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Things we are looking forward to in 2009
On behalf of the internetz, allow me to welcome you to 2009 - only one year away from The Future!
I know we are all disappointed that we don't have hover bikes, hover cars or reliable (hover-based) public transport yet BUT it's not all doom and gloom and there are plenty of exciting things that are going to happen in twenty oh nine.
The 2009 Sydney Festival
This is the reason that the world birthed Sydney in the first place. It's a joyous, special time. The weather is nice and there are plenty of great things going on all around the place.
We put together a bit of a rundown of things that going on a little while back, but for a full run down of the 'goings on' hit up the official site.
Word is that you need to learn a special dance in order to get into the city from January 10 (tomorrow!) onwards. Apparently those that know The Worm can get away with just doing that.
Also, there are FREE pianos all over the city during the festival. Great for improv piano man jokes.
New albums from Die! Die! Die!, Sunset Rubdown, The Mint Chicks, Tucker Bs and Casiotone For The Painfully Alone
Quintental orgasm! No leakage on the DDD, Rubdown or Casiotone albums yet BUT we have heard a few little sneak peaks from the new Mint Chicks and Tucker Bs records. Both sound mildly incredible.
Talons album is (finally) coming!!
We have got our dirty mits on an advanced (semi-mastered) copy of the album. It's all that... AND some! Prepare for mind explosions!
Dr Dre's Detox
Aka Hip-hop's Chinese Democracy.
Dr Dre's loooooong awaited follow-up to the (almost classic) 2001 is 'apparently' going to see the light of day 'sometime' in '2009'. Word is that it will be loaded with more guest appearances than a Puff Daddy funded orgy. And be twice as hard. And fourteen times more titillating. Biggie's Small.
Oh.. and.. speaking of Biggie...
Notorious - the Biggie Smalls movie
The only real question is - will everyone stop making movies after this because it will be absolute cinematic perfection? Maybe.
The return of grunge
Some grunge kids (circa June, 2009).
The critical acclaim of No Age's Nouns in 2008 signified the unofficial 'return of punk rock'. Everyone knows that grunge follows punk so it makes sense that the joyous flano deadshit stoner genre comes back in a big way in 2009. PS: fuck disco.
Once again Brisbane is ahead of the curve and 2008 saw the triumphant explosion of 'grungey' newcomers Violent Soho. Did they shoot their load too early? Maybe.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs are going to release a new album
The band recently performed a new song live and if it's any indication of what the new album will sound like it would seem as though the group are back on track...
2009 = the year where everyone will once again pretend that Karen O is sex on legs. Blondie?
Lil Wayne will win the Grammy for Album Of The Year
If an album with this cover beats out Coldplay for the award then surely that will signal that the music industry is OFFICIALLY back on track.
The look on the face of the dickheads members of Kings Of Leon when SPOD's Dead beats out Sex On Fire for the number one spot in Triple J's Hottest 100
There is a top secret anarchist hacking plan currently in the works to convert this dream into a reality. But you should still go and vote for SPOD just in case our plan fails and/or we get lazy and don't see it through.
KOL (while probably just sitting around, circle-jerking) will be like "Huh? A song about death beat us? But Triple J never even played that song. They played our song every 4 minutes. Our song was about sex. And fire". Then the minds and hearts of a million 16-year old girls who think Sex On Fire is the best song (since the last time My Chemical Romance released anything) will explode over the insanity.
Ok, maybe that's just wishful thinking. Let's all hold (internet) hands though and pray that KOL don't get the top spot. It matters, right?
On a serious note - can we please stop playing Sex On Fire EVERYWHERE..? It's 2009. Time to move on. Thanks.
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So YES they are some of the things we are excited about over the next 12 months. Feel free to drop your own dreams, wishes and inside leg measurements into the comments.
Articles
Our favourite albums of 2008
As I was looking through the 106 reviews contributed and written for this site throughout the year I started thinking to myself "daaaaaaaamn 2008 was a dope ass year for music". I mean, even though there wasn't a single release that rose above all as a clear standout there was still an absolute shitload of fantastic music released. The best thing about it all as well is the fact that a large amount of our musical highlights came from Australian artists.
With 2008 just about to die from an overdose of NYE bright-coloured jello shots it's time to collate our highlights of the past twelve months into something that resembles a 'best-of' list. It's the internet. It's kind of 'the law'.
