MOVEMENT MUSIC: HEADPHONE HOOKAH LOUNGE  09/10-04

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Coming Full Circle - the end of Orbital

The final MOVEMENT interview with Phil Hartnol, one half of Orbital

Since the inception of MOVEMENT over 12 years ago the magazine has featured and reviewed the brothers Hartnol -contributions to the history of modern music.  Pioneers of their craft, the siblings have earned their place as true legends in the electronic music scene.  From their stylishly crafted music to their hypnotic live shows there are few in the industry who do not know their name.  They were a featured artist on our cover for the first time in 1994 and have appeared in our pages many times since.

Why did you guys feel it was time to call it quits?

"Well, really for me it's that I'm not feeling creatively stressed buy it anymore, I don't want to go on tour anymore. I feel like it would be a disservice to go on, you know what I mean? I think we've said all we had to say as Orbital, we're not finished with music, we're just finished with music in that form. Move on and try something different see how it goes. You run the risk of treading water, just becoming that old band. Don't get me wrong, I don't think some bands should ever finish, some bands get better as they go along, like the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I hear some more than I use to. There is a natural time for bands to finish, and that's where we're at really."

Do you plan to work together under a different project, a different name?

"No, it would be solo certainly for me, but you would have to speak to Phil to see what he's planning. As far as I know he's like me. I want to do solo film work. I would like to get into film school, and to do that properly Orbital has to step aside. There's never time to do everything I want and do Orbital, and I needed to stop it in order to do film school really."

Have you done much of that before, any film work?

"Little bit's and pieces really, we've worked with Michael Caiman on "Event Horizon," Angelo Badlamente on "The Beach" and that sort of thing. We had a little sort of go here and there and we did a film called Octane recently which didn't do very well, but it was fantastic for us to try it out and do a feature film. I really enjoyed it and we did it together. For me it is a lone path doing film scores, it is a collaboration because your working with the director. I think to sort of work fast like you need to with films and to be working as a partnership and agreeing and disagreeing with stuff, and for me there really isn't time to do that. Then have the director come in and say do it all again, which is quite often what happens. I feel your almost at a disadvantage to work with someone when your doing that. You need to sort of mess around with your ideas, then see what the director thinks and go from there. That seems to me how I want to play it anyway. I just need to change the way we work, I felt we were treading water, or could be in danger of really, do you know what I mean? We decided to stop a year and a half ago and soon as we decided to stop, we did the freshest album we've done in ages. We had a bit more respect for one another, not two grouchy old brothers in a room. We don't argue or anything, but we were definitely getting a bit familiar with each other."

So you guys have had your last show as Orbital then, is that right?

"Yes."

So you won't be touring the states?

"No, if there had been a good gig that had come up while we were touring, during this whole European festival thing, we would have gone, jumped at the chance. We would have love to done New York, jumped into Canada to do Toronto or something, then LA or San Francisco but it just didn't happen, didn't have time. I wanted to stop touring now because my wife's pregnant with twins."

Oh wow, congratulations.

"Thanks. I didn't want to leave her in a lurch you know what I mean?"

Absolutely! So you guys did tour a bit and some festivals over there?

"Just festivals, we did some really good festivals and we went to Japan for our last seven gigs. That was good fun."

What was the last show? Was that in England?

"The last ever thing we did there was with about 50 people in front of us, in Radio One Studio in London. It was for John Peel, you know the Radio One DJ in England."

Oh, yes I've heard of him.

"He's basically the man who influences every alternative teenager in England. He's responsible for their musical taste pretty much. Because he's the man who gets all this really great music into small rural towns where you never hear anything else. He wanted us to do a session for him, and that was our last ever gig. Pretty amazing really, with 50 hard-core Orbital fans in front of us."

How did people get tickets for that? Were they chosen on the radio?

"Yeah, there were 25 competition winners and 25 of the most hard-core crusading Orbital fans that we know. I know them all by name. The most fantastic, dedicated fans and grouchy old buggers at the same time you know what I mean. You love em' for it."

That must have been a pretty emotional show for you guys.

"It was, yeah. It was really good."

How did you feel when you came off of that?

"We had to go back on and do one more track, couldn't quite leave. I said when they stopped recording we need to go back and do one more for this lot. I was quite drunk by that time really."

I'm definitely sorry to hear that Orbital has ended, but I'm looking forward to seeing what you guys are going to be doing individually and maybe collectively in the future.

"That's the thing, neither of us is stopping doing music. We're just stopping working together. We're still friends and I think that's amazing that we've stopped working as a band and still remained friends, because I hear these stories of people who just hate each other after they finish their career as a band. I think that would be a shame to do that you know? It's just a good time to stop I think. I'm ready to move on and try something different."

Do you have any films you have lined up at the moment that your looking at doing?

"Well, I'm looking at a few scripts and things like that. There's nothing written in stone yet. I'm trying desperately to get myself a particular TV series over here in England I'd love to do. We'll see, I don't know if I'll get it or not. It's just something I'm trying for and if I get it that would be brilliant."

Is there any particular director you would like to work with on doing a score?

"If I could pick my director it would be Tim Burton, but that would break the magic of the Tim Burton/Danny Elfman sort of thing. So I could only do that if Danny Elfman couldn't do it for a season. Who else? The Cohen Brothers and Terri Gilian is a favorite of mine as well. Brazil changed my life and I gave up my job and threw myself wholeheartedly into music after seeing that film. It frightened me so much you know? All this drudgery and pen pushing life you can sort of end up end."

