Sex On The Beach

Space, floating, bum, sex, money, kids, apples, trees, girls, boys and David Jones. Sexy Kids are from Glasgow, Scotland in the United Kingdom and come all wrapped up nice and tight in a giant assorted fruit bag. 'Sisters Are Forever And I Am' is a wonderful example of music made to please the ears of others. Dance with a twist of pop...I'll take mine to go thanks.

Sexy Kids MySpace

Sexy Kids - Sisters Are Forever And I Am

REMIX ON REPEAT
These are my five favourite tracks that have been on constant repeat in my iTunes for the month.

1. Protokoll - Moving Forward(Designer Drugs Remix)
2. Veto - Built To Fail(Tomboy Remix)
3. South Rakkas Crew - Mad Again(Boy 8-Bit Remix)
4. Primary 1 - Hold Me Down(FOAMO Remix)
5. Martina Topley-Bird - Poison(Van She Mix)

Enjoy.

Groovin The Moo Review

Hey that rhymes. Amazing.

But yes, last week I got offered a ticket to Groovin The Moo, held annually in Maitland at the showground. I've heard of it before but never really paid too much attention to it. Didn't even know who was on the lineup before being offered the ticket, still didn't know some of the acts after LOOKING at the lineup - but I went anyway!

Maitland's a bit of a drive (2-2.5 hours Nth of Sydney) so needless to say we were late. The festival had put a notice up on the main page saying that the parking area was flooded (and boy WAS IT! Fields looked like lakes with fences in them) so parking was a little bit of a trek away from the grounds. Got to the back of the line and a mime approached me wearing one of those Buckethead masks and asking me for a light. Lit the cigarette and it vanished. I was trippin' (not on acid though) and it was a great way to start.

We entered the main area and my mind immediately went back to Splendour 06. Not because it was a lovely area in which to have a festival (it was) but because of the MUD! Massive amounts of it everywhere and with thousands of patrons walking, dancing and jumping around it wasnt going to get any better throughout the day. Little Red are a band I'd never heard before the festival and by looking at them I'd say they're not much older than 18. Fantastic old school harmonies mixed with CHORD rock, dirty breakdowns and a generally amazing groove. Its the what the Beach Boys and Roy Orbison would sound like if they were young today. I am more than impressed. Check them out.

Up next was That One Guy who I had seen a few nights before on Spicks and Specks. This guy is an anomaly, playing some insane music on some perculiar instruments. The only person I've ever seen perform like this is the God that is Les Claypool. Its very hard to explain so I filmed it and put it on YouTube (technology these days..)

Needless to say he was interesting. Songs about Butt Machines and the moon being disgusting. A boot was played. Triggers, loops and strings all being played on one horrendously beautiful mess of pipes. Theres nothing I can say to make his performance sound ordinary. Thats ok though, because it was anything but.

Custom Kings played a set that got me dancing in the shade out of the sun. I wasnt really aware of their material apart from 'Up Late' but they played a soothing mix of reggae, blues and rock. They also got the guys from Little Red up for a number. Karnivool hit the stage next and while most of my good friends go rabid for these guys I'm a little different. They're a good band, an interesting sound as well but I guess I just don't view them as amazing. Seeing them at BDO and now as well, the sound has been fat and wall-like but the vocals lack the intensity and presence of the recording and alot of the impact is lost for me. They were still great though.

The dusk part of the afternoon was spent getting quite drunk, using the toilets and listening apathetically to the sounds of Gyroscope (yawn) before Spiderbait played a set that certainly could've sounded alot better. Whether that was the sound guys fault or the bands is a hard fact to tell.

Sneaky Sound System were up next and I'll level with you. I dug them. Sure they're part of that wave of electronic artists being played at JB Hi-Fi's and 2Day FM but they have some genuinely catchy songs. I'd almost call them the Garbage (the band, not the... well.. garbage) of Australia. Thats where I see them headed anyway. A nicely paced set with the big songs and a few covers thrown in and the place was a party.

Handy, because a party is what The Presets ordered. The chance to see these guys was what made me take the ticket, the new album is amazing and to see some of it live excited me more than Liz Hurley naked. To come out and open with personal favourite 'Talk Like That' made me shoot my proverbial load (I said proverbial) all over the mud. What followed was a good mix of both albums, and a fantastic way to end the night.

What have I got to say about Groovin The Moo? A great day out. In average conditions nearly all the bands put on a great show. The lines for food, beer and toilets were all moved along efficiently and the crowd was fantastic (no Aussie flag dickheads!). Kudos to the organisers - or should I say 'moodos'.

Funny.

Don't be surprised what you discover

I tell you sometimes I really get sick of stupid bloggers telling me what's hot these days. Some would say I'm taking a giant dump on the hand that feeds, but honestly so many of us are so ill-equipped to go ranting and raving about nothing a lot of the time. I'd put myself at the top of the "shut your mouth you stupid blogger" list 99% of the time.

