Planet Notion - Music - Features

Home

Music

Live

Lifestyle

My Planet

Who the f**k?

60 seconds

Features

Albums

Downloads

Change Background

You are here -> Music / Features

Wednesday, 07 January, 2009

PLANETNOTION TELEVISION!

CAMERA-FOLK AND FILM EDITORS WANTED!

Planet Notion is looking for guys and dolls to film and edit features for its new TV channel, PNTV. Accompanying Notion to artist interviews, gigs, fashion shows, festivals and international events, you will be skilled, passionate and full of ideas about how to produce shit-hot video content. Camera-folk will be experienced and ideally have their own equipment, or at least access to equipment, while editors must be able to turn projects around quickly, and with stylistic flare. If you can both film and edit content, we would especially like to hear from you! These casual, unpaid positions would be ideal for those looking to develop their showreels, and to get the chance to travel, film major artists and top events.

Please email lucy(at)musichqmedia
(dot)com if you’re interested in getting involved, cheers!

INFO

You are browsing our Features, they're long so get comfy cos it's a long time till you get your summer ice cream kid-o.

RSS FEEDS

Subscribe Feeds

Cassette Jam

Your life could change massively just by entering a competition. Look at Leeds based duo Rory Lyons and Will Graney, who went from being your average bedroom DJs to professional players after taking part in last year’s Babycream DJ competition. Since being crowned winners they have toured the world, held down regular residencies at Babycream (Liverpool) and Dirty Disco (Leeds) and dropped sets at some of the world's biggest clubs from Liverpool's Cream to Ibiza's Amnesia. Having just been taken on by Paul Van Dyk's agent, the boys are in huge demand. They took time out of their busy schedule to chat exclusively to Planet Notion... Words: Natasha Siggers What have you been up to since you were crowned competition champions? Rory: Basically we won the competition and got a residency at Dirty Disco at the same time. Dirty Disco is this massive club in Leeds, they get massive guests on there and basically they both went hand in hand. Then we got asked to do the Lake of Stars festival in Africa which was amazing, then lots and lots of gigs. We've had some amazing gigs like at The Arches in Glasgow; we'll be going back up there again soon. We've got an agent now, who's got Paul Van Dyk too. Did you do a lot of training or preparation in the run up to the competition? Will: Yes and no. We weren't gonna even enter the competition but our housemate entered a CD for us just before the closing date. We played off two mixes that was quite hard to do to make sound anywhere near good… the first round of the competition was the first time we’d actually played out together properly! Rory: We'd been doing it for years individually but that was the first time we had played out together. So what made you want to be a duo then? Rory: We just got really pissed on a few nights and just started messing about because we’ve both got quite random tastes in music. My old man owns a record shop and Will's old man was a DJ as well so we just had this amazing record collection - like Prince and James Brown - things that no-one really plays much now. What do you think set you apart from the other competitors? Will: We just did our thing in the finals and we played something like 27 tracks in like half an hour. Rory: We always try to do something different... and we didn't really look like we were taking it too seriously. How important is interacting with the crowd in the competition? Rory: You have more interaction with the crowd as a duo. You get some DJs that always have their head down concentrating. We just got really hammered and danced around! Will: When we were at Lake of Stars festival, Mikey from Bugz In The Attic said 'what you play isn't what I'd usually listen to, but it’s just amazing watching you two, you're having such a good time and it’s really infectious!' Fair enough! What was the first thing you did when you won the competition? Will: I fell over immediately. We got a bottle of champagne each and we were spraying it at each other and I was wearing a pair of really stupid cowboy boots, fell straight over on my back! Did you feel much pressure being touted as competition winners on line ups? Rory: No, it's been good training because you'd play for like 5 hours at a time in the competition. Will: The first time we played we did 7 hours! Rory: It's just like a really long practice session. It trained us up really well. The day after my birthday we played at Cream's Birthday at Nation (Liverpool) and we were ready for that, it was quality! Will: We played the last set in the Annexe - 4am till 6am. Do you still go out clubbing as punters these days? Will: Not so much now Rory: We don’t get the chance anymore! Will: We had last Saturday off - it was our first Saturday off in ages - and loads of our mates were going to Technique or Asylum in Leeds, but we were like 'no, we're going for a meal!' (laughs) Rory: It’s like a novelty to stay in and watch 'Match of the Day'. How would you describe your musical style? Rory: I don't think we're housey at all Will: Nah, we got marked down in the first round for not being housey enough Rory: We're more kind of like electro, tech, indie sort of stuff. Which DJs do you admire? Will: Erol Alkan. He's just got that interaction with people. Rory: I like 2ManyDJs... They have an amazing sound. Do you still use vinyl or have you converted to laptops? Will: We don't use any vinyl anymore. I used to use more vinyl but it's such a pain in the arse to carry round. With laptops you've got to plan everything meticulously. We like CD's because you can just go through them and randomly pick them out, it's much better and easier. Do you get many freebies now you're 'proper DJs'? Rory: Yeah it's getting that way now, like promos. It's pretty nice to wake up in the morning and you've got new stuff to listen to. What are your plans for the summer? Will: We've got a few gigs at Cream in Amnesia. We're just gonna see what happens really and just fit things round Cream. Think you could be the next big thing behind the decks? You could be in Rory and Will's place by entering this year's Babycream DJ competition! There is a weekly residency at Babycream, a gig at Liverpool superclub Cream, a set at Northern Lights in Leeds and many more goodies up for grabs, so hand a 60 minute CD into the venue or send it to: Babycream DJ competition, Room 202, The Vanilla Factory, 39 Fleet street, Liverpool L1 4AR Closing Date: Friday 20 April 2007 (First heats: Sunday 22 April 2007) Click here for more details.