Is that what you were doing before you decided to do Orbital?

"I was always arrogant while I was in school to know I was going to be in a pop band. I always maintained that was where I was going. I was working dead end jobs in order to survive. I was just treading water with the dead end jobs. But it kicked me in the ass and made me go to college, become an art student that's the path. Because obviously if you want to become a pop star, be in a rock band, you don't go to music college you go to art college. That's what I did and it seemed to work."

Fantastic. I hope the film scoring goes well for you.

"So do I. I feel like I have something to add. But dance music I don't anymore. Nothing against dance music, but I have added everything I can to it I think."

As far as touring goes, you sound a little off on touring a bit. You said you didn't want to do it anymore.

"Yeah, I really enjoyed these last few gigs we did but it wasn't really like a tour. It was just doing some festivals and I hadn't done it in a while."

When you went on tour with Orbital before, was that not what you wanted to be doing?

"The last big tour I could feel myself thinking ... not sure about this. And if you feel like that then what are you doing? It's like your not being true to people. I don't want to do that. I don't want it to become a job. When it's an artistic thing you can't allow that to happen."

The last album is fantastic, everyone on staff loves it. We all appreciate your contribution to the music scene.

"Hopefully I can still contribute!"

Definitely we'll be looking forward to it. I think you guys reached a lot of other people as well. I saw you guys at Lollapalooza with Tool and I would turn around and look at the crowd and it was a really amazing experience and they would be just going crazy. That sort of "rock" crowd right after Tool, turning you guys onto that kind of music.

"It was really big for me. It was amazing because you don't know how that's going to turn out do you? To turn around a rock audience was a truly incredible experience."

It was a great show as well.

"Yeah it was fantastic."

Do you think you will be bringing in other musicians to work with?

"I think so. I think so. We did it with things like Transient and it was brilliant working with real string players. I think for film scoring I would love to work with a more orchestral set up. I always wanted to work with a real orchestra."

Definitely appreciate talking to you, appreciate everything you've done. Looking forward to your film scoring, good luck with your twins and best of luck with everything.

"Thanks! Cheers!"

So ends the final MOVEMENT interview with ORBITAL.  It was an honor to be a small part in the lengthy and diverse history of the groundbreaking Hartnol brothers.  They will truly be missed...

O R B I T A L   R . I . P .

 MAKING A SCENE

 LIVE FROM THE FRONT

Curiosa killed the Correspondent

I’d love to show you pictures of Robert Smith onstage. Unfortunately, I can’t do that.
And so begins a tale of all that could have been: Curiosa in Tampa.

For those of you who haven’t noticed, the United States significantly lacks a great summer festival tour. Yeah, there’s Bonnaro, but that’s not a tour. There was once Lollapalooza, but apparently Perry Farrell can’t pull that off anymore-- which is a shame, because Smiths fans really didn’t need anything else to cry about. The word "great" disqualifies Warped Tour and Ozzfest (does that still happen?) But the summer of 2004 was going to be different.  Because Robert Smith had good taste in music, The Cure had a new album out worth touring for, and this meant there would be a tour. A great tour, with The Cure and Interpol and Mogwai and The Cooper Temple Clause and Thursday and many other bands. It was—dare I say it—going to be better than Lollapalooza (or at least this year’s idea of a two-day festival with no apparent headliner and a JAM BAND).  This tour would be called Curiosa, and it would be wonderful.

I blame Tampa.

The venue, in the middle of nowhere amidst some fairgrounds, was ill-equipped to handle anything larger than a rodeo. I figured this out at first, when Brian (who was supposed to take pictures) and picked up our passes and tickets and headed to the area where photographers were to go. Area is too nice of a word. It was a room, a holding pen of sorts, where all photographers were to stay FOR THE ENTIRE DAY, except for the first ten minutes of each band’s sets. At that point, they would be escorted out by a man with a major power problem, to shoot briefly, and then return to the holding pen. I looked at Brian. There was no way I was going to make him sit there. There was also no way I was going to sit there. We tried to reason with Power Trip Man.

"No cameras are allowed inside."

Okay, we said. We give up. At this point, The Cooper Temple Clause was close to finishing up their set and since they were on the cover of the magazine, that wasn't something to be missed. Brian offered to run back to the car (parking was a mile away) and put back the camera. I heard—but didn’t see—TCTC’s set. Later, I saw the "stage" they were on. More on that in a moment.

As I stood, waiting for Brian, I got a phone call. Brian had run all the way back to the car, run back to the gates, and been turned away because he was a boy with a bag. Apparently, the only bags allowed were on girls. Brian then had to run all the way back to the car, put the bag back, and come back. By that time, there was no chance of seeing Mogwai, and Brian had done enough running in the 100+ degree heat to qualify for special operations in Iraq.

When Melissa Auf De Mar took the stage, I realized that the small structure I thought wasn’t being used was indeed "The Second Stage." "The Second Stage" was half the size of the stage at Jack Rabbit’s. People had to scramble up a sheer grassy knoll and perch there to see the band, because there was room for perhaps 20 kids in front of the stage. Melissa Auf De Mar’s band sounded pretty good. By this point, after walking a mile in the 100+ degree heat, dealing with impossible venue workers, and experiencing mass amounts of frustration at the organization, I almost didn’t care. However, things were looking up: we were going to see Interpol and The Cure for sure, and we had an appointment to say hey to The Cooper Temple Clause.