Lately my posting has been sporadic at best and I think a lot of it has to do with losing sight of what blogging is about. So instead of parading myself as some kind of authority on anything, I'm going to do what all good music bloggers do and proudly grasp hold of my title as some kind of psuedo-journalistic pretender who in actual fact is nothing more than another one of many who are addicted to sounds, put together in such a fashion it evokes something inside of you and me.

I say the best music blogger says this;

bollocks to editing
bollocks to proof reading
bollocks to posting anything false
and bollocks to using the word bollocks ever again.


So instead here is something I do really enjoy.

While Santogold has been blogged to death, it is definitely for all the right reasons. Mind you some of the comparisons people have made to her are just insulting and ridiculous. Does every black woman sound like M.I.A these days? Fuck off. Rather than worry about comparisons, lets just say Santogold is a really honest and raw artist who delivers polished high quality tracks. I first came in contact with this little gem whilst enjoying my favourite pasttime of playing Fifa08 on PS2(See bottom if you live under a rock). The racous lively "You'll find a way" was one of the songs on the Fifa08 soundtrack which boosts an endless amount of relatively unknown quality. However only a fool (like myself) would have thought such a track would be indicative of the Santogold sound. Instead what she brings to the table is an album jam packed full of diverse and interesting tracks which all in their own way unfold another side to the chameleon that is Santogold.

Not many albums can keep my interest these days (presets... quality but at times yawn fest) yet Santogold has been quite daring to be so many things on her first major release.

If you must find some similarity between M.I.A and Santogold, it is that they are both a testament to the triumph of fusing different cultural influences into something very unique and digestable.


MP3: Santogold - Say Aha

The self titled album will be released in Australia 3rd May 08.

Santogold Myspace - Inertia Records

For those of who unaware, Fifa refers to the football game which features an endless amount of world football players for you to play with, buy and sell at your own leisure. For any true lover of the roundball game it is a must have. I have a playstation solely for this one game.

Weekend Fodder

I'll leave the week for some exciting music that has been taking my fancy but to tide you over until then here is some light hearted tit bits to keep you happy.

Lest We Forget of course and without trying to make fun of the Anzacs, I think the Rabbitohs are an outfit we'd all like to forget.

I find this man to be a brilliant comedian. His name is Andrew Lawrence and his disgusting, gruesome take on life is unusually uplifting.

Check out this video: social leprosy for beginners and improvers



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* Van She also have a new song out you can check on their myspace. It's called "Strangers" and while I do think it will take them to new heights, I wouldn't really call it a world beater. They about to go on tour with The Bravery.

* And finally with the release of Flight of the Conchords full length, I thought I'd be all "fight the power" and post one of the tracks that didn't make it.

Check what Pitchfork had to say about it.

Its Official

Im Pregnant!

or I've got hard gas. Either way its uncomfortable.



In more important news it's that time of year again where Splendour In The Grass makes it's first official announcement and people like me shake our heads.

NOT because Devo are top of the bill - I think they'll be fun and provided no one else is on I might even go and check them out if only for the nostalgia (when a problem comes along..) , and NOT at the lineup, theres a whole bunch of acts there that I would love to see like my current favourites PNAU plus The Presets, The Living End, The Fratellis (about fucking time), The Grates and many many more. Those acts alone get me moist.

Where I shake my head (here he goes again) is FIRST - at the price. $200 + a $9 booking fee straight off the bat. A price I would have believed justified HAD the planning for the new site gone through and the new facilities made available. But NO, it's still at Belongil fields - which is fine, a great place to hold the thing - but not worthy of incurring yet another price hike. Last year a 'green ticket' option was available for patrons who wished to offset their carbon emissions with a surcharge donation going to tree planting and such. Surely to raise the price might have to do with making EVERYONES ticket green as only 31% did so last year. Nope. Chuck an extra seven bucks on your bill if you'd like to participate this year (which I'm sure less people will).

Secondly, the ticketing system. Anyone who went, and thousands of people who didnt (and consequently left abusive messages on the Splendour myspace) will express disgust at how it all went down last year. The website crashed repeatedly and many who were lucky enough to even get to the ticket screen were thrown to the back of the queue. I sat there with a phone in hand, redialling with my feet whilst constantly refreshing for god knows how long. I got through eventually, on the phone. This year there will be no phone and the hopes and dreams of every Splendour attendee sit in the hands of QJump -

Qjump is a newly launched online ticketing company whose parent company has 7 years experience providing web based ticketing services. Qjump sells tickets for many leading Australian events and venues and its website and custom built hosting environment has been specifically designed to meet the high capacity on-sale demands of events like Splendour.

