tad worried when entering the packed Canberra Theatre for their final show as the guys are renowned for their masterful practical jokes, and I half expected to have Licciardello suited up as WA Opposition Leader Troy Buswell pleasurably sniffing my chair.

The show started with the guys running through the crowd parodying the inevitable latecomers to any theatre show, with a musical number ending in the eternal isle-shuffling question “would you rather have my bum or my testes in your face?” From here, the show never lost momentum, with several more musical numbers and an extremely amusing piece on product placement that involved Craig Reucassel showing more ass than a tanked party girl exiting a stretch hummer on the strip.

You can tell the guys have a live performance background, with stunning impersonations of everyone from Al Queda to Francis Forde, Australia’s shortest serving prime minister, who was only in office for 8 days - which the guys pointed out was longer than Peter Costello.

There were several audience participation segments with one involving the audience (ie. the drunkest guys) yelling out random subjects that Chas and Andrew had to create segues between, in tribute to Today Tonight’s queen of the random link Anna Coren. For me, the most amusing part was their case study of on-line dating, which hilariously highlighted the shallow nature of prospective keyboard Romeos. It exposed the fact that you can be devoutly Christian, rude and evasive or suggest applicants ‘not be worried if my kids walk in during sex while my husband is away dying of cancer’, but for God’s sake people, if you want to meet someone, just never be ‘normal’.

You can laugh at everything in life and The Chaser’s variety hour is proof that life ain’t all about bowser blues and international natural disasters.

LENNY HENRY - It’s Where You’re At

Some people are simply born to entertain, and legendary British comedic icon LENNY HENRY is most definitely one of those destined jesters, continually providing us with the chance to expel milk from our nostrils. Being given two first names at birth foreshadowed the multi faceted nature of his persona, a trait which proved valuable when he was growing up.

“Well, I was a funny guy at school. We had this group of friends Greg, Mack, Steve and Shamus and we basically used to just hang around together taking the piss out of each other and I would do impressions, mostly in a loud voice, to impress girls, really,” he laughs. “You see, when you are young and you want to get the ladies you need game, and I wore platform shoes and had an afro in school so I stood out like some kind of 9 foot tall beacon. So I needed to have game. Some people are football players; I was the guy who could do a great Scooby Doo impersonation. We would all be together drinking in the bar and these birds would walk in and I would be going ‘I Ruv Rooo Raggy’ in a really loud voice and they would come over and talk to us. It’s not very James Bond but it worked, you know what I mean!”

Not happy to simply be labelled as a stand up comedian, Lenny has worn more showbiz hats than a bald Broadway star. Actor, producer, voiceover man, comedian and TV personality are all bullet points on his resume which led to him receiving a lifetime achievement award at the 2003 British comedy awards.

“I felt really honoured and a bit ambivalent,” Henry says on getting the gong. “It’s weird that they found it necessary to have an awards show for comedians, and for me, getting a lifetime achievement award meant that people were saying ‘You’re finished now, so make way for the younger guys to come through the door’. Well, I’m not going anywhere; I’m blocking the door!” he laughs.

Mainly known as a master impressionist in his early career, Henry came to the conclusion that he was funnier when he was being himself, which led to focus more on traditional stand up and less on some of his more famous characters such as Theophilus P. Wildebeeste or the Guinness supping Grandpa Deakus.

“Most comics will tell you that when they start off they copy someone else. Goofing around on stage will last you about five minutes; the essence of a good comic is preparation. I was mates with a guy by the name of McLean who I never saw do a bad show and it was all because he was always prepared. Now I know this. You try things, and if they don’t work you take them out and replace them with things that do work.”

One of his latest TV appearances Lenny’s Britain – only seen by Foxtel equipped Australian audiences – involved the interesting and potentially hilarious concept of the cockney behemoth travelling to all parts of his country exploring the origins of British humour.