To see The Cooper Temple Clause, we met with their manager by the gate, and were escorted to their bus. I’m happy to say that The Cooper Temple Clause are some great guys who deserve much more attention for their spectacular music. They seemed genuinely excited to be on the cover of the magazine, offered us food and drink, and chatted with us for awhile about bands and the tour. They, like us, were exhausted from the heat. After awhile with them, we headed back to see Interpol while they went to grab dinner.

When we went to get back in, the ticket-takers told us that there would be no re-entry. We opted to go in the way we’d left: by the gates over on the tour bus side. At the gate to the venue, where we had exited not 10 minutes earlier, we were met by a woman who had already let us in a few times when we were trying to solve the photography situation. She said we weren’t allowed to re-enter. There was no way I was missing Interpol or The Cure. Tired of jumping through hoops and watching other members of the press yell at the media manager for trying to throw them out of the venue for taking pictures, I went on the offensive.

"Is there an actual policy in place for re-entry?"

She admitted that there was no actual system in place. She admitted that it was, essentially, a clusterfuck. Of mass proportions. We promised not to tell anyone she'd let us back in. And so finally, we made it back into the venue, just as the nuclear hell sun dipped low enough in the sky that I was only sweating and not ready to pass out anymore.

How strange it was to see Interpol on a stage while there was still sunlight. At their show in Boston, they hadn’t played much new stuff, perhaps a song or two, so I was excited to hear how the new (upcoming) album sounds live. They did an excellent job, as they have their songs down perfectly. Their performance seems effortless, and they please the audience greatly. Still, it was pretty odd to see them on a Jumbotron. After Interpol’s fantastic set, it was time to wander around a bit more. Brian caught Thursday and said they were surprisingly great. I listened to members of the crowd complain about the conditions. Water was super-expensive (more expensive than at Coachella!), kids were getting thrown out of seats that no one wanted to spend $45 bucks to buy.* It wasn’t just me; things really were a mess. I met up with a couple of friends who thought things were ridiculous, as well. But hey, we were going to see The Cure.

I am a Cure fan, but I am not a SUPERMEGA DIE-HARD Cure fan. I enjoy a great deal of their only-album tracks, some of their b-sides, and a decent bit of the new album. I like the singles. I don’t think the new album
is that terrific, but there are a couple of songs on it that I like okay. That said, I was hoping for some of the new album, some of the old albums, and expecting a couple of the singles. I know that Robert Smith wasn’t playing exactly for me, but I feel I represent the Cure fans who aren’t casual listeners but who aren’t SUPERMEGA DIE-HARD pretty well.

There was no "Boys Don’t Cry." There was also no "Friday I’m In Love." But the kicker, the oh nu-uh-uh, was the lack of "Just Like Heaven." There was, however, "Lovesong" and "Fascination Street." There was a boy who thought the Cure was doing a cover of the Smashing Pumpkins at one point, when the reality is that it’s the other way around. They opened with the first song off the new album, a song that is merely "eeh" to me. When it came to their technical performance, they couldn’t have been better. Everyone was right-on, and they played how a band that’s been together for awhile should play. Their lighting and screen business was also fun, and made it feel more like a smaller arena than a massive fairgrounds amphitheater. I was somewhat far away, and couldn’t tell if Robert Smith was into it or not. He does look significantly older, but he can still belt out those songs. Watching the extremely diverse audience dance and sing was pretty fun, even if some of the aging hipster dancing was a bit disturbing.

I’d really love to tell you that The Cure blew me away, but they didn’t. Obviously, I was seeing OMG THE CURE, but they just weren’t striking. They were good, though. I would definitely see them again. Perhaps under more enjoyable conditions. Maybe there will even be photographs to run with that story.

The festival as a whole was pretty much a gigantic let-down. Perhaps it went  better in other cities; that I do not know. However, when I want a great summer (well, more like late spring) musical experience, I might have to round up enough cash to head to California. I hear Coachella’s got great bands, that it’s really hot, but that the water’s super cheap, considering.

-Whitney Weiss

*Grassy knoll seats only cost $20 or so. When it got really hot, the seated area was under the shade. A vast majority of the seated area was vacant, so the kids started moving down. Security grabbed them by the collars of their shirts, hoisted them from the seats, and threw them out of the venue.



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The Killers
with Secret Machines
MTV2 $2 Bill Concert Series Kickoff
The Roxy – Boston, MA

The joy in discovering MTV is bringing their quasi-indie $2 Bill made-for-TV rock show to your town immediately conflicts with the realization that MTV is a television network where spontaneity is represented by that "unscripted kiss" between Madonna and the younger generation of failed slutty pop star girls. However, tickets for $2 bill are only two dollars (for real! no hidden monetary fees), so you buy the ticket and take the ride.

The journey begins in downtown Boston, where the temperature has dropped enough that natives are starting to whine when the wind whips through the "urban tunnel" of skyscrapers. It is here that I arrived an hour before doors, and it is here that I waited for over an hour longer than MTV advertised for doors, because their hired security team was doing ridiculous tasks that accomplished nothing positive. Morale was dipping, we were freezing, and finally the club owner told MTV’s security to go Cheney themselves; he was going to let the kids in. So, we all eagerly rushed inside to…

A freezing-cold club. Damn. The first major disappointment of the evening. But not the last, readers, but not the last.

