Dubstep has been the whipping boy of popular culture for some time now. It’s not undeserved; there are plenty of genuinely terrible songs in the genre (Nero – Crush On You and Benny Benassi – Cinema (Skrillex Remix) are good examples of the lazy, paint-by-numbers songwriting that warrants the hate), but a lot of the…
The best live shows are born of either professionalism (which tends to go hand-in-hand with competent musicianship) or, more often, enthusiasm, a group or artist obviously enjoying themselves on stage. Last night’s performance by Hot Chip had both professionalism and enthusiasm in spades. It also featured the lost art of careful setlist structuring (ie. not…
Orlando Higginbottom, better known as Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, has an ice-blue sterility on record, detached electro paired with simple yet heartfelt adolescent lyrics. I’d expected a warmer sound live, but instead his live set accentuated the aloofness. He performed in ornamental regalia, bordered by dancing girls who intermittently cavorted to the music. They seemed…
My favourite live shows in 2012 were… 5. Regurgitator (The Hi-Fi): I’ve seen the ‘Gurge a bunch of times, but this gig was truly outstanding, featuring performance of both “Unit” and “Tu-Plang” in full (plus a surprise Devo cover!). 4. Dan Deacon (Coniston Lane): Dan Deacon makes fun music, but his live show practically defines…
My votes for the Triple J Hottest 100 2012 (in a rough order – better songs at the bottom) Tyler Touché – Baguette? Japandroids – The House That Heaven Built (not in my personal top 10, but I’d love to see these guys do well) Lisa Mitchell – Bless This Mess The Vaccines – No…
Like Lisa Mitchell, this is a song that I didn’t expect to like as much as I do. It’s a dance-pop song without a great deal of originality or depth to it, anchored with a silly vocal sample. But it’s just a really fun song, and unlike most dance-pop songs that seem to be entirely…
I prefer Hot Chip when they’re mellow. A great deal of their music, particularly their earlier work, has a sharpness, an angularity; it suits plenty of songs (I can’t imagine “Over and Over” working as a ‘softer’ song) but my favourite Hot Chip songs tend to have a warm sentimentality to them. Their sound over…
Japandroids’ music feels like the embodient of velocity. Each song has a forward momentum, the feeling of the wind rushing by (it’s dangerous driving music). Their songs are about having fun, the possibilities of youth, but there’s also a distinct pang of regret beneath the dynamic façade. The Japandroids aren’t racing to anything; they’re racing…
This is not the kind of song I like. I have a problem with the contrived singing voice that Lisa Mitchell, like many other singers nowadays, adopts. It reminds me of that silly baby voice that people put on around young children, a vocal style that would sound ridiculous if used in everyday conversation. And…
“It’s extremely personal. When I wrote the things that I’m singing, I didn’t expect anyone to hear it, or know it, or say it.” – Megan James1 When discussing music, the word “intimate” is generally reserved for the discussion of gentle, crowded-sounding music. Acoustic guitars accompanied by fragile singing, that sort of thing. But an…
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