“It was something the studio asked me to do. It was a really good show actually, whose point was to show how humour arises in different situations. Basically, it was me getting paid to go around to all these different places in England and have a laugh with people. I got to see a child being born, spent time with the fire brigade, at an old people’s home, as a mortgage salesman, and a whole bunch of other things. British people have this culture of humour which is really prevalent in their nature but I think it is used as a kind of shield… which helped when they were faced with a huge black guy with a TV camera.”

Being such a well travelled artist, and considering the irreverent uniqueness of English humour, I put forward the ticklish question concerning whether he has ever had a ‘Kramer’ moment on stage.

“Ironically, seeing as I had grown up idolising people like Steve Martin and Richard Pryor, America was really hard to crack. The Americans really thought of me as ‘this black guy from the UK that does voices and was a little bit like Eddie Murphy’. I mean, I was there in the ‘80s, and seeing as I was so influenced by Richard Pryor, why would you go and see a show by someone imitating Richard Pryor when you could actually go and see Richard Pryor!”

Juggling a family with his busy schedule would make you think he was some kind of entertainment robot, and although he isn’t made of metal poly alloy, it’s clear the man is most definitely a machine.

“I do find time to sleep actually, I always said to myself in the beginning that I didn’t want to just be a comedian, I always wanted to do a bit of acting and TV. My next project was to learn how to act, and I think the comic relief series really gave me an insight into how to be a presenter. Comic relief was a real turning point for me, because over the last decade we have raised over half a billion pounds for charity which is in itself amazing.”

During rare downtime, Henry also enjoys the finer things in life such as collecting old vinyl, cufflinks, as well as rare comics; ironic, seeing as he is one himself.

“Where else can you read about characters that have laser beams shooting out of their backsides?” Henry enthuses. “Iron Man, Superman, Batman… these guys have all been with me since I was nine years old. It’s hard to explain to my 16-year-old daughter though; she’ll grab one of them and I’ll scream ‘No! That’s rare, don’t touch it!’ and she’ll say ‘Dad, it’s only a bloody comic!’”

Henry’s return to our pro-whale continent, for a series of shows called Where You From?, communicates the message that you should always be proud of your origins.

“I’m really looking forward to it! I have four or five new characters to do. I miss fooling around on stage, so expect more actual stand up in this show.

“It’s called Where You From? because my parents are from Jamaica and I have African heritage, so I see myself as kind of a citizen of the world. It says ‘I’m from Dudley, and if you don’t like it you can stick it up your ass!’”

Shelving aside, Lenny Henry is the human equivalent of a bottomless bottle of nitrous oxide, providing laughter to people all over the world. And from a man that has put so much of his life into making other people feel good, my final question was simple: what was the payoff ?

“There is no payoff as such; it’s the job that just keeps giving back to you. The joy of a round of applause, making people happy, and being able to entertain is a great way to spend your career. And I’m not close to where I want to be, when you consider someone like Richard Pryor who can make you really really believe in his characters and make you laugh and cry at the same time. To me, that’s what a true entertainer is.”

Lenny Henry’s Where You At? hits the Canberra Theatre on Friday July 11 at 8pm. Tix range from $69 to 75 and can be purchased by calling 6275 2700 or jumping onto www.canberratheatre.com.au .

Rogue Traders @ ANU Bar, Thursday May 15

Love them or hate them, Rogue Traders have definitely taken Australia by storm with their accessible electro rock sound which has had consistent chart success since the release of Here Come the Drums in 2005, which saw the addition of glamour girl Natalie Bassingthwaite. I found it quite odd that their only Canberra show was an over-18s gig at the ANU, thinking that most of their fans in the capital were iPod owning teenage girls. However as I entered the ANU, it seemed that finding a car park on this particular night was akin to finding a Liberal party member willing to chuck in for a gift on Brendan Nelson’s birthday.