The first thing one notices at an MTV event is how many people show up for the express purpose of  "I’m going to be on the TV!" You could tell that a number of audience members had only recently purchased their copy of Hot Fuss* and were studying its liner notes with the sort of intensity usually reserved for those frighteningly motivated elementary school kids at spelling bees. While waiting some more, my friend and I decided to talk to some of the audience members around us, in hopes of forming Survivor-like alliances in the case that we had to pee and didn’t want to lose our spot that we had worked so hard to obtain. The cast of characters includes: a freshman who had been in line for four hours, a tattooed and pierced drunken lesbian, a girl in 80s chic with a cane and knee brace, and a sexually ambiguous art school duo. But what will this have to do with The Killers? Oh, you’ll find out.

*If, for some reason, you are still depriving yourself of the Killers’ debut CD, get thee to a CD store right now! You can read the rest of this review when you return.

After attempting to silence the audience into happiness by playing mediocre hits of earlier decades (those hits were courtesy of our surprisingly-actually alternative radio station FNX), someone from MTV announced it was time for Secret Machines. Would we please clap? Eh. From the second row, Secret Machines looked terrified. A couple songs into it, once they realized that the audience was yawning and not clapping, they looked devastated. But their devastation was not enough to make me stop wishing their set would end. I do not know how the footage of Secret Machines will be manipulated to show you a crowd enjoying themselves, for the aforementioned cast of characters making up the front row stopped surprising their yawns four songs in, with the lesbian shouting, "You guys really fucking suck!" during the quiet moments. Secret Machines plodded their way through eight or nine songs before leaving the stage. Then FNX returned, playing slightly more enjoyable hits from the 80s.

But wait? Where did MTV’s crackpot team of security re-appear from?

Apparently, no one learned a damn thing from Pearl Jam or The Who or all of those other concerts where people got crushed to death, especially not the folks at MTV. Their strategy for carrying equipment off the stage involved attempting to shove the people in the first ten feet of the stage backwards into a gigantic frothing mess of kids who refused to move, lest they compromise their opportunity to be on the TV. If you’ve ever backed into a herd of elephants with cell phone cameras and shouted "Step back a foot!" then you can commiserate with me. At this point, my friend began shouting at security, while I yowled to no one in particular, "What is this? A fucking middle school battle of the bands?" Other howls of dissatisfaction popped up from other members of the crowd. Our cast of characters began assembling a plan for ourselves not to get crushed when MTV’s security quickly disappeared and we were left as the front line between a bunch of drunk kids who wanted to be on the TV and five yards of prime concert real estate. We Will Huddle Together, the freshman said. Like The Flying V During Mighty Ducks! I said. These Bitches Are Not Taking Our Space, the lesbian said. Damn Right! The art school duo said. The girl with the cane Laughed Nervously. Then, MTV security quickly evacuated.

And it was a crushing scramble to the front! A Drunk Bitch With Blonde Hair attempted to mash herself into space that had already been filled by all of us. We looked for security, but they were off doing something else more important. Drunk Bitch With Blonde Hair began crushing my  friend, who in turn prepared herself for delivering a massive ass-kicking (and she is not of a violent people!) The lesbian tried to break the situation up, and right as things slightly calmed, MTV decided that the best way for them to introduce this special was to STICK THEIR VJ IN THE MIDDLE OF ALL OF THIS TO ANNOUNCE THE SHOW.

At this point, pandemonium occurred. I smite whoever explained that the tall nervous guy with the microphone was on the TV, because that’s when the trampling began. VJ’s assistant guy was shouting at Blonde Drunk Bitch and a cornucopia of Brunette Drunk BU Hoes, but they weren’t listening. Because they were going to be on the TV, and at the very least, they were going to touch the VJ. What better time could their possibly be to ask the audience to shout and clap like excited monkeys for a band that hasn’t even gone onstage yet? Yes, MTV had the gall to do that. And I know, I know, it’s MTV, what was I expecting? But that doesn’t make it any better. So we decided not to clap. Perhaps that means we won’t be on the TV. Whatever.

Eventually, someone extracted the VJ from the crowd, and The Killers took the stage. They received some sincere applause that I’m sure the cameras didn’t catch because they were busy doing contrived things. The Killers played a set identical to the one delivered in Providence, but something was missing this time. Sure, Brandon Flowers’ entire stage presence is based upon the notion that one needn’t be singing in first-person, onstage or on-record, but this wasn’t that. This was an uncomfortable, why-are-we-on-the-TV disdain (not fear). And given the circumstances, that disdain was entirely justified. Sure, the drummer was just as enthused as he always is, the guitarist was rocking some exciting rockstar fashion, and the bassist didn’t look jaded, but the band just wasn’t as electric as they were in a club setting not made for TV. It’s a shame that this is going to be the television special that introduces them to the masses, because their live performance is so much more excellent than the one that happened at The Roxy.

I am sure, however, that a whole bunch of quick-cuts and some image manipulation on the part of MTV will fix this problem, and cut out the moments where drunken BU girls started flailing and hitting everyone in front of them before focusing on me, a situation resolved only when the pierced and tattooed lesbian stepped in. I’m sure that the extremely ugly yet very enthusiastic girl in the front row wearing the baseball cap and the bifocals won’t make it on the TV, even though in some weird way she deserves it more than the professional groupies for hire that infiltrated the audience. It’s not The Killers who disappoint me; it’s the notion that MTV has sunk so low, considering its roots. After The Killers finished their last song on the set list and exited the stage, the lights stayed low and a roadie hit a still-plugged-in guitar; it was perfect encore setup. A voice said "thanks for coming guys, we’re done." The lights stayed low. A pause. Then the voice said, "but there’s just one more thing we’d like to do." Smiles all around, yes we are going to get an encore. Something that won’t go on the TV. Just a rad musical moment. The voice continued "We’d like you to cheer just for three more minutes, so we can edit it in between songs."