So without further ado, here are the albums released in 2008 that made us thankful that we had been born with ears...
[page_break]
A few months back I started thinking we had maybe overdone our initial praise of The Horse, The Rat and The Swan. Then I listened to the album again. Nothing else in 2008 was as frightening, haunting and mind-blowingly original. So we stick by our original lusting. This was by far our favourite local release of the year.
Although not without it's own flashes of brilliance, Snowman's self-titled debut sounds disjointed and undernourished when placed alongside the epic compositions that make up this album. Gone are the attempts to create anything that even remotely sounds like a radio-friendly package and in it's place is an album that is overflowing with real depth and substance. The giant leap forward - and the speed at which the band has transformed their approach, from this record to their previous work - is quite remarkable.
No Age found some melodies and even though they still buried them with their distinct thick layer of noise, crafted an unbelievably great, sloppy punk record.
There is still the occasional wandering artsy moments that littered Weirdo Rippers, but the band is clearly focused on putting their best foot forward. Their ability to create structure from noise, catchiness from feedback-driven chaos and emotion from dreary half-assed vocals is amazing and ultimately what makes Nouns such an addictive record.
Their career defined opus. I can't remember the last time such an anticipated release exceeded all expectations by so much.
Every track is a standout. Third is a perfect balance between sonic noise, electric and acoustic sounds. Portishead have accomplished what every band searches for: consistency in tone. The whole album just drips of atmosphere. Acoustic guitars replace synthesizers, drums echo in cavernous reverbs and Gibbons' vocals are never far from distortion or a slap delay.
From the sickening thrust of energy at the twenty eight second mark of the opening track, Before I Weigh, it's clear that this record is gonna kick ass, take names and then kick the shit out of the piece of paper on which it was written down the names. It's relentless and enjoyably punishing. It's dirty, perfectly under produced and topped with an unpredictable explosion of sound hidden behind every nook and cranny. This is beautiful messy stuff.
The album where everything came together just perfectly.
While on the surface The Drones' signature sound seems most comfortable lying naked in the dark woods, suffering under haunting tales of regret and self-pity, at other moments the music partners up with a drunken, confident swagger, beckoning challengers to try and be tougher than it. The way in which this two-headed beast wrestles it's way through the ten tracks of Havilah is not only the core factor that makes it such an enjoyable record, but also the key reason why The Drones are such an important Australian band.
An absolutely brutal and unbelievably engaging slab of music.
It's doubtful the band realise it, but this album is part of a much larger picture - an emerging, gutter dwelling sub-genre of Australian music where Dead China Doll find themselves as the Sydney representatives. Much like Witch Hats, Spider Vomit and Snowman, Dead China Doll paint a dark picture with scattered moments of brightness creating a fantastic antithesis of ideas and sounds. This isn't the smoothest journey, but it's definitely rewarding and worthy of your time. I can't imagine any other Sydney group releasing such an engrossing and unbelievably powerful record this year.
I wasn't really too big of a fan of Further before this album BUT they really nailed it this time around. Every song on Tactics is about 2 minutes shorter than it should be which means you are always longing for more of the previous track while the next one is kicking your ass.
At times it's garage rock at it's finest. At other times it's new age punk delivered with a thick dose of passion and emotion. Each song has it's place and purpose. For the most part that purpose is to rip you apart with it's sheer awesomeness.
The winner of our inaugural (and diamond encrusted) Person Of The Year award delivered an album that was a mature step forward yet still laced with his great comical style.
SPOD's unique ability to blend the many sides of his style - the sexy alter-ego, the tongue-in-cheek rapper and the cheesy poptronica maestro - into different formats is primarily what makes Superfrenz such an enjoyable listen. Whether it's the highly addictive chorus of Dead, the g-funk inspired instrumental brilliance of Blubberponies or the electronic party punk style of Nitefallz it all fits into the overall formula of the album without any of the songs sounding too much alike.
Krug and Boeckner go head to head for eight rounds before joining forces on the epic ten minute closer. Although not as amazing as their debut, At Mount Zoomer is a much more controlled and consistent single body of work.