The refectory was set up for maximum capacity and by around 8pm it was almost full. The warm-up DJ was smashing out the big tunes for the appreciative crowd with Mobin Master, The Potbellez and Beastie Boys all getting a great reaction. There was an awkward moment preceding the arrival of the main act when the lights came on and everyone had their beer goggles removed for a few minutes, although as soon as the darkness returned and The Rogues took the stage, the large crowd went nuts. Natalie is indeed a very impressive live vocalist, bashing out all the popular tunes such as Watching You, Way to Go, and the latest hits Better in the Dark and (my girlfriend’s favourite) What You’re On with ease. As I was leaving I saw a mid-20s rum swilling bogan staggering outside proudly donning a Rogue Traders T-shirt; if that’s not universal appeal, I don’t know what is.

Utah Saints - Canonization

Some of you will remember that the ‘90s was an interesting decade for cultural metamorphosis across the globe. Back when Jason Donovan wasn’t a powder-sniffing reality TV whore and we all knew not to jump in the pool wearing a hyper-colour t-shirt, we were also introduced to some of the most important bands of the 20th Century. Contemporary music was at a turning point, giving birth to new side genres such as gangster rap, indie and, most relevant to this article, the evolution of the stadium dance band.

If you asked the average teenage clubber who the UTAH SAINTS are, they would probably think it was a US basketball franchise, but being a bit more seasoned than your normal alcopop-fuelled nightclub scamp, most dance music fans on the wrong side of 25 will remember them as a dynamic UK dance act who, along with other seminals such as the KLF and Underworld, rocked the globe with their pioneering live shows and worldwide chart success.

Jez Willis and Tim Garbutt are the duo responsible for such classics as What Can You Do for Me, Believe in Me and Something Good, which has just re-entered the charts with a fresh rework by local lads Van She Tech.

“Well it was all kind of a happy accident really,” Jez explains. “We love looking on all the blogs for fresh music and ideas. We came across the Van She Tech Myspace page where they had posted their remix of Something Good and we really liked it.”

Having been on somewhat of a hiatus since their last release in 2000, there has been a real shift in focus for the guys. “We have been making tracks that we use to DJ with but haven’t released anything as Utah Saints (they have been making remixes under the guise BeatVandals). It’s some of the old sound that we are known for with a twist. We will be putting stuff out again, but at the moment we are just refocusing and reenergising and really just falling back in love with music. It is an exciting time for music with the open-mindedness that people have and with the way the internet has expanded opportunity.”

It seems like a timely return to notoriety for the group, as suburban malls are currently littered with Reebok pumps and fluro day wear much as they were back in the Saints’ heyday. I know a lot of youngish Australian party veterans that have been itching to grab their Mambo tee and rollerblades and skate their bouffant hair to a Utah Saints show.

“It’s a good time to come back as it’s beginning to be all about the music again, it’s music-driven and the energy is back.” He adds, “We have also never been to Australia before and we are particularly excited about coming there.”

Known for their explosive live gigs, I wonder if Jez plans to unleash the famous Yamaha 2000 sample guitar in one of their future shows. “Ah yes, well unfortunately it is languishing in the back of my garage, although it may resurface one day - most probably on Ebay,” he laughs.

Utah Saints play alongside Mixmaster Mike (US), Cassius (France), Bonde Do Role (live), Hybrid (UK), The Potbellez, Ajax, Kid Kenobi and many more at Warehouse winter music festival, held on Saturday May 31 at the AIS Arena. Final release tickets are on sale through Ticketek and Landspeed.

The Black Crowes @ The Royal Theatre Wednesday April 2

It’s funny when our parents try and tell us about how music was much more ‘real’ in their day and how current top 40 music lacks soul and passion. Well, it was funny until I saw The Black Crowes - now I can kinda see where they were coming from.

On the Warpaint tour, the band looked to take a new direction with their live performance and deliver the new Warpaint album in its entirety. I must admit that I didn’t really know what to expect, but I was completely blown away with their presence onstage. Backed by two gospel singers, songs like Oh Josephine and Walk Believer Walk really showcased the vocal range of lead singer Chris Robinson, and the guitar work of Rich Robinson, Luther Dickenson and Sven Pipien was simply awesome to watch. One of the real highlights was the mind-blowing organ and drum solos from Adam MacDougall and Steve Gorman respectively, who were just unbelievable at their art.