Fuck MTV, I want my refund.

-Whitney Weiss




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LOVE THEIR WAY
Psychedelic Furs with Honestly
Monday August 23rd
Freebird Live
Review and photos by TAISIR

I love the Psychedelic Furs and I was super-excited to see this show but I had never heard of Honestly. Research on the internet showed them to be an up-n-coming Atlanta band with tons of promise. They're already getting local radio play and the hype is growing by the minute. I'll be honest in saying that I had already decided that their music was probably not my thing. They've been compared to Third Eye Blind and other bands in the pop rock genre that are featured on Clear Channel alterna-stations. Their music has been licensed for MTV's "The Real World" and "Road Rules." When I walked into Freebird that Monday they had already started to play. However, I like good music no matter what genre and within a few minutes I was impressed with Honestly. Justin Land has an incredible voice that commands attention yet soothes the audience into their emotional lyrics. The band's sound is extremely tight making them seem like they've played together for years instead of being formed in April of 2003. It was early in the night so the crowd was small but the abundant whooping and clapping after every song proved that everyone was thoroughly rocked by Honestly, including myself. I can't wait to see them come to Jacksonville again.

Freebird filled up by the time Psychedelic Furs started to play. The packed crowd pushed to get as close to the stage as possible. A line of women in the front row screamed for sexy Richard Butler as he and the rest of the band came out on stage. The entire audience was in an uproar as they started with my favorite Furs song "Love My Way." They continued with a list of their standards and wrapped it up with their biggest hit from the 80s, "Pretty in Pink." The screaming continued throughout the show. The band seemed to enjoy the attention and the more excited the audience was the more into it they were. Their music was as timeless and as smooth as in their heyday. The Psychedelic Furs formed in the late 70s and were an inspiring musical force into the 90s when they amicably split up to work on other projects. They have recently rejoined and added a keyboardist and drummer. After touring this year they will begin working on their first studio album in over a decade. I can't wait!

Psychedelic Furs:
     Richard Butler - vocals
     Tim Butler - bass
     Jim Ashton - guitar
     Frank Ferrer - drums
     Amanda Kramer - keyboards

     www.burneddowndays.com


Honestly:
     Justin Land - lead vocals
     Rob Attaway - guitar, piano, vocals
     Matt Dashner - bass
     Matt Melton - guitar, vocals
     Joe Thibodeau - drums, programming

     www.honestlyband.com
 

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GWAR
with Bad Acid Trip and Watch Them Die

There is that element of metalhead who really likes bands like Pantera. You know the type: shaved head, lots of scary-type tattoos, and a permanent scowl. Put any four of those guys together, give them each a different instrument, and you have Watch Them Die. The name is indication enough. Juvenile lyrics, dull chord progressions, bad solos which aren’t so much complex as they are fast…any generic high school garage band. I had a band myself that sounded like this…in the 7th grade. Watching thirty-something men playing it was sad.
Next up: Bad Acid Trip. While Bad Acid Trip can use some work in the lyrics department (not so much content as style), they are musically insane. They don’t mind switching tempo arbitrarily, or switching styles for that matter. The audience (consisting mostly of balding men who seem not to have noticed that they are way beyond their teens) didn’t know how to react. They wanted to ‘mosh’ (something I am waiting hopefully to pass), but the tempo would change and they got this lost look in their faces. One minute there would be a raging thrash metal tempo a la Anthrax, the next it would be Dead Kennedys-style psychedelic punk. For some bands, that lost look would be a sign of danger. Not so for Bad Acid Trip. They seemed to feed on it. They were testing their audience, poking the alligator with a stick just to see how many times they could before it bit. They seemed to take an Andy Kaufman glee in their audience’s discomfort. Well done and well played, this is a band to watch. They could pick up where Faith No More stopped.
Gwar is not a band, it’s a production. Evil Dead the Musical. Off, off, off, off, off, off, Broadway-style. They don’t play rocknroll, they spray it all over their audience. It had been thirteen years since last I saw Gwar. Their triumphant return to the surface of Earth has been no small blessing. It has been a giant disaster. And Gwar love it that way. Call it silly if you want; but that is exactly the point. They brought the battle to George W. Bush; bin Laden; Mike Tyson; and, in his triumphant return to life, Gor Gor. The best thing about Gwar is that it really is all about the performance. You will never, ever, be disappointed by bullshit. You watch. You laugh. You hope to god that stuff they use for blood is water-soluble.
 

