An Afternoon with DJ's: A Recap

Yesterday I went along to the second Orcon IRL talk at Golden Dawn. This is a very good talk series put together by Public Address blogger Russell Brown in conjunction with 95bFM who have been live streaming the talks online. The topic of yesterday’s talk was DJs and DJing, something I know bugger all about, but have always been intrigued by. Now in years past I have been a bit of a snob towards DJing as a practice, “what’s all the fuss about”, “I don’t get it”, but thankfully this talk cleared up a lot for me around DJing in what was a fascinating, insightful and thoroughly enjoyable afternoon.

Things kicked off with Esther MacIntyre interviewing Aroha Harawira. This was a very interesting talk and explored what it is like being a female DJ in what is largely a male dominated area. Aroha spoke very well and mentioned one horror incident which I am sure female DJs face quite a lot where she was groped when DJing at an event. It was interesting to hear how Aroha got into DJing and found it intriguing to hear that she was just passionate about music and wanted to play it to people. She also spoke of the art of DJing and from her perspective how DJing is not necessarily always about the flashy stuff such as beat mixing and scratching, but more so about knowing your music and being a selector of music. So this is knowing the music you play and having a connection to that music. She summed it up by saying that the identity of a DJ is in the music that you play in that it means something to you.

The second part of the talk was with Serato founder AJ Bertenshaw. Now this portion of the afternoon was a bit too techy for me, and to my eyes seemed more like a promotional activity and sales pitch for his company more than anything. Although I must say, despite this, I was very impressed with the look of Serato’ new pyro app. This is an app that can be used on phones and tablets and allows people to beat match, make playlists and mix tracks together. So basically an easy way for people to DJ on their phones.

The final part of the talk involved a DJ panel that saw Russell, Esther and Aroha joined by Murray Cammick, The Professor, DJ Dubhead and Tina Turntables to share their stories and experiences of DJing. It was interesting to hear that for a lot of them, DJing began with them collecting records as teenagers, something that was a common theme throughout the afternoon in that DJs are first and foremost music fans. We also got to hear more horror stories about DJing, with most usually occurring at weddings including one incident where Dubhead had an artichoke thrown at him. There was also the predictable annoyance involving people coming up and asking them to play certain songs. Format and how technology has changed DJing was also an interesting discussion topic, with the consensus on the panel being that a mixture of digital and physical was the way to go for modern DJs. Dubhead made the point that people get too hung up on format and that in the end it always comes back to the music. The point being, if you are playing great music it doesn’t really matter if it’s a record, CD, or WAV file. Although all of the panelists agreed that audio quality when DJing is so important.   

So in summary, the afternoon was very enjoyable, and it was a great introduction into the life of the DJ and the processes of DJing. I went in knowing very little, but came out realizing that DJs are pretty much just music lovers wanting to play music to people and share their love of music. Although the trickery that goes with DJing such as scratching and beat matching is important, the main thing for inspiring DJs is that you have to have a love of music, and that the music you want to DJ means something to you and your identity. This in the end is the true essence of DJing. 

Sam 

Genre of the Week 4: Britpop

#GenreoftheWeek Britpop 

This week has been Britpop week at Nowhere Bros. I have been posting daily about Britpop, its history, its artists and its legacy. 

Below is a list of the songs I posted. Although it is not a definitive playlist, it is a starting point for getting into Britpop, or re-familiarizing yourself with Britpop, twenty years on. There are of course plenty more tracks out there as well. 

It has been a wonderful week posting about Britpop, and indeed reminiscing about the music of my youth. Karl is back this coming week with a new genre. Should be good... see you in a week. 