I really felt like the sizable crowd was witnessing something special and although the encore didn’t see my favourite song played, the crowd was still treated to the classic Black Crowes cover Hard to Handle which, along with a few more favourites, was a great way to finish off a memorable night.

I felt like I was being drawn into one of those ‘60s kaleidoscope wormholes that you see in the Austin Powers movies. I was mesmerised by the raw energy of the blues/rock hybrid that seemed to drag the whole audience back to a time when music was about sharing an experience with a whole bunch of strangers. Thank God for bands like the Crowes!

Azzido De Bass - Aze of Bass

“WOMP, WOMP, WOMP, WOMP.”

Everyone has heard this sound before. Like ‘that’ Nokia ringtone that gets instantly programmed into your phone after you hit 50, Dooms Night is instantly recognisable; the electronic rotary chug has been played to the public more than the Barry Hall ‘brain snap’ video. The seminal record rocketed German native AZZIDO DE BASS to international notoriety overnight, and it wasn’t even his remix, the original being a banging trancer which was re-worked by fellow superstar Kraut Timo Maas into the breaky anthem we know and love.
The success of that one single gave Mr Bass the platform from which to share with the world his many musical talents, as the extremely friendly artist explains from the other side of the globe.

“Well, the money was nice,” he laughs. “It allowed me to travel a lot all the time to places like Russia, the UK, all over, and one of the things that I got to see is the difference between the poor side of living and the rich side, which taught me a lot about the world through meeting all these people through music. I learn more and more for my production. Meeting many people makes me happy and when they ask for an autograph or talk to me after the show it makes me feel like a popstar, you know?”

He appears overtly motivated by developing his art and communicates his love for change as passionately as a shoeless vagrant with an outstretched palm in Garema place.

“At the moment I am changing all the time. I like to change a lot of things, my music, my life, the women (laughs). At the moment I am playing that nu-rave style; it’s electro rock, like a journey, where the music goes up and down. I will take it to its highest point then bring it back down again. My taste is very eclectic; I like everything from Michael Jackson to Beethoven. In Germany they like you to play harder and more underground, but I was more influenced by the Soulwax sound - it was a really big influence on me. I went through the whole techno mash-up stage as well, but now I am more focused on this electro noisy sound with live elements. Anything goes, really!”

Since having recent success with the indie dance record Lonely by Your Side, the genre rollercoaster has propelled him into many styles of production. He has also been working on his own record label, Luscious Sounds, which he is in the process of expanding to include some Australian artists, an exciting prospect in itself for local musical talent.

“I have just completed a remix for the new Muscles record The Lake which is a big club sounding tune. For my own label I am looking for that real electro rock sound, people like Malente, Play Paul, Princess Superstar, Mstrkrft. I am looking to produce some music in Australia when I am over there as well so people can contact me on my myspace page ( myspace.com/azzidodabass ) if they would like to speak to me about it.”
Surprisingly, the giant one-man revolution has never been to this corner of the world. I advise him that the weather should be acceptable when he lands and that girls are required to wear bikinis by law if there is a sun in the sky. “This is my first time in Australia, I am really looking forward to it. Everyone tells me the ladies are great! On Monday I arrive in Sydney and I am very tall, like 195cm, with blonde long hair so I look like a surfer and I will fit in,” he chuckles.

Mr Da Bass will be in the place - Academy, that is - on Friday May 9 supported by DJ KIZ and Jeff Drake. $10 before 11.30pm, $15 thereafter.

Funktrust DJs - Trust Me, I’m a DJ

There is an urban legend that speaks of two soul Jedis clashing with these titans of the slow jam in an epic all-or-nothing funk-off, which subsequently removed the Funky Bunch from the annals of music history forever. These two faceless Motown maulers are rumoured to be… Wil Styles and Learned Hand.