I am absolutely certain that this is one of the better records I've heard in the last 3 years. Such is the calibre of the artists involved - the supporting cast contributing just as many intangibles as the two all-stars - that they can make a piece of music nothing short of masterful and still leave one wanting more. It's the little things that bring it down a notch: a little too much synth in the chorus of Language City; the all-together confusing first half of An Animal In Your Care. On the whole, however, this is an album any other band on the planet would sell they're souls to be able to make.
This album nicely filled the gaps between seeing this amazing band perform. Hopefully, the rumours of the band breaking up next year turn out to be false.
There isn't a single wasted note across the eight tracks and, although their distinct core sound has remained intact, the overall execution this time around is almost faultless.
This record is incredibly hard to summarise into words. Yesayer have a fantastic depth to their sound which throughout 2008 I pleasantly got lost in on a countless number of occasions.
Yeasayer's musical strength exists in their delicate fusion of obvious Middle Eastern influences and thick slabs of overpowering harmonies. The resulting sound is beautifully psychotic and completely engaging. The occasional dark edges to their sound, such as the haunting Wait For The Wintertime, which sees the trademark choir of voices morph into a more forceful presence, are contrasted by the lighter side, such as with 2080, which explodes with optimism and hope. For the most part this is how the album chooses to play, sticking it's head out into the warmth of the sunshine, but still happy to stay partly in the colder shadows.
Even after the 'what the fuck' initial reaction wore off I found myself repeatedly coming back to this album throughout the year.
The blank canvas approach that Fuck Buttons take to their music is enlightening and oozes creative freedom. This is one of the most refreshingly original and surprisingly engaging records to touch my ears this year. It's not the smoothest ride and not a journey that everyone will find rewarding, but if you enjoy confronting music with a sharper, chaotic edge then you will find Street Horrrsing a pleasurable trek and music certainly worthy of your time.
An amazing album from a local band who are criminally underrated.
None of these songs will knock you over with their aggressiveness, nor will they pull slowly at your heart strings until you are completely immersed in their world. The way in which they tip-toe between falling on either side of this fence is not only one of the most interesting areas of the album, but also provokes a great mixture of emotions from the listener.
While on occasions the group dive head first into instrumental pieces that could easily be used as soundtracks for funeral parades, they are at their best when vocalist Matt Blackman guides the music with his effortless delivery and endlessly quotable lyrics. The distant, occasionally pain-laced vocals are often brought forward as the sole light within the dark musical arrangements, while at other times settle themselves alongside the music, walking hand-in-hand through a more uptempo composition.
So there you have it - our faves for another year. In the can. Done. Of course, these are just our opinions so feel free to discuss, disagree and/or dissect in the comments or add your own list of musical highlights of the past year into this thread.
Articles
Person Of The Year 2008
Betsy Watkins of West Brompton in South Australia - the winner of our Person The Year award for the past 46 years.
Thank you to everyone who voted in our inaugural Person Of The Year award. We have just finished grouping together the amazing 14 million votes that we received from all seventeen corners of EARTH. A truly overwhelming response.
Unfortunately, the votes of the people were scrapped at some point during the final counting process and the final decision of our illustrious award was handed over to our six 'super delegates'. Democracy rocks!
And the winner is....
[page_break]SPOD
If your hard drive had exploded, killed your dreams, your music and your 16,000 pictures of Jessica Alba then you surely would have cried and possibly even contemplated a whole new life path. But Mr SPOD overcame the tragedy and not only did he rebuild his life (and music) in 2008 BUT he also went on to put out one of the most original and entertaining releases of the year.
As fantastic as Superfrenz is, it's in 'da live zone' that Capt SPOD really shines. His shows throughout the year were celebrations of his music, epic amazing parties and chaotic ritualistic orgies of awesome. Back-up dancers, Tucker B's, millions of balloons, male stripping. I truly could never have dreamt up a more entertaining musical experience. Well played, sir.
Honourable mentions
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr (aka Lil Wayne) released 147 mixtapes in 2008 - as well as ONE of the finest damn hip-hop releases of the last five/ten/twenty years. His unique blend of insanity and mind blowing lyrical ability was a refreshing splash of Crunk Juice in the face of hip-hop. He re-invented rap music! He made it exciting and daring again! He said 'yeast infection' in a song! Despite heavy leakage Tha Carter III ended up not only being a commercial success (it was the highest selling record of 2008 across ALL GENRES!) but also received a shitload of critical praise.