Check us out and like our page on Facebook. www.facebook.com/nowherebros

I have also created a Spotify Playlist for this weeks genre as well. Spotify/Britpop

Nowhere Bros Britpop Week Playlist 

The Smiths – “This Charming Man” (Single, 1984)

The Smiths – “Panic” (Single, 1986)

Jesus and Mary Chain – “Darklands” (Darklands, 1987)

Stone Roses – “She Bangs the Drums” (Stone Roses, 1989)

Stone Roses – “I Am The Resurrection” (Stone Roses, 1989)

The La’s – “There She Goes” (The La’s, 1990)

The La’s – “Timeless Melody” (The La’s, 1990)

Inspiral Carpets – “This Is How It Feels (Life, 1990)

Happy Mondays – “Step On” (Pills ‘n’ Thrills and Bellyaches, 1990)

Blur – “There’s No Other Way” (Leisure, 1991)

My Bloody Valentine – “Only Shallow” (Loveless, 1991)

Primal Scream – “Loaded’ (Screamadelica, 1991)

Massive Attack – “Be Thankful For What You’ve Got” (Blue Lines, 1991)

Ride – “Leave Them All Behind” (Going Blank Again, 1992)

Paul Weller – “Sunflower” (Wild Wood, 1993)

Suede – “Animal Nitrate” (Suede, 1993)

Suede – “The Drowners” (Suede, 1993)

Blur – “Chemical World” (Modern Life Is Rubbish, 1993)

Blsur – “For Tomorrow” (Modern Life Is Rubbish, 1993)

Portishead – “Roads” (Dummy, 1994)

Oasis – “Supersonic” (Definitely Maybe, 1994)

Oasis – “Liver Forever” (Definitely Maybe, 1994)

Blur – “Parklife” (Parklife, 1994)

Blur – “End Of A Century” (Parklife, 1994)

Paul Weller – “The Changingman” (Stanley Road, 1995)

Oasis – “Morning Glory” (What’s the Story Morning Glory, 1995)

Oasis – “Roll With It” (What’s the Story Morning Glory, 1995)

Oasis – “Don’t Look Back in Anger” (What’s the Story Morning Glory, 1995)

Oasis – “Champagne Supernova” (What’s the Story Morning Glory, 1995)

Blur – “Stereotypes” (The Great Escape, 1995)

Blur – “It Could Be You” (The Great Escape, 1995)

Blur – “Country House” (The Great Escape, 1995)

Pulp – “Common People” (Different Class, 1995)

Supergrass – “Alright” (I Should Coco, 1995)

Radiohead – “Just” (The Bends, 1995)

Echobelly – “Great Things” (On, 1995)

Boo Radleys – “Wake Up Boo!” (Wake Up!, 1995)

Elastica – “Waking Up” (Elastica, 1995)

Suede – “Trash” (Coming Up, 1996)

Super Furry Animals – “Something for the Weekend” (Fuzzy Logic, 1996)

Manic Street Preachers – “A Design For Life” (Everything Must Go, 1996)

The Verve – “Bitter Sweet Symphony” (Urban Hymns, 1997)

Oasis – “The Girl In The Dirty Shirt” (Be Here Now, 1997)

Radiohead – “Paranoid Android” (OK Computer, 1997)

Travis – “Why Does It Always Rain On Me?” (The Man Who, 1999)

Coldplay – “Yellow” (Parachutes, 2000)

The Libertines – “Vertigo” (Up the Bracket, 2002)

Franz Ferdinand – ‘Take Me Out” (Franz Ferdinand, 2004)

Gorillaz – “Every Planet We Reach is Dead” (Demon Days, 2005)

Oasis – “Lyla” (Don’t Believe the Truth, 2005)

Arctic Monkeys – “I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor” (Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, 2006)

Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds - “Do The Damage” (Chasing Yesterday, 2015)

Blur – “Ghost Ship” (The Magic Whip, 2015)

- Sam 

Auckland Live Music Puzzle - (2015)

Well it was announced today that an Auckland version of Austin City Limits is coming to Western Springs Stadium in March next year. This is good news, as this sort of “mainstream” music festival is one of the few pieces in the Auckland live music puzzle left to be filled. The Big Day Out needed a replacement and this might just do the trick for now. As yet no lineup has been announced, but based on the lineup from the Austin event this year, the chances are it will be a banger.