FUNKTRUST DJS won’t tell you about that fateful day; they would rather let their music speak for itself. But as Learned Hand explains, there was a beginning to the journey le funk.

“Many years ago in a land far, far away, I got into the jungle and hardcore breakbeat scene; I think it was around ‘92 or ’93 and I overpaid for a shitty pair of turntables and started mixing. I knew Wil through another friend and I remember the real turning point for us was one day I was on my way to an underage rave and was walking down George Street and I ran into him wearing no less than three assorted flannel shirts. He was into the whole grunge rock thing back then. Fast forward to six hours later and he was on top of a podium with all three of the shirts off and one of them on his head. It was at that moment that we realised,” Learned Hand laughs.

Their big break was catalysed by a weekly Thursday night at The Globe in Sydney, cementing their position in the Sydney dance music community. “We put together a demo with I think about 47 tunes on it, which back then was really different. I think Wil spent many nights sleeping beside his computer, only awaking every 15 minutes to burn another copy; we handed them out to everyone. A new club called The Globe opened up and they asked us to come in and that was it!”

The guys have also been running their own successful radio show on triple j. “The show on Fridays (Radio Funktrust) is in its second year and is still as stupid as ever. It allows us to play all kinds of music and that’s great because neither of us have ever had the musical attention span to confine ourselves to one kind of music, so we play anything from soul and funk to drum ‘n’ bass. We haven’t gotten fired yet; we actually spilt beer on the mixing panel and that would have been a reason to get rid of us, but they didn’t, so that’s a great sign!”

Heading to Canberra soon, they bring their eclectic mix of hip-hop, funk, soul, breaks, house… Hell, pretty much anything that can be forced into a CD player or onto a turntable will find its way into a Funktrust DJ set! “Last time we played in Canberra it was a public holiday the next day; we made friends with the bar staff and at some stage someone must have pulled out a magic marker. So here we are rocking up to the airport for the rockstar flight back at 6.30 in the morning and after we checked in I remember we all turned to each other and went ‘man, that girl was looking at us funny when we checked in!’ and then realised we all had moustaches and black lines drawn all over our faces! We then boarded the commuter flight with all the business people and were the only ones on the whole plane that ordered beer for breakfast! So I would say [our next visit] would be a variation on that theme,” he laughs.

Pang! presents The Funktrust DJs, playing on Thursday April 24 (Anzac Day Eve) at Lot 33 alongside The Aston Shuffle, DJ Rush, Shunji, D’Opus, Hubert and Dave Norgate. Entry $15 before 11pm, $20 after.

SOS - Save Our Soundwaves

Desyn Masiello, Omid 16b and Demi are all internationally recognised DJs in their own right and (using the Saturday morning cartoon formula), on a fateful night in the UK in 2004, their powers were combined to form an electronic dream team that travels the globe righting wrongs and bringing happiness to all. They are SOS.
They are three friends who draw inspiration from their rich and diverse musical heritage, and direction from their beloved Deeper Substance and Sexonwax music labels. SOS was born of a desire to create synergy and a unique experience for anyone who has the pleasure of witnessing them in action.

“We are just preparing mentally for our Miami shows,”Demi says. “We are constantly working with our solo stuff and SOS; it’s like a never ending quest really.”

The idea initially came together back in 2004 at a party that was organised by Demi at Neighbourhood nightclub in London. “I guess the man upstairs decided that we should meet; we all had a common interest in music and it all really clicked and the partnership just grew and grew. The first time we [performed as SOS] was in 2004 when we were organising this party where we all had different roles, and I guess that also comes through in our music because we are all quite individual. I am a real ’70s buff, I love disco and soul. Omid is ‘band’ oriented, as he is from one himself, and I guess Desyn is a bit of both. I can say it definitely came together really well!”

The trio have a reputation as real party starters, playing on multiple mixers with more hardware than a hi-fi store, and their travels have taken them across the globe - but their next stop is the Miami Music Conference.