-Neil Rhodes


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AiR

with the Mosquitoes
Riviera, Chicago

The Mosquitoes were cute. At times they sounded like Stereolab. At others, they sounded like Heavenly. At all times, they sounded derivative. It made for good pop: background music and nothing more. But there was nothing here to make the music stick. It was like Chinese food. You know…fills you for about an hour but then you get all hungry again and want something else…except it’s too late and nothing is open except for the convencience store around the corner and that same damned Chinese place that delivers. So you get dressed and go to the convenience store but all they have are Twinkies and Vienna sausages and some hot dogs from an era long since passed…sorry. Suffice it to say that you could go the rest of your life without hearing the Mosquitoes and you would never even notice. Ever. They will never see a tribute album. Thus spake Nostradomus in the hidden prophecy books that the Vatican keeps with the Gnostic texts and the deeply political, Dostoevsky-esque Michael Sparks novels which will never see the light of day. But that’s another conspiracy.
And un. deux. un, deux, trois, quatre.
Sometimes you go to shows by electronic artists and you get nothing but expensive karaoke in which you are not allowed to participate. Air were certainly rigged to deliver a performance Japanese businessman-style. What we got, however, was four men actually working for their money. And no showboating, either. The set was lovely. I was especially please that ‘Kelly Watch the Stars’ (my favourite song by Air) and the instrumental version of ‘Playground Love’ were part of the first set. ‘Sexy Boy’ made it on the encore.
The music was every bit as beautiful live as it is on the albums. If not moreso. The lighting was fantastic. And someone did their homework on emotion and color! The music lifted and the lights blended until I was almost in a trance on my feet. This performance is among the few which I have left without regret. It was the kind of show you leave saying, "Oh, that’s what I spent $30 to see!" Air earned their money that night.
 

-Neil Rhodes

 

 REviews

Eisbrecher
Eisbrecher
Dancing Ferret

If someone had put this CD on without telling me who it was, I would have been convinced it was a new Rammstein song. It's not, but it's damn close. However, there are a few noticable differences. Mainly the electronics are more prominent and the vocals are slightly different, but still very similar to a certain band I just mentioned, if you know what I mean. Regardless of the obvious comparisons, it's still a damn catchy album, which has found it's way back into my CD player several times in the past week.  The massive guitar riffs should please the inner head banger in you, while the electronics will be more than enough for all the rivetheads out there. The two members of Eisbrecher were formaly part of  the band "Megaherz" which had less of an electronic edge to it and not as much club potential as this album does. I think for those who are looking for something with more guitar but still danceable, then these guys should fit the bill. To be honest, someone has to take the reigns since KMFDM lost their ability to move and groove on their last album.
-Craig Harvey





Psyche
Legacy
Metropolis

Psyche's latest offering is a "best of" from 1991 through 2003 that also has some unreleased material, a new version of the song "Heaven In Pain" and a remix of "X-Rated." Their music falls somewhere between synth-pop and harder edged EBM, while sometimes having a nostalgic 80's new wave feel as well. I did not discover the band until a few years ago, so there are many tracks unfamilar to me, which was nice because I got to discover some "new" material I had not previously heard. There were however, many familar songs such as "Sanctuary, Unbreakable, X-Rated, Gods And Monsters, and "The Hiding Place." 

Psyche is one of those bands that when their on, they are really on, but occassionally they hit a few potholes in the road. Take for example " Goodbye Horses,"  it sounds like really, really, bad 80's pop. Considering that the band has been around since 1982, well... you get the picture.  Also vocalist Darrin Huss, who has a phenominal voice, seems to go slightly off-key every so-often just enough that it becomes slightly annoying. Maybe it's my ears that are screwed up. Who knows? Anyway, this is still a good offering of Psyche's music, with only a few minor setbacks. I was pleasently surprised at some of the older material such as, "Angel Lies Sleeping and Exhale" the latter having some really brilliant old school synth sounds. Overall, this should give anyone an idea of Psyche's music, the good and the not so good. Also, this is a nice tidbit prior to their new album "The 11th Hour" which is coming out soon.
-Craig Harvey





Apoptygma Berzerk
The Haromonizer DVD
Hard Drive/Metropolis


This is Apop's second live DVD, that includes a documentary of the making of the Harmonizer album, videos, bonus features, and a second disc with even more extra goodies." The concert was filmed in Hamburg Germany, and with the exception of "Kathys Song," all the remaining songs are from Harmonizer. The live show is full on Apop with an incredible light show and a full band. They had two guitarist's on the "Welcome To Earth Tour" but have opted for only one now. Still, the band sounds as tight as ever, and works the German crowd into a frenzy. My only complaints were that the concert was too short (consisiting of only 7 tracks) and Stefan's voice sounded a little tired. He did not seem to be able to reach the higher ranges, but that is the downfall of touring, your not at your best every night. The documentary was very interesting, showing life on the road, recording sessions, and the making of differen't videos in very extreme weather conditions. The second disc contained several versions of the song "Unicorn" as well as a video version, and the band performing live at Tel Aviv in Israeal performing "Non Stop Violence." Very fitting song for that part of the world don't you think? Even though the concert was shorter than I would have liked, this is still a must have for any fan of Apoptygma Berzerk.
-Craig Harvey





Psychonaut 75
Sonderkommando

From the title and name of the album, I half expected this to be a heavy industrial album. Well, I wasn't even close. It's more along the lines of a band trying to sound like Skinny Puppy/ Psychic TV while paying homage to Satanism and magickal rituals. Unfortunately it doesn't work very well. There are only two songs with an additional remix of each. The first track "Sonderkommando" sort of droned along, with the vocals being hard to understand and the song never really going anywhere. The remix did not fair to well either. The second track "Crashed Down" was better as far as the music itself, but I still did not care for the vocals, or whatever effect they were using on them. Same goes for the remix. If the band spent a little more time on the production, and changed the vocal effects, I might actually give it a second chance. I checked out their website which was impressive visually, as well as a long explanation on the band and their beliefs and philosophy. Maybe I will give it another listen, but you know what they say about first impressions...
-Craig Harvey