Eddie from Dead China Doll
A worthy candidate because: a) he has the best beard in Sydney music (EVER!) and; b) he has the great ability to go from shyness to tornado-like-frontman in about 4 seconds. Not only does he act as ringmaster on Dead China Doll's thrilling debut album BUT he also became the centrepiece of all of their live shows with his commanding presence and genuine emotional connection to the music.
Dan Deacon
Mr Deacon's show at Oxford Art Factory in February is right up there with one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life. He made music fun again and (with the exception of Sir SPOD) was the most entertaining individual I had the pleasure of seeing in 2008. Ethan Hawke!
Barack Obama
Jay-Z's swagger + Q-Tip's mind + an Ivy League education. Coolest (and most ripped) president since Abe Lincoln. I like the idea that the current Most Powerful Person In The World (tm) is the kinda ice cool cat who could be updating his sneaker blog via his Blackberry and sinking a one handed half court hook shot AT THE SAME TIME. Once he sorts out this whole 'Iraq thing' I think the only next logical step in his career is to team up with some of his rapping supporters and create the freshest hip-hop album ever, Bulworthz style.
Amy Winehouse
She died in mid-January and yet still somehow managed to perform, punch fans and inject drugs into every vein in her body for another eleven months. A truly remarkable effort. Note: all of the images I found of Ms Winehouse made me feel slightly unwell.
Father Damian aka Pink Eyes (Damian Abraham) from Fucked Up
The group he leads not only released the best hardcore album since... err.. forever.. BUT he also performed a 12-hour show. You walk 2kms to work everyday and you think you are really doing good. This guy is like 450 pounds and he just screamed his head off, moshed with Moby and smashed gutless hipsters in the face for 12 fucking hours. He also looks like the toughest, sexiest and cuddliest man in music.
Articles
Our favourite Australian/New Zealand artists of 2008
Every year Sean A Reminder asks a bunch of music nerds, bloggers, DJ's and 'hip peeps' to compile a list of their favourite Australian and/or New Zealand artists for the year. The only rule is that they must be an 'active' artist or group (ie. not broken up). He then takes everyone's lists, mashes them together into a special machine powered by Canadian Club, lust and a single piece of Thom Yorke's hair to create The Super List.
The results of this year's poll are IN! You can view the full final list HERE.
Once again we had the honour of contributing to this great project AND (for once) it seems like some of our picks actually made the final top 28 list. We are all mainstream and cool now.
The list that we submitted:
1. Die! Die! Die!
Still the best LIVE band in the world. If you disagree I will wrestle you.
Here is a video of them performing the CLASSIC track Blue Skies in Melbourne. The footage was shot by the same guys behind the fantastic Super8 Diaries project.
AND if that didn't get you WET, here is a photo of the drummer doing a flip of his drum kit to conclude a show...
2. Snowman
The Horse, The Rat and The Swan will surely end up being at the top of our favourite albums of the year list when we get around to compiling it sometime in February. Snowman are an exciting, scary and undeniably brilliant group and on the new album they really took their sound to a whole new (dark) place which I never knew even existed.
3. Further
The most underrated Sydney band EVER! Tactics, released back in February, is their finest work to date and their live show blows me away every single time (no homo). It's criminal that these guys don't play more shows. Oh, and NO they haven't broken up. FACT!
4. Ohana
No other local act 'arrived' more in the oh eight. Well, in our world anyway. I am happy about Ohana's placement in my list for this year because for a while they have existed on the 'cusp', only missing out on cracking the top five because I felt they hadn't quite found the right mix of their math rock precision and their sharp punk edges. Dead Beat found the absolutely millimetre-perfect blend of these styles. They exceeded all of my expectations by about a billion percent.
Ohana - When Things Come Alive
5. The Drones
The Melbourne group really took it up a notch on their new album. Mature, raw, honest and unbelievably engaging. They have found the perfect balance between the dueling sides of their sound - the emotive pain soaked ballads and the raw, head-smashing insanity.
6. Witch Hats
Near perfect dirty swamp music. If you haven't wrapped your ears around Cellulite Soul yet then we highly recommend you sort that out PRONTO.
7. Talons
These young ruffians are getting better and better as they mature their sound and begin to drag their signature punk rock style into unfamiliar and slightly more experimental places. They are growing up with me. I think we will all end up in a nursing home together, talking about the good old days when they used to dedicate songs to my facial hair.