“We have three shows all together: a launch for the porn shop on March 26, a Tiki boat party on the Friday during the day, then one for the Sexonwax record label at a hotel - but we are hosting that one, which is just a chance for us to walk around in Speedos and robes.”

Due to popular demand they have recently completed the latest edition of the coveted Balance mixed CD series. Their effort spans three discs, which gave them the opportunity to communicate their supernatural precision through your home stereo. “Being able to generate the same vibe as we do when we play together was something that we were conscious of. We wanted people to think ‘what are they like live?’ and be able to feel that through the three discs. It actually took a lot of versions; we got to about version 38 before it made sense and it was really only in the last hour that it clicked, which was lucky for us (laughs).”

This is DJing in the 21st Century. They are consistently pushing their art forward and challenging themselves in their live shows. “We really want to take it to the next level,” Demi says, “always make it a real surprise for the crowd and also a surprise to us too! We have never practiced together; it’s all just made up on the spot really. There is a lot you can do with four extra arms!”

Coming to our fair city on Sunday April 6 for Sound Baked Sundays at Trinity in Dickson, Canberrans can finally answer the riddle “What has six hands, three heads and an English accent?” The arvo rages from 3pm, features supports Club Junque (Syd) and Vance Musgrove (Aston Shuffle) and, best of all, it’s free! There ain’t no party like an SOS party.

The Black Crowes - Back to Black

When you look around these days, there isn’t a whole lot of ‘flowers in your hair, barefoot, free love’ rock ‘n’ roll music in the world. Small, onthe corner independent record stores, created through a love of sharing a passion for music, have been replaced with large, paint-by-numbers retail corporations staffed by teenage schoolkids who think that The Rolling Stones are things that their mothers told them gather no moss.

Our radios and TVs are contrived money-making machines. It is a sonic future born from a musical Skynet which not even Sarah Connor or the governor of California himself could prevent. Until now.

I wouldn’t say that THE BLACK CROWES are euphonious saviours in any right, but they are part of a small band of purists that have never sold out to commercialism and have stayed true to the very roots of a genre that has been severely diluted in the past three decades, with successful spin-offs such as grunge and indie.

Steve Gorman is one of the original three members of the band that have survived all 20 years of their entire rock ‘n’ roll epic, and he shares their tumultuous history with me from his home in Nashville, Tennessee.

“(I’m) much calmer these days, but after 21 years I guess if I wasn’t there would be some cause for alarm,” he laughs. “In the early days we had way too much energy and didn’t know how to focus it, which led to a lot of tension in the band… The most important thing when you are getting older is not to be opposed to learning in some ways.” They have been touted as ‘the most rock and roll band in America’ which is a title that obviously does not sit well with Steve. “To tell you the truth, that’s the last thing I worry about; people like you whose job it is to come up with things like that… we just strive to be the best band we can be and focus on making our sound and keeping the same vibe.” You can tell that there is a distinct reverence to their art which has remained ingrained in their passion for creating Black Crowes records.

Since gaining instant notoriety with their first studio album in 1990, Shake Your Money Maker, which birthed such classics as their cover of Otis Redding’s Hard to Handle and their own smash She Talks to Angels, the Crowes have always been under pressure to stay on top of their game.

“We have succeeded in ignoring that since we started out; when we made our first album there was zero pressure, we had no concept of how the industry would be and of course we were surprised with the success. We kind of came out of nowhere so we just stayed in ‘nowhere’ you know. We have never tried to change based on what’s new or what’s current, we have never been interested in any of the new equipment like synthesisers or drum machines, we have just stayed true to our original sound and that’s what works for us.” In 1992 their most famous album The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion hit the shelves and really thrust them into the international spotlight. The singles Remedy and Thorn In My Pride made them household names across the world and allowed them to share the stage with such musical gods as AC/DC, The Rolling Stones and Jimmy Page.