The Auckland live music jigsaw puzzle seems to be filling in. Laneway is back next year for the more alternative music crowd, while there are other niche events such as Soul Fest, Ragamuffin, Northern Bass and Splore to cater for various music tastes and crowds. Vector Arena for all its sound problems continues to attract the big name international acts, and there are always a good range of acts from oversees playing there each year. The Powerstation, and more attractive venues such as the Town Hall and St James are also very suitable for smaller crowds. On a side not it is great that the St James has some gigs coming up in the form of Father John Misty and Unknown Mortal Orchestra.

There are however, two pieces of the puzzle which to me still need filling. Firstly, Mount Smart Stadium is not a suitable music venue, it is quite frankly a ghastly venue for large scale concerts. It is hard to get out of and aesthetically is not attractive, or comfortable. The sooner all large-scale outdoor concerts are held at Western Springs the better, hey, even North Harbour Stadium is a better bet than Mount Smart. I also feel Auckland needs an indoor mid-range size venue for around the 5000-6000 type-crowds, and preferably with better acoustics than Vector Arena. Other than that, the Auckland live music puzzle is looking quite good from my perspective, with a bit of everything for everyone. Long may it continue. 

Sam 

Genre of the Week 3: Power Pop

Higher quality image

#GenreoftheWeek Power Pop

Here's the list of songs that I've been posting this week on the facebook page for this week's genre, Power Pop! Beware, these may cause you to involuntarily sing along, there are catchy hooks everywhere. There's also the youtube playlist and even a spotify playlist that I lovingly crafted for y'all.

The Kinks - "You Really Got Me" (Kinks, 1964)

The Beach Boys - "Fun, Fun, Fun" (Shut Down Volume 2, 1964)

The Byrds - "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better" (Mr. Tambourine Man, 1965)

The Beatles - "Paperback Writer" (Paperback Writer, 1966)

The Who - "Pictures of Lily" (Pictures of Lily, 1967)

Badfinger - "No Matter What" (No Dice, 1970)

Todd Rundgren - "Couldn't I Just Tell You" (Something / Anything?, 1972)

Raspberries - "Go All the Way" (Raspberries, 1972)

Big Star - "When My Baby's Beside Me" (#1 Record, 1972)

Big Star -  "September Gurls" (Radio City, 1974)

Shoes - "Tomorrow Night" (Present Tense, 1979)

Blondie - "Hanging on the Telephone" (Parallel Lines, 1978)

Cheap Trick - "Surrender" (Heaven Tonight, 1978)

Cheap Trick - "I Want You to Want Me [Live]" (At Budokan, 1979)

The Romantics - "What I Like About You" (The Romantics, 1979)

The Cars - "Just What I Needed" (The Cars, 1978)

The Records - "Starry Eyes" (Shades in Bed, 1979)

The Jam - "The Eton Rifles" (Setting Sons, 1979)

Squeeze - "Pulling Mussels (From the Shell)" (Argbybargy, 1980)

Generation X - "Dancing With Myself" (Kiss Me Deadly, 1981)

The Knack - "My Sharona" (Get The Knack, 1979)

The Plimsouls - "Now" (The Plimsouls, 1981)

Hoodoo Gurus - "I Want You Back" (Stoneage Romeos, 1984)

The Smithereens - "Strangers When We Meet" (Especially for You, 1986)

The Replacements - "Alex Chilton" (Pleased to Meet Me, 1987)

Teenage Fanclub - "The Concept" (Bandwagonesque, 1991)

Matthew Sweet - "I've Been Waiting" (Girlfriend, 1991)

Jellyfish - "Joining a Fan Club" (Spilt Milk, 1993)

Sloan - "Coax Me" (Twice Removed, 1994)

Weezer - "Buddy Holly" (Weezer, 1994)

The New Pornographers - "Letter From an Occupant" (Mass Romantic, 2000)

Royal Headache - "Down the Lane" (Royal Headache, 2011)

Mikal Cronin - "Shout it Out" (MCII, 2013)

Whew. That's a formidable list. Sam will be taking over again with a new genre tomorrow, I'm eager to see what he's going to focus on. Until next time...