8. Dead China Doll
Their self-titled album is an intense piece of music BUT still pails in comparison to their live show. Ring leader Eddy is the sexiest AND most menacing AND most scary frontman in Sydney. He also has the best beard the world has ever laid eyes on. If beards were rap abilities we would be the love child of 1992 Nas and 2008 Lil Wayne.
9. The Mint Chicks
The New Zealand punksters had a fairly quiet year due to the fact they relocated to Portland and lost their drummer (to love). They did however 'leak' a couple of songs that will be on their new album. They are taking their sound to a new and exciting place and it sounds surprising, exciting, incredible and awesome. I wouldn't be at all suprised if they top this list at the end of next year.
10. Charge Group
Slow, melodic, emotional music has to be REALLY REALLY good to sucker me in. There is no middle ground. Charge Group's album won me over fairly quickly and even when revisiting it months later I found it to be just as powerful. The perfect accompaniment to a cold night indoors with your friend Mr Gin and his life partner Lady Tonic.
11. My Disco
Head-thumping. In a good way. Fuck it - when is head-thumping not good? I mean, my lady wakes me up almost every night at one in the morning and asks if I want a good head-thumping and no matter how tired I am from mining, pillaging and writing 'code' I am always up for it. I normally first put My Disco's new album on though. They are good at keeping time and my lady (as much as I lust her) is pretty hopeless at that. Sexual metronome.
12. Ghosts Of Television
The Sydney collective ripped me a new one with their new EP and then ripped me several new ones (and reopened the previously 'ripped' one) with their live show. They used to be kinda hit and miss when they performed but they have really sorted that shit out this year. The EP's closing track, Buzzrds, is THE fucking balls.
13. Dead Farmers
Record more. Play more shows in dirty warehouse spaces. Promise me you will play Violence at every show. Evolve into the best band ever already. Fuck.
14. Tucker B's
I only need to see the Tucker B's play once a year to keep my love for them. They are an old pair of socks - comfortable, warm and occasionally used as a 'cum pocket'. I mean... these guys are awesome and their new stuff is on par with everything they have served up in the past.
15. SPOD
The one man excitement machine released an incredibly tight new album this year and his live show is still the most fun you can have with your clothes on and/or without being 'coked up to the eyeballs'.
The video for Dead is pretty mindblowingly amazing.
16. Baseball
There is very little tempo change. It's on. I mean - it's ON! All the time. It sounds like Gladiators (with violins).
17. Naked On The Vague
Jangly off-off-off-centre pop that has been smothered with a dirty pillow and left for dead in a trash can in some seedy back alley.
18. The Nevada Strange
Exciting and fucking scary. I have only seen these guys once but hopefully they haven't been too damaged by the loss of some of some of their members (peeps from The Mercy Arms who have fucked off overseas) and I will get a chance to see them many more times in the not-too-distant future.
19. Violent Soho
These stoner Briscunts invented grunge (again) in 2008 and walked the thin line between homage and theft. Thankfully, it all worked out well.
20. Lindsey Low Hand
These guys are fun, disgusting, sloppy and scummy. Australian pub rock just got stabbed in the face with a smashed longneck bottle.
Lindsey Low Hand - Dull and Ordinary
21. Leader Cheetah
This is more of a future one. These guys will be the top of everyone's list next year. As soon as they (finally!) get their debut album out people will cream their jeans from coast to coast. It will be coast to coast jean creaming the likes of which the planet earth has never witnessed. So, in summary - Adelaide, ex-Pharaohs, jean creaming, Bloodlines, melodic as fuck, 2009.
22. Yes Nukes
The trio of misfits sound better and better every time I see them. Hurry up and move from 'yeah?' to 'fuck holy shit I will fly to Perth to see youse cunts play' please. Thanks.
23. Eddy Current Suppression Ring
ECSR have moved up in the Oz Rawk RanksTM in the last twelve months YET have still managed to keep their hard-working DIY ethos in tact. These guys seem to have no separation between their sound and their daily lives and this is what I think makes them such an incredibly engaging band.
24. Damnbuilders
One word - Snake Bite.