“When you are actually up on stage doing it, you don’t think about it at all, but before the show and afterwards, sure. Though when it’s happening you are just doing your thing. He (Jimmy Page) actually did a whole tour with us, like full two-and-a-half-hour shows and afterwards I thought ‘holy shit, I just played a gig with Jimmy Page!’ And there aren’t much cooler things in the world you can say than that (laughs)’.” Flash forward to 2008, and after a series of successful CD and DVD releases, the Crowes are back with a brand new studio album entitled Warpaint. The new album is their first release since the turn of the millennium and has been a victory for the band after some hard times with band members coming and going and a change of record label.

“It was exhilarating, cohesive; I think those are the words I would choose. We weren’t in a hurry to do the album so we remained within our comfort level. I hate to say it but it was almost easy; we came together really well. The whole premise of ‘coming back’ with this album was important so we wanted to make sure we were ready. [The new members Paul Stacey and Luther Dickinson were] wonderful; if you have heard the album you wouldn’t have the need to ask that question. They contributed in all the right ways and from the end of the very first day we knew that.” This exciting release marks the start of a worldwide tour for which they announced that, for the first time in their career, they will perform an album in its entirety. On a special run of one-night-only shows, they will perform Warpaint from start to finish, along with, you would assume, some classics for the fans.

“We wanted it to be something special for the fans; we thought it would be cool to do something like that because it is a one time thing. The first show is scheduled before the album comes out, so the people that see that will not have heard any of the songs before we do them on stage which will be great.” The Crowes return to Australia in March, excited about not having been to the land of beaches, kangaroo culling and Vegemite for many years.

Steve remembers our audiences very fondly. “Great crowds! I remember the whole thing actually, it was just after our first trip to Japan, which was a very strange experience; it was a very dramatic and tense period for us as it was just after the release of our second album. It was back when I still had a camera; I took a tonne of pictures in Australia. Back then we were never sure if we would ever be back anywhere, so I always had my camera with me. The biggest shame is that we decided not to come back for 16 years!” The true spirit of free-spirited rock and roll never died. It has been hibernating through many eras of hip-hop, grunge and generic pop.

Everyone who has ever owned an LP knows that musical trends are cyclical and rock and roll is back: hand-delivered by The Black Crowes.

The Black Crowes will bring Canberrans their latest LP Warpaint in all its live majesty at the Royal Theatre on Wednesday April 2. Tickets are on sale through Ticketmaster . Warpaint is out now through Stomp Records.

THE CHASER - Arsenic Chaser

If, in some bizarre world, the Australian Government could be considered Superman, dwelling in their magnificent, not-so-secret ice palace on Capital Hill, then the cult ABC series The Chaser’s War on Everything would most definitely be Lex Luthor. They exist only to foil the other, and with all the restraint and subtlety of a Britney Spears stand-off, they have kept Australian media and politics honest with this simple message: “we know where you sleep.”

THE CHASER team of Chris Taylor, Julian Morrow, Craig Reucassel, Andrew Hansen, and Chas Licciardello began their illustrious careers with a fortnightly newspaper simply called The Chaser, which led to working with Andrew Denton producing several TV shows including CNNNN, and appearing in various stage productions.

It wasn’t until 2005 that the War on Everything began and, short of leaving a burning bag of poo on Kevin Rudd’s doorstep, there really hasn’t been a stunt that they haven’t been willing to pull. The most memorable would have to be their world-famous APEC prank, where Morrow and Licciardello, along with nine other production crew members, were arrested after they drove in a fake motorcade down Macquarie Street and successfully breached the APEC restricted zone.

The inept security force only realised that the motorcade was a hoax when Licciardello, dressed as Osama bin Laden, stepped out of the car and complained in-character about not being invited, as Craig Reucassel explains to me through my Juno-inspired hamburger telephone.