- Karl

The Libertines - Anthems for Doomed Youth (2015)

The fact the Libertines have reunited to do some shows is not a surprise. Bands are reuniting all the time, this is not unusual in this day and age. What is a surprise, however, is the fact they have recorded an album, eleven years after their last one in 2004. The Libertines continue to pulverize opinion, you either love them or you hate them. Those that dislike them remember the very public relationship difficulties between Pete Doherty and Carl Barat, as well as Doherty’s very well publicized drug problems. There are also those who think their music is to one-dimensional and dare I say it boring. At the same time, they are well-loved British indie darlings, particularly by the music press. They were a band who took indie out of the 90s and brought it down a peg back to the level of the people, this after the heights of Britpop. So the fact they reconvened in Thailand of all places to record new music caught some people unawares, but has made this reunion just that more interesting in the knowledge that new music would follow also suit.

The album is titled “Anthems for Doomed Youth”, a title which in itself is perhaps more relevant than ever for a majority of today’s youth who are struggling in a firmly entrenched neo-liberal society. In terms of the word anthems, well, the Libertines are good at producing rousing anthemic indie rockers. You just have to look back at some of the songs off their first two albums to see this. But ten years after their last record, what would the 2014 Libertines sound like? Would the new tracks stand up and are new audiences ready for the rousing and very personal anthems that the Libertines are known for? Well, after several listens to this album, I would say yes. The likely lads are back and perhaps they are better than ever.

The album kicks off with “Barbarians”. This is classic Libertines with very catchy vocals, and Barat and Doherty harmonizing in the choruses. This track also has quite a Pulp-like sound to it, which in itself is quite interesting. Next is the reggae-sounding “Gunja Din”. This was the first track that was released and is very unlike the Libertines in sound. Was it the Thai surrounds that made them go down a reggae path? Or were they just caught up in a desire to experiment? Either way it sounds good and it shows there is more to this band than just straight out indie rock. “Fame and Fortune” is a very British pop track with nods to the Kinks and Blur, Camden and London, while “Anthem for Doomed Youth” is a rousing ballad that I can just see thousands of people sticking their cigarette lighters in the air to. Side one then ends with an old track “You’re My Waterloo” and the bouncing rocker “Belly of the Beast”.

The second half of the album kicks off with “Iceman”, a great track that sounds like it could have come from a mid-90s Blur album. This is followed by one of the stand out tracks on the album “Heart of the Mattter”, which is sure to get pubs, clubs and festival crowds singing in unison. A couple of weaker tracks then emerge in the form of “Fury of Chonburi” and “The Milkman’s Horse”, but luckily things pick up again with the fantastic “Glasgow Coma Scale Blues”. Boy this is a great track full of driving guitars, great vocals and a brilliant chorus. The album then ends with “Dead For Love”, another softer ballad, something the Libertines are not known for, but which appear quite a bit on this album. Along with the main album, the deluxe edition contains some fantastic bonus tracks which are also worth checking out. “Love on the Dole”, “Bucket Shop”, “Lust of the Libertines” and “7 Deadily Sins” keep in line with the quality found on the album and only serve to extend the idea that the Libertines have come back with a bang on “Anthems for Doomed Youth”.

So in summing up, my thoughts on “Anthems for Doomed Youth” is that it is a great return for the Libertines who many thought were done as a recording act and would fade away into indie history. They seem to have matured as a recording act and their songs seem more crafted and melodic than a lot of their earlier work. The classic Libertines sound is still there in the form of great harmonizing and the ever-present minor chords (are they ever not playing in a minor key?), but at the same time they have shown a willingness to experiment with other styles and not simply just sit and attempt to re-invent the past. The band have been touring and playing festivals and by all accounts aside from one incident before a show where Pete Doherty had an anxiety attack, everything has gone smoothly and they have been well received by audiences. Where to now is any ones guess, as previous history with this band suggests anything is possible both good and bad. But if this is the final Libertines album, it does hold up well musically, and would be a fitting way for the boys in this band to go out on. 

A-

Sam