We'll see. If I dont get my ticket because the site goes down, heads will roll. I'll take this baby and jump off a bridge. All I can say after this rant is please Splendour, make me eat my words in some delicious yet environmentally friendly way that makes my crap smell nice.

Joining the aforementioned bands on the lineup are: Wolfmother, Sigur Ros (yawn), Tricky, Vampire Weekend, Ben Lee, Cold War Kids, The Wombats, Laura Marling (who?), The Vines, Operator Please (ffs), Van She, The Panics, Gyroscope, MSTRKRFT, Lightspeed Champion, The Brown Birds From Windy Hill, Scribe, The Music and The Gin Club.

See? Its not too bad!

Oh, and the worst band on earth - Band of Horses (but you dont have to watch them)

Graveyard Girl

This song makes you nostalgic about events that never occurred, people who never existed and feelings you never felt. It is the sound of being young; loving and resenting your life in equal measures. It is both the blind optimism and the objectless yearning that only being a teenager can bring. It makes you remember the time that you wish things were better, but you knew that those were the best days of your life. Those feelings are crystallised in this one spectacular song, and from what I have heard so far, one spectacular album.

STREAM: M83 - Graveyard Girl
YOUTUBE: M83 - Graveyard Girl
Buy Saturdays = Youth from Amazon

Hands Off My Monet

In Paris this week and the French Government, including new much-loved president Nicolas Sarkozy, have been pushing ISPs harder than a constipated person in the hope of having a new 'three strikes' system prevail - a system that can ban the French from using the Internet.

So whats bad about that I hear you say? The net could do with a little less arrogance and strange smell - well, whilst I couldnt agree more, here's how it works.

French ISPs start monitoring their users a bit more than conventionally, if you download, or are suspected to have downloaded illegal music or movies, you are given a strike. Three strikes and your internet connection is destroyed and you are blacklisted from being able to procure an Internet connection in suburban Pigalle ever again. Sound a little bit harsh? Oui! Luckily for every Johnny Frenchman out there public and government dissapproval is growing. The EU pariliament voted to oppose the notion in goverment last week and consumer groups are also expressing their disapproval (but who cares). The French, however, are lifting their noses at the whole thing and the motion (currently) looks like it will be put through and effective as of May this year.

Alot of this probably has to do with the fact that Europeans dont seem to want to buy their music online. Its kind of like you and me really. If we wanted to buy something we'd go down to the shops and get the album. If not we'll download it and delete it when it takes up too much disk space.

Tongues are already wagging in regards to the French assuming presidency of the EU later this year, and of Sarkozys maniacal intent to put this plan into effect across Europe whether they like it or not. Now can I just ask - has anyone thought of this scenario?

Carla Bruni and Mr Sarkozy are sitting down at some massive palacial mansion in the countryside, Sarkozy chuffed at being president and Bruni chuffed at being born into a rich family, married and surrounded by people who'll do anything for her for a root. And she says "Nicolas, az you must know i am ze successfully zinger/zongwriter but for years I haff been not receiving ze, 'ow you say, royalty cheques, zere must be zomezing wrong, and I blame ze internets"

For those of you who dont know, Carla Bruni (the relatively hot wife of the President) used to have a musical career. Was it much? Im not sure, judge for yourself. I cant understand what the hell shes talking about personally.

(come on, nude photos? doing a clip with no pants on? this woman is a WHORE!)

Anyway, could the reason Sarkozy has this intent to destroy civil liberties for a few more royalty cheques have anything to do with his missus? It wouldnt surprise me at all. But if every two-bit ho bag with an insignificant musical career could stop people downloading music, why hasnt Kevin Rudd employed (or married) Nikki Webster? Probably too busy doing a Zoo shoot.

Bottom line, get your kit off, marry the president and you too can have your personal agenda forced upon millions. And that is todays lesson.

Stop! Moroder Time!

Without Moroder, you kids wanting some synthetic sounds to boogie to would probably have to resort to RnB. Space would have no musical narration and the CD changers of spaceships would be empty.

There would be no American Gigolo soundtrack, no Scarface soundtrack. No theme song for Midnight Express, and Top Gun would be bereft of 'Danger Zone' and 'Take my Breath Away'. Electric Dreams would have no backing track, and the cast of Flashdance would have had nothing to dance to.

Donna Summer wouldn't have said 'I Feel Love' and she would have never has the orgasm that was 'Love to Love You Baby'. Debbie Harry wouldn't have asked who ever it was she was asking to 'Call Me', and The Neverending Story title song would have never begun.

Wouldn't that be unthinkable...much like a world without zinc.


MP3: Giorgio Moroder - Utopia - Me Giorgio

Buy From Here To Eternity



Giorgio Moroder - From Here to Eternity



Blondie - Call Me (Amercian Gigolo soundtrack)



Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder - Together In Electric Dreams




Giorgio Moroder - Chase (Theme from Midnight Express)