tags: | just jack | overtones | mercury | notting hill | hip hop | disco | house | funk | more...

Jamie T

Jamie T carves complex tunes to tell tales about less than perfect suburban lives. Lyrics about booze, birds, brawls and blow lash their tales against upbeat melodies and Jamie’s cheeky cockney delivery. As we chat a Virgin Records disciple duly replaces our drinks, but Jamie leaves his bowl of chips untouched. Tactile, animated and totally frank, he seems at a happy distance from the hype that has been building with fury to surround his signature musical style. Wherever to start...? ALRIGHT JAMIE, IS THIS YOUR LIQUID LUNCH? Ha! Something like that, it’s my second pint today but I feel rough... HEAVY ONE LAST NIGHT THEN? We went down Po Na Na’s but there was nothing going on...whenever you order two Slippery Nipples you just sound dirty! They’re tame shots but the curdling is fucked – my mate was like ‘I’m not fucking drinking that!’ OK SOME TECHNICAL STUFF FIRST. CRITICS ARE GRABBING GENRES FOR YOUR INFLUENCES HIP HOP, PUNK, REGGAE, LO-FI, GRIME – BUT WHICH OF THESE ARE MOST IMPORTANT AND HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE JAMIE T FLAVOUR? It’s not spicy! I don’t like spicy food – people call me a girl for that, but fuck it! Do you expect me to sit here and say ( adopting a posh voice and camp gesticulations ) ‘Well, my music’s like...ra ra raa!’ All the music I really like, I wouldn’t say that mine is similar. I listen to a lot, and as you get older, you get out of your little genre and start going, ‘Oooh! Oooh!’ ( Jamie stabs imaginary categories in the air with his fingers, spraying B&H ashes ). I try versions of stuff that I really like, but am always aware that you can’t do it better than someone who’s done it before. Forget about that, do it for yourself. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO AT THE MOMENT? I lost CDs on tour, I can’t DJ for shit but was playing before we went on. I’ve been buying loads back, I like to own them, have the inlay... NOT AN MP3 CONVERT THEN? I’ve downloaded 2 songs in my life before, yeah, couldn’t even do it if I wanted to! But stuff I’d forgotten about is being reborn for me, Hellcat compilations and punk compilations. My mate gave me a Rough Squad mixtape, grime stuff...Some Good, The Bad and The Queen, that’s fucking bad that album, I got it a month ago. It’s wicked travelling music; you stick headphones on and really get to know something. Regina Spektor, her stuff’s wicked. WAS YOUR GORILLAZ REMIX, ‘TURN TO MONSTERS,’ A DIRECT COLLABORATION? Damon just said, ‘Would you like to remix a Gorillaz track, do what the fuck you like, we’ll give you all the parts!’ At my mate’s place, we usually jump around and do 5 tracks at a time cos we get bored, but we were going for 3 days, with another mate sat playing Playstation in the corner! The original was fucked up man... this version wasn’t about me but about that kid who goes mental on his Mum and then whines when his Dad hits him. It was freestyle; ‘Kids with guns’ reminded me of brats...nothing to do with me! DOES PLAYING TO AN INTIMATE CROWD SUIT YOUR STYLE BETTER? I think so, with big stages there’s so much distance and gigs are always fifty-fifty between you and the crowd. You can do it well, we haven’t learnt that yet and we still feel like we should be playing pubs, but its exciting doing new things and you’ve got to play for people, it’s unfair to have a line outside trying to get in! We played this gig that was meant to have a live link with XFM, but the bloke had to say on air that he couldn’t even get in! WHAT ABOUT ALL THE GIRLS SINGING ALONG TO YOUR SONGS AT THE FRONT? It’s wicked to have a crowd up for a party. Touring opens your eyes to how England isn’t just made up of London...gigs where people come to have fun, not stand there going, ‘Are we meant to like him?’ I used to play 4 gigs a week but then people came down to check me out, standing there being critical cunts, trying to look cool. At least the industry people get bored after 20 minutes. DO YOU WELCOME IT OR GET VEXED WHEN PEOPLE COMPARE YOU WITH THE STREETS AND PLAN B OR WHEN NME CALLS YOU THE ‘ONE MAN ARCTIC MONKEY’? I respect those artists so if you’re going to be called anything...! But we’re all English and mostly solo artists: well done! ( Jamie sticks his tongue over his front teeth and starts clapping like an idiot ) Talk about lazy journalism! Your stuff is a lot more comical than Plan B’s... What, it’s fucking serious! It’s got heart, man, I’m bleeding! Harsh exterior, jelly insides! Plan B is an aggy guy; we’re not very similar beat-wise or lyrically. BUT WHAT ABOUT YOUR STORYTELLING STYLE? WHY DO PLAN B, ALEX TURNER, LILY ALLEN AND YOURSELF TALK ABOUT WHAT’S IMMEDIATELY IN FRONT OF YOU? It’s nothing new...has anyone listened to a Clash record in their fucking life? ‘London Calling’, ‘London’s Burning’, ‘White Riot,’ – they’re all things that you know and see, not about fairies and trees and (lurching into theatrical choir boy voice complete with hand spirals) ‘Oh I love her and she’s left me, Oh my God!’ It’s been happening for ages, you know, Ian Dury and the Blockheads...I don’t have MTV but it’s like I can’t relate - diamonds and bitches, all the cars are borrowed – it’s nothing to do with me! I don’t hear gunshots in my road when I go to sleep, I hear kids kicking footballs against my window. You got to chat about what you know...what I know is possibly similar to what Lily knows and what Mike Skinner and Plan B know, cos every high street is the same. WHAT ARE THE BEST AND WORST THINGS ABOUT LIVING IN WIMBLEDON? It’s the best of both worlds being on the outskirts, you can go in 15 minutes to Waterloo or the other way to Kingston. The worst is the tennis! For 2 weeks it’s awful, it takes over the fucking town, man, drink prices go up... YOU COULD ALWAYS RENT OUT YOUR ROOM OR START THE ‘JAMIE T TOURIST TRAIL’! NO PLANS TO MOVE TO LA THEN? OR SHOREDITCH?! Shoreditch! ( hisses it through laughter ) I think it was Tom Vek who said to me you can’t find anything in Shoreditch apart from a drink that’s alcoholic or a smoothie! It’s fucking true! TELL US ABOUT THE BAND YOU USED TO PLAY BASS FOR? We never got off the ground, we did 5 rehearsals and then it ended! People didn’t have their minds on it and no one had money. I wrote with a mate called Sketchy, (bu-uurr-rp!) pardon me, he’s still around, and yeah, one guy is in The Pacemakers, the band I roll with now. They were a good group of people, all with silly names, it was a laugh. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN A DRUM N BASS MC? Yeah I used to do that, I like the speed but I used to go half-time, never baa-ba-da-ba-ba-da-ba! I’m more into jungle because you’ve got the half-time reggae lines over the top - you can go eee-hh e-eeh or you can go o-oo-ooh! I still think about it when I write stuff but drum n bass is too moody for me now, kind of verging on industrial German shit. DO YOU EVER PLAY ELECTRIC GUITAR RATHER THAN ACOUSTIC BASS? I sometimes play one with 4 strings; it’s quite hard to do proper basslines when you’re singing. I’ll try anything – although you’ll never see me rocking with a synth ( Jamie writhes around like an 80s prog reject ). Dancers could be allowed though! IS THERE ANY PARTICULAR PLACE WHERE YOU GO TO WRITE RHYMES? ( Singing that fantastic theme tune with sickly sweet voice ) ‘There’s a magical place, we’re on our way there Toys in their millions all under one roof / It’s called Toys R us!’ Sorry, erm, nah, it just happens where it happens. When I forget a notepad I use my phone. I was on Jo Whiley and my mate Dougie goes to me after, ‘You should’ve said notepad, man, cos it’s like you were saying ( his poshest accent comes back ) ‘I got a new pad the other day...’ For 2 weeks I’ll write constantly, and then there’ll be nothing, but it’s always on the mind. WHY IS YOUR ALBUM CALLED ‘PANIC PREVENTION’? I started doing ‘Panic Prevention’ mixtapes to hand out at gigs. I was having panic attacks then and my Mum bought me this bollocks relaxation CD, some voice telling you to calm down, but it was a capella so I thought wicked, use this! I started putting skits in-between songs and that was it. DO YOU STILL HAVE PANIC ATTACKS? Oh yeah, but you learn how to deal... I wouldn’t be me otherwise fuck it; I’d rather live with them. WHICH TRACKS ARE YOUR FAVOURITE FROM THE ALBUM? They all mean separate things... like anyone’s first album, it doesn’t take you 3 months, you’ve been doing it for 3 years. I’m only 20, life moves pretty quickly...I like ‘Dry Off Your Cheeks,’ everyone told me it was shit, but I like it. Another is ‘So Lonely Was The Ballad,’ as these remind me of bad times becoming good. It was when I had nothing to do, so I got productive, I did it for myself. IS ‘SHEILA’ A REAL PERSON OR A FICTIONAL CHARACTER? She’s more than one person, from around Putney. We were 16 or 17 and knew all the barmaids and managers, getting in the back door for lock-ins. I was meeting people from out of London or from eastern Europe who had come wanting better, but were having the same problems and dropping off the line, realising it was their personalities, not being downtrodden...The frustration of not knowing how to get somewhere, just getting rat-arsed. I heard from one girl, she’s sorted herself out, there’s some joy there. WHY ‘SALVADOR’? It’s far away...I looked up the port and everything! Girls are the same everywhere; ‘Lucy’ was a freestyle rhyme – the first 2 verses are freestyled and the last is written. There’s as much nonsense as there is sense, but nonsense is psychological; you can say some of the truest things when you’re not thinking. IS ‘CALM DOWN DEAREST’ ADDRESSED TO ANYONE IN PARTICULAR? I’m not going to tell you who they are!, They know who they are...( Laughs ) They fucking better do! DID THE BLOKE IN ‘IF YOU GOT THE MONEY’ EVER COUGH UP?! ( Laughs ) Well it’s more a theory of life...ya know, young professionals! SOME OF YOUR LYRICS ARE LIKE KEROUAC’S LINES – ALL FREEWHEELING LANGUAGE AND FLIRTATIONS WITH DEATH – DO YOU LIKE BEAT POETRY? ‘On The Road’ is cool, I’ve had 100 pages left for ages! I’m really interested in that first generation to contradict the modern world, careerism...It’s hard to go against what you’ve been taught – you kind of go around in this cloud of guilt. ONE SKIT SAYS ‘FUCKING CYCLISTS...I’D RUN ‘EM OVER, THE CUNTS!’ IS THAT YOU? Ha! That’s my older brother! HOW ABOUT YOUR LINE ‘SHE’S A FAT BITCH BUT I’D STILL GIVE HER...ONE...!’? That had to come out! It’s not me. People slag other people off in your ear, fucking drunk – I laugh hearing mates on nights out. Some girl said she found it offensive, like ‘Who the fuck are you to say that?’ If you’re offended but you know how it goes, I don’t understand – I just sing what I hear! DO YOU USE UPBEAT MELODIES TO DIFFUSE DARK AND VIOLENT LYRICS? The contrast wasn’t intentional...But take old reggae ballads, beautiful songs you can imagine girls dancing to, the guys romancing, but they’re about violence! You know that ( offering a perfect rendition of The Slickers’ anthem ) ‘Walking down the road with a pistol in your waist, Johnny you’re too bad...’ That’s a beautiful song about really raw shit, but girls still dance to it. I like that subtlety and I don’t know any minor chords, so it’s all major! IS IT REALLY BETTER TO LIVE FAST AND DIE YOUNG? I don’t know! Ask me in 25 years, when I’ve got liver failure! I’ll be sitting around going ‘Yeah, live fast...’ Live how you fucking want, man! HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT RADIO-FRIENDLY VERSIONS OF YOUR TUNES, WITH ALL OF YOUR SIGNATURE EFFING AND BLINDING EDITED OUT? Something gets lost. I used to get aggy but I want more people to listen, and everyone knows that a single is the real fucking deal. I bite my tongue, I’ll make tunes my way and if radio aren’t happy, I’ll cut the fuck out of it - have it! TELL US ABOUT YOUR COLLABORATION WITH LILY ALLEN? I did a song that needed lyrics, so Lil came over. It wasn’t on the same tip as the album, but we’ll put it out. WHICH BANDS ARE YOU FEELING RIGHT NOW? The Macabees, Hot Club de Paris, The Clash, Rancid... WHAT TUNE WOULD GET YOU OUT OF BED? Fucking hell! ‘Bottle Of Smoke’ by The Pogues. WHICH TUNE IF YOU WANT TO HAVE A GOOD WALLOW?. I don’t do that, that’s why I don’t listen to Radiohead! They’re rad but I just want to tie my noose! ( miming strangulation ) When I’m sad I listen to happy music - fuck it, let’s go! Put on ‘Many Rivers To Cross’ by Jimmy Cliff, have your moment and then listen to Pressure Drop and move on quickly. HAVE YOU GOT ANY BEEF WITH ANYONE ON THE SCENE? I’ve got a bone with Larrikin Love! They make me laugh, right, I toured a day behind them and promoters were like ‘Larrikin said you used to be with them and you all fell out and you’re not the same since!’ Then they said I stole loads, that they wrote ‘Sheila,’ which was originally ‘Steven,’ fucking jokers! IS BOOZE YOUR DRUG OF CHOICE? Definitely. Smoking bud makes me panicky. DO WE DRINK TOO MUCH? Yeah! I did 16 interviews for German mags, all about binge drinking! You get tired of pretending, you say ‘Yeah, it’s that bad, you get drunk, the bell rings, you get more drunk and you go outside to fight.’ It’s not funny to them! DO DRUGS WORK? Fuck off! No The Verve said it right on ( sings a verse ). I love being drunk, not fucking plastered but merry (flaps with fantasy butterfly wings), floating around... WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF MYSPACE; EVERYONE’S A ROCK STAR OR AN A&R MAN? Weird! I like myspace to answer people’s questions, chat about gigs, but you can go too far with making it a promotional tool. In London A&R are everywhere...kids getting grabbed by labels, being asked to write albums when they’ve only got 4 tracks! It clogs up your arteries for inspiration and makes you die...it’s too much. WHY IS NEW YEAR’S ALWAYS SHIT? Shit innit! Last year I stayed in but I’m thinking ‘Should I go out, could it be good?’ I’ll end up in some shitty house party, going ‘This is shit!’ I’ve only had one good one, can’t remember when, but I did my first pill and sat at the top of the stairs shaking for like 8 hours, it was great! WHO’S YOUR IDEAL WOMAN? My girlfriend. We’ve been together for 2 years... she’s from Richmond...That’s all I’m saying... YOU’VE GOT A BIG FEMALE FOLLOWING; HOW ABOUT BEING A FUTURE SEX SYMBOL?! What? Fuck off! Get a grip! I’ve got a big nose and haven’t washed in 6 days! Interview me in a year and I’ll be ‘Yeah, being a sex symbol is hard...’ I’ll be in The News Of The World with my top off going ‘eeeehh...’ That’s not happening! WHAT ABOUT THE SMOKING BAN ARRIVING THIS SUMMER? Fucking ridiculous! Why not have smoking pubs and non smoking pubs? ONE QUESTION FOR MR BLAIR? ...Did you actually like Oasis?! THERE’S A POLICE SKIT ON THE ALBUM – IS THERE A RIFT BETWEEN US AND THEM? Waaaah! My brother was harassed, searched every time and fucking bullied. He was only 16 and caught for like graffiti, but they put him in the back of a police van, handcuffed him, driving around the back streets going over fucking speed bumps - what is that? But I’ve also been helped, lying with the shit kicked out of me. I don’t know what to think. WHAT WORRIES YOU MOST ABOUT OUR WORLD? Everything! The 70s had punk rock and everything was fucked, 80s was shit music and money; in the 90s we had Oasis, Blair and new politics...but the Noughties, what the fuck have we got? We’re at war and we can’t win...I skip politics now cos it’s about keeping people out of power, we can’t do anything. WHAT WOULD YOU BE DOING IF IT WASN’T MUSIC? Putting on nights and designing flyers. I had the worst job in a bakery, like being a chimney sweep! I was getting like £2.50 an hour and had cuts and burns all over my arms...nasty! JAMIE T'S DEBUT ALBUM, ‘PANIC PREVENTION,’ IS OUT 29TH JANUARY ’07