Obszon Geschopf
Son Of Evil
BLC Productions   

This Cd came to me with no cover, only a hand written, home made copy that I assumed was from an unsigned artist. Well, I was cruising my local internet CD store and low and behold there it was. Apparently this band does have a record deal, and should be available for release on August 20th. Oh and the music? Well, it kind of reminds me of early Leatherstrip with a dash of some other industrial artist's like Suicide Commando or VAC. The songs tend to be almost instrumental in nature, but many do have lyrics. However, the effect on the vocals creates a very low and muddled mix, and it makes it hard to understand any of what is being said. There are the standard movie samples, which are in this case, very evil and sadistic (for the effect I presume.) Overall, I found this to be an average industrial album that is doing nothing new or original, just revamping what other bands have done before. However, it's not terrible and does show some promise. If the vocals were better, and the songs had a little bit more diversity I might recommend it. However, I think the band needs to give it another shot, and as they say try, try, again.
-Craig Harvey





Battery Cage
World Wide Wasteland
Metropolis

It's about time another great band released an album of hard industrial and heavy guitars, and Battery Cage delivers the goods and then some.  Their debut release on Metropolis Records is a massive barrage of kick-ass dance floor industrial, infused with a pummeling guitar attack, and a low end vocal style. Imagine if you will, an updated version of Nine Inch Nails "Pretty Hate Machine" as a comparison but heavier, and you have Battery Cage. The first track "Anti Angel" had me hooked from the start and it just kept getting better with each track. Frontman Tyler Newman (also of Informatik) provides the vocals, and his deep rich, almost mechanical style elevates the band's powerful sound to another level. Tyler is well known for his high energy stage antics, and with the incredible line-up of guitar, drums, and keyboards I can only imagine how amazing their live shows will sound. All I can say is if you put in this CD and you don't have your fist in the air, then your fuckin' dead.
-Craig Harvey





Das Ich
Lava
Metropolis

Das Ich continue to assault our musical senses with their 13th album entitled "Lava."  This German Duo has been an inovator in the industrial music world for many years. Keyboardist Bruno Kramm's mixture of powerful electronics brimming with classical overtones, combined with the harsh onslaught of Stefan Ackerman's growling German vocals is not only incredible on disc, but something to behold live. If you have seen Das Ich in concert then you know exactly what I am talking about. With their latest release, the band continues along the same musical lines as their last album "Anti Christ." By this I mean, that the music has taken a more club friendly approach, as opposed to their earlier albums which were more symphonic, with the exception of  a few certain remixes. This album however, just screams dance floor. Track one "Uterus" is a prime example of this.
It literally explodes onto your aural senses with a pounding kick drum, throbbing bass line, and as Bruno's dark synthlines began to creep into the mix, Stefan's trademark commando vocals grab hold and throttle you into submission. The tension continues to build on tracks such as "Richer, Vulkan, and Seele Tanzt" that will have the masses feeding off the powerful energy this duo creates. Even on slower songs like "Meine Wiege" the slow grinding groove continues to hit you like a ton of bricks.
With that said, I guess you could say I liked this CD. Definitely. If you like your industrial angry, brutal, with all German lyrics and amazing instrumentation, it doesn't get much better than Das Ich. This two man powerhouse continue to impress, and show no signs of slowing down, or losing their edge. So, folks brush up on your German, and get this Cd. That's an order!
-Craig Harvey





Jason Ringenberg
Empire Builders
(Yep Roc)

While mainstream country music is mostly gross and obnoxious, alt country has always offered a refreshing sound less about expensive cowboy hats and more about the genre's roots. Even more important than country's sound lately is what it means to be a country artist. Apparently, you have to be a crazy right-wing yokel to succeed in mainstream, as the love of Toby Keith and the hatred of The Dixie Chicks has shown.

Thankfully, alt-country offers a refreshing political view in the form of Jason Ringenberg. Jason is the anti-Toby Keith, as his lyrics are more about the embarrassment one feels being an American in times like these, especially while traveling abroad. "Rebel Flag in Germany" includes lines about wanting to be a Canadian, as well as the excellent ending couplet "I wish I'd never seen that flag in central Germany/Hell I don't even want to see that flag in Tennessee." The album's first track, "American Question," includes the lyrics, "Yes we can bomb most any land/then send their kids to Disneyland."

Feeling uneasy about aspects of what it means to be an American isn't limited to current events on Empire Builders. Jason includes an excerpt from the Oglala Sioux's Ghost Dance prayer in his liner notes and has a song called "Chief Joseph's Last Dream." He even goes as far as to type out the non-Caucasian version of Chief Joseph's name when giving background information about the song and its subject.

If super-country-twang isn't your thing, a couple of these songs might initially not work for you. However, i think that Empire Builders is definitely worth listening to, as it is an important album that shows being patriotic, country, and opposed to elements of this country and its government is, indeed, possible.
-Whitney Weiss





Beep Beep
Business Casual
(Saddle Creek)

On rare occasions—and I do mean rare, like those comets one has a single opportunity to see unless one plans to still be around in 3,000 years—a band has a press kit that actually represents them. Congrats to whoever handled writing stuff about Beep Beep to disperse, because you did an excellent job.

Reading about Beep Beep makes you want to hear them. Hearing Beep Beep makes you want to see them. I don’t know what seeing Beep Beep makes you want to do yet, but after I catch them live with The Faint, I’ll let you know. Even better, you go buy Business Casual then catch them live and let me know what seeing them live makes you do!