25. Atrocities
Seeing these guys live is either unbelievable or confusingly fucked. I think it depends a lot on how drunk and/or 'messed up' they are. Right now they exist in that funny middle ground where it feels like they might explode (or implode) or actually become an amazing band.
26. The Stabs
Raw and painfully good. Their guitar screeching skills are THE fucking balls.
27. Mercy Arms
They really surprised me with their (long overdue) debut album. Easily the trendiest band that made this list.
Mercy Arms - Down Here, So Long
28. Batrider
Much like The Mint Chicks these guys (or more accurately - girls) probably rank higher on my 'favourites of all time list' than on this list, but only because they also headed overseas this year to try and win some new fans and lovers. I only need to listen to Tara once every six months to remember how much I love this band.
29. The Grates
They really surprised me this year and their new album is A LOT better than I thought it would be. They have matured, not a lot BUT they have undeniably moved their sound forward. I think it helps that I don't listen to the radio anymore. Triple J almost murdered these guys for me before the new stuff came out.
30. Devastations
Dark and intense. Like my torrid love life (when I was 19).
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Feel free to drop your own top 10/20/30/100 in the comments.
Articles
Interview: SPOD
World famous bedroom electro-hip-hopping juggernaut, SPOD, has just released his new album Superfrenz - dedicated to all those lovely people who helped him out when his hard drive EXPLODED last year.
Before he packs up the party bus and begins a voyage around the country in celebration of the new 'bundle of musical joy' we were fortunate to sit down with him (metaphorically) and ask him tough questions about Johnny Gill, the craziness of the Tucker B's and sexiness of cats.
You recently covered 2 Live Crew's We Want Some Pussy as the b-side for the Cats single. Are there any other covers planned? Is there any chance you will cover Johnny Gill's The Floor, Tha Dogg Pound's Let's Play House or Ini Kamoze's fucking monstrous track Here Comes The Hotstepper?
F'reels. I'm a big fan of Keith Sweat, so I wanna drop Freaky With You on the next 7", let me make u soakin' wet. Then Another Bad Creations' Iesha on the next. I'll have to put your suggestions on later volumes.
How good is/was Johnny Gill? I almost cried when he pulled out of the recent KC and Jo-Jo tour. I imagine it's kind of how you might have felt when your hard drive 'exploded' and erased all of the material for the new album a few months back. There isn't really a question here, but if there was it would - Johnny Gill is rad, ay?
I tell you, I needed some Johnny Gill when that shit went down. He's a tender man who has the key to touch you. Watch the clip for It's Your Body and be redefined, ya'll. The motherfucker is in an ocean of sheet music waitin' to fuck the shit out of your body. His heart is a never ending highway of sex jams on the way to westville unto eternity.
How do you respond to rumours that the whole hard drive 'incident' was all a publicity stunt to create more drama than a 24 hour 'Number 96' marathon?
Rumours? Great album! Fleetwood Mac 4 eva! I've never heard anyone think it was a stunt, and if they do think that, then they think I'm a douchebag and are going to a hell you and I don't understand.
If you had to describe your new album, Superfrenz, in one word what would it be? (hyphens are allowed)
Majoricalepicosity.
After the hard drive melting, was there a breakthrough moment when you decided to 'get back on the horse' (with the horse being a metaphor for 'making music' not heroin) and re-make your lost work? Or was the decision reached because you were just getting hassled from all sides?
Friends. Friends were the breakthrough moment, to get a lil touchy feely on ya. I packed it in, threw in the towel and put the album to sleep, and was contemplating packing in the whole Spod thing, which is about 95.9% of my being, and these friends and legends got together with their lovely hearts and a bit of money and put together enough to get me back one drive, which was still corrupted. But after that, if I didn't finish this shit, then I blew it for them, you know? I just hope they still give a shit, because it's been a while, and they don't visit anymore. Come back! I scraped together as many photos of them as possible for the inside of my album alongside the people who helped me get the album made, with them all exploding out of Friend Island Mountain.
Of the many awesome hip-hop albums released in 1993 and 1994, what is your favourite?
Shit... I think Doggystyle came out this year, but I kind of hated it at first, too smooth for my young brutal dude ears. But years later the shit dawned on me like the first dawn, and I felt its brilliance. Futurecore. But Ultramagnetic MCs did release The Four Horsemen, whilst it's no Funk Your Head Up, it's pretty amazing. Then there's Wu Tangs 36 Chambers... And BIG's Ready to Die... Oh fuck... And NAS' Illmatic that shit slapped my face like a life sandwich.... Or there's Hello Nasty which was the Beastie Boys first step to falling the fuck off. Um, there's my answer...