“I guess it was the most exciting thing to happen there because APEC was so boring… well everything is different in hindsight really; we were literally trying to turn around at the first checkpoint and everything just went ballistic! It’s OK though, I actually spoke to one of the snipers after the fact and he assured me that he hadn’t cocked his weapon.” This begs the question, ‘how far is too far?’ Craig explains, citing the stunt based on an incident where former Prime Minister John Howard was hugged on his morning walk by a teenager holding a screwdriver.

“Well, there is a fine line actually, but I’ll say one thing - the Feds are on to you a lot quicker when you have a running chainsaw! After the first time (where Craig tried to hug him holding a toy axe) we had to run and chase him down to do it all over again and I’m standing there saying to the crew, ‘Should I start the chainsaw? Should I start the Chainsaw?’ and we ended up doing it. The thing was actually running; it was not a sound effect. I guess we generally find the ‘line’ by tripping over it.” Their tactless bravado has led to more than one run-in with the boys in blue, as they pride themselves on pushing the limits of combative journalism. “Well, we have gotten ourselves into some curly situations over the years; I haven’t been arrested myself but I have gotten Chas arrested a few times. I have been detained by QLD police and briefly by NSW police as well, but I haven’t ever been actually charged with anything - although we still have 11 people on trial for the APEC stunt!” Treading perilously close to being cell mates with a large hairy man named Bubba isn’t the only danger faced by the Chaser team, proven in their much lauded Bra Boys segment.

“The Bra Boys one didn’t go too well,” Craig remembers, “because they ended up chasing the crew. No one has ever been physically harmed, although someone actually threatened to beat the shit out of Chris once and he didn’t go back out and do anything on the street for two years,” he laughs. “That’s why he was always in the studio.” Being the playground bully for media conglomerates that they are, on November 14 2007, the team infiltrated the Seven Network’s news headquarters at Martin Place in search of Today Tonight presenter Anna Coren, where they were confronted by the staff of the building for trespassing and had their footage seized.

“We don’t personally dislike her, it’s more what she does for a job,” Craig explains. “The funny thing was, when the guys were bailed up in the office she was actually quite lovely to us. It was just some people from the office that had a massive problem with us being there.” This begs another question: whether, somewhere, there exists a vault of unseen Chaser clips that have been packed away in wooden boxes, never to see the light of day due to ‘legal issues’ with their content.

“There isn’t actually much we haven’t been able to use for legal reasons, but there have been a few that haven’t been aired for taste reasons.

One that comes to mind is a take-off of sexy music video clips that we did, which was based on that Destination Calabria song, and that pretty much turned into a gay porn film!” The team’s comedic strength relies on some kind of anonymity and, with a country wide viewing audience the best part of one million, they must be struggling to pull off some of their public nuisances without being recognised… one would think.

“I think last year it was a lot better, but the funny thing is that people tend to recognise you when you are just walking down to the shops to get milk; it’s when you are actually interviewing them in these ridiculous costumes and afterwards you ask them if you can use the footage for the Chaser show and they go ‘oh, yeah!’” The next frontal assault in the war takes the guys back to their roots, with a stage show touring the country in the coming months. The first port of call is, quite fittingly, the nation’s hub of bureaucracy, our very own Canberra, where I question whether they plan to have the second hottest woman alive, the Honourable Julia Gillard, in a wet t-shirt competition.

“No, actually, we haven’t invited Julia directly, maybe that is something we can look into… The funny thing is, we actually started The Chaser from a stage show so I guess we are going back to that in a way. The show itself is a bit of everything really; songs, dance, presentations, a bit of media content and little bits of rubbish. It’s not so much that the front rows should worry about getting picked on. Every row of the audience isn’t safe at a Chaser stage show!”

The military don’t start wars. Politicians start wars. ~ William Westmoreland

No one is safe on Friday March 28 and Saturday 29 when The Chaser’s Age of Terror Variety Hour rolls into town. They’ll be waging war on the Canberra Theatre at 7pm on the 28th and 7 and 9.30pm on the 29th. Tickets from Canberra Ticketing on 6275 2700 or the Canberra Theatre .