But wait, I haven’t given you any information on hearing Beep Beep! Not because I’m lazy—because for once, it’s actually fitting!—I shall refer to the Beep Beep press info: "The music is flamboyant and deviant." Well with song titles like "Misuse Their Bodies" and "Vertical Cougar," this goes without saying. The sexual howling noises going on during "Giggle Giggle" will be oddly stirring for you. I shall call it gonzo indie rock. Like gonzo journalism. If Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas sounded like something, it would sound like this. God damn, Saddle Creek, leave a couple of alright bands for the other labels to sign. Just kidding. Y’all are like my local Mexican restaurant: I trust you to never deliver something that will cause pukey feelings to arise in me.

PS: This isn’t an "easy" album, meaning you’re going to have to listen to it more than once and that you might initially respond more "ehh" than "!!!"
-Whitney Weiss





Adam Panic
We All Do
(self-released)

So what’d you get done senior year of high school? Adam Panic, who this fall will be a freshman at Berklee here in Boston, managed to balance test-taking and homework with recording We All Do, his second EP and third musical release.

Panic, who until now was based out of Arizona, has done a great job. Not even speaking musically, the effort put into presentation is impressive and hints at the possibilities of this project getting bigger and bigger. The packaging and design is excellent, and couldn’t be further from amateur. But not even the prettiest cover could make up for a terrible album.

That’s why I’m pleased to tell you that this EP is spectacular. Not "spectacular for a high school student." Spectacular in comparison to music made by those of all ages. Each of these songs could hold its own against current radio singles for the TRL kids or mix tape staples for the more discerning musical crowd. This isn’t pop fodder, either. Lyrically, Adam Panic is more akin to a more classic element of rock and roll than a more sophomoric approach of whining and crying.

The title track, "We All Do," is getting rotation on Arizona radio. It is a timeless gem of an upbeat pop song. Just as good—if not better—is "Sweet Casey." "Sweet Casey" reminds me of a Weezer song circa "The Blue Album" because it’s so perfect that it seems simple, like "why couldn’t any kid in a garage with a guitar and something to say write this?" If they all could, man oh man, what a great place the world would be.

Definitely get a copy of We All Do, and after that, pick up some of Adam Panic’s previous releases. This is someone who may very well reach Weezer-like proportions in the years to come. We can only hope.
-Whitney Weiss





Iron & Wine
Our Endless Numbered Days
Sub Pop

This is the sound of loss and longing. Southern rhythms and wisteria and jasmine, Spanish moss, and crumbling, decayed plantation mansion. Ghosts speak through Sam Beam, whispering voices that move like mist through the piney woods and silence of southern Georgia forests. This is the noise of moonlight on graves, of that quality of southern air that slows thought and action. If reminiscence has a voice, it is Sam’s. This is the soft caress of Southern blues, African-American spirituals, hellfire and brimstone. This is the Southern Gothic: dirt roads, porch swings, and ghosts. Here, you don’t leave. You stay on the front stoop with a glass of sweet tea, listening to the falling sun and that endless yarn spun by a million cicadas somewhere out there under the magnolias.
-Neil Rhodes





Faithless
No Roots
Arista Records

There are few electronic acts who make it ten years without ever delivering a bad album. There are few electronic acts who make it ten years. Faithless have delivered an amazing record, and quite possibly one of their best with ‘No Roots’. The first single, ‘Mass Destruction’ uses the perspective of a small boy to speak against the blind marches to war which seem to be the M.O. of world leaders of late. The father is sent away to war leaving the child lonely and angry at his father’s absence. It gives a lovely little list of the true weapons of mass destruction: wicked minds, racism, fear, greed, and inaction on our part. If this ain’t an anthem for activists, I haven’t heard one. Dido once again makes an appearance on the title track. Of all of Faithless’ albums, this seems to be more emotionally infused. While the tracks are still dance-able, there is still an underlying seriousness to the whole record. Runing the risk of sounding cliché, Faithless have captured the zeitgeist. Not only that, but they have done it in a more elegant way than anyone of late. Faithless have yet to make a record anyone should miss and this is no exception. Buy it, feel it, dig it.
-Neil Rhodes



 

microreviews
by whitney weiss


An Albatross
Eat Lightening, Shit Thunder
(Bloodlink)
Exactly the kind of YAAAAARGH sort of music you would expect from any band who chooses to title a CD Eat Lightening, Shit Thunder.


Denim and Diamonds
Street Medics Unite!
(Bloodlink)
Synth-driven protest music you can dance to. Smash the acoustic guitar! Viva Street Medics Unite!


El Pus
What Is El Pus?
(Virgin)
Rock instruments, hip-hop rhymes.


Various Artists
Poor Boy: Songs of Nick Drake
(Songlines)
A collection of fun interpretations of Nick Drake songs done in many different genres and recorded in a new and exciting sound format. This tribute album was intelligent enough to not include a cover of "Pink Moon," and for that it should be saluted.
Listen to:  "Parasite," "Things Behind the Sun" (and hear the originals if you've never done so!)


Robotnicka
Spectre En Vue...
(Bloodlink)
It sounds like the theme song to that cable-access faux show on The Ali G. Show but with the drumbeats from "Close to Me" by The Cure. Oh, there's also a strong B-52s vibe...had the B-52s been on acid.


Arkham
The Freak Power Candidate
(Volcom)
Arkham likes Hunter S. Thompson, but there's no way in hell that Hunter S. Thompson would like Arkham.

 

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