2pac or Notorious B.I.G or Eazy-E or Big L or Big Pun or Kurupt or Jazzy Jeff?
B.I.G. and Eazy, easy!
Will the Tucker B's be your backing band for your upcoming album tour? Are they as crazy as they seem?
Well, it's 2 Tucker B's, 1 Richard In Your Mind and 1 Tyler Taylor from Los Angeles, the worlds greatest session drummer in the world. And yes, they're like buttered wasps in a shotgun.
Who is the craziest Tucker B?
Hmmmm, what's the most Ice Cream out of Neapolitan. Feel me? There could be a new member of the Tucker B's though, so watch out for that...
Who is the most huggable musician on the Sydney music 'scene'? Is it a Tucker B?
Me. I'm the most huggable dude ever. G funk, Step to this, I dare ya.
Sorry, this interview seems to now be more about the Tucker B's. Promise this is the last question about them - have you heard their new album? If so, is it as incredible as my imagination makes it out to be?
Fucking shitcans! It's really, REALLY fantastic. Like, you know how music exists in your mind and it's so bullshit you cum quadrants of awesbullets? Yep, that good. Bird Surgeon will redefine you.
What can people expect on the upcoming tour? Is it true there will be elephants on stage? Is there any chance of breakdancing midgets in the centre of the dancefloor?
Broken Breakhead elephants on the trunks of forest elves vibrating atomic galactaformical blubberponies. Plus me, a 4 piece band (The Orsumators) and a 4 piece lady dance crew (The Orsumettes) and the best songs of our time. Our being humans. Human time.
Is it true that the October 25 show at Oxford Art Factory will be dedicated to me, seeing as it's my birthday the day before?
How do you keep hearing these industry secrets.... I was going to resurrect Michael Hutchence and sing you happy birthday in silent.
How strong is your love of cats? Is it too strong? Is there any chance you could be arrested for your 'over admiring' felines?
We Want Some Pussy is enough to get me clinked. Love em. A LOT. That song IS bout cats.
Ok.. last question AND because I have learnt all of my interview 'skills' from Peter Overton it's going to be a bit of a controversial one. Do you think the final version of Superfrenz is better than the one that would have been created had the 'great hard drive meltdown of 2008' not happened? Do you think we will ever be able to travel back in time or to a parellel universe (almost like that great show 'Sliders') and compare them side by side AND if we could what do you think the notable differences would be?
I think this version is wayyyyyy better. It's more developed in parts whilst rawer in others, and I wrote Time Maggots Eating The Flesh Of Destiny after the meltdown, so that alone is proof shit's way radder. I had a chance to do it right, and I think I did. For me, at least, and really that's the only person you can aim to please. Me. And you. x.
News
- Why are the names of all the good bands playing at the Come Together festival printed so small on the flyer?
- Essential Festival 2009 line-up announced
- Behold, the most splendid Friday night of live music Sydney has ever offered up
- Totally Michael + SPOD = a match made in heaven?
- Purple Sneakers NYE House Party playing times
- Sorry, we forgot to tell you about who won the SMAC Awards and the J Award
- Further play their fourth show of the year this Thursday!
- Voting in the SMAC Awards closes today
- Second chance SPOD
- More acts added to Purple Sneakers NYE line-up 11 more
Gig Reviews
Gig Reviews
Come Together (Day 1) @ Big Top, Luna Park - 06/06/2009
The Festival Ladies take on the cool indie kids, dodgem cars and dagwood dogs at the annual Queens Birthday musical outing.
- Palace Of Fire + SPOD @ Hopetoun Hotel - 06/04/2009
- Leader Cheetah + The Middle East + megastick fanfare + SPOD + Cuthbert and the Night Walkers @ Hopetoun Hotel/World Bar - 20/02/2009
- Purple Sneakers NYE House Party @ Manning Bar - 31/12/2008
- SPOD @ Oxford Art Factory - 25/10/2008
- SPOD + Ben Ely's Radio 5 + Art Rush @ Hopetoun Hotel - 22/05/2008