tags: | jamie t | panic prevention | oasis | blur | tony blair | news of the world | richmond | more...

We Are Scientists

We Are Scientists

The impact of We Are Scientists' debut album is still being felt on dancefloors across the country and upon the ears of new music connoisseurs. Tracks like the bounding 'History Repeats' and the anthemic 'The Great Escape', form the fulcrum of a vibrant and roving rock-a-round, with harmonies galore. Coupled with buoyant and captivating live sets, the Scientists' popularity is still rising. The Apollo Theatre in Manchester, is now well entrenched as being a pedestal for up and coming bands en route to music's elite territory. Some bands and artists prior to appearing here, have been known to display the nerves of a soccer player about to tread the hallowed turf of Wembley or the Millennium Stadium for the first time. However, for We Are Scientists' bassist and the artery that circulates their live and oft improvised humour, Chris Cain, it would take more than this to throw him off his stride. For all the controversy surrounding the bottle pelting of emo protagonists My Chemical Romance and Panic! At The Disco, at the Reading Festival this year, the moustachioed Chris has a novel solution to this problem. When a nigh on full bottle of beer hit him whilst appearing on the NME Tour earlier in 2006, he simply drank the contents of it and smiled politely. He has a permanent look of amiability, but also mischief about him. In true Family Fortunes fashion, in a recent poll of 100 people when asked which of the trio, who are each holding aloft a cute kitten on the cover of their album 'Love And Squalor', is most likely to be placing their kitten in the microwave? 82 respondents pointed to Chris without hesitation! "I think that bands can attract attention without a live show. Our live aspect is always important to the way we think about music. We always look at making a record that's as close to our live sound as possible." This is the genuine Californian's humble response to a query about the importance of playing live these days. Also, it is an attempt to reason why some bands can't get near to We Are Scientists' dynamic musical strut and humour in a live setting and, why some are simply content to replicate their album sound. The guys have unleashed a smattering of B-sides, covers and rarities upon the unsuspecting public, entitled 'Crap Attack'. Does this uncover a different side to the trembling, harmony gushing trio and highlight unexpected influences? "Oh yeah, absolutely, a lot of it is stuff that didn't fit onto the album ('With Love and Squalor'). For example, our Art Brut cover 'Bang Bang Rock & Roll', we only recorded that recently. It is different from anything we have done before and it is not definitely where there next album is heading." It is their Singapore on the way to Australia, a neat stop-over and different, but with equally as impressive scenery. So what about tonight's set any new numbers? "Yeah, there are two new songs that we wrote on the road. We don't know if they'll be on the new album yet. They'll also be a few covers as well, but not The Ronettes one this time around." Typical musicians answer, promising but giving nothing away. So, they are thinking about a new album? A look of pride takes over Chris' moustache as his main facial feature and his excitement at the opportunity to look forward is plain to see. "When we've finished this tour, we're going to focus on the new album and distance ourselves from 'With Love And Squalor'. We are coming back to the UK for a show on the NME Brats tour early next year. Then it will be spring before we are back here." It is interesting the covers they chose, as 'Crap Attack' contains a version of The Ronettes 'Be My Baby' that has been a striking feature of their live set before. What does this band and song mean to them and what song of theirs would they like to be covered? "'Be My Baby' is a great song, one of the most notable aspects of it is the harmonies and the backing vocals, which we like a lot and try to incorporate in our music. The challenge with 'Be My Baby' was to live up to The Ronettes, which we failed to do, I think." 1,800 fans at the Academy One in Manchester earlier this year, would strongly disagree with the last statement. Chris enthusiastically points to a state of the art laptop that he was fixated upon prior to this interview. "Regarding someone covering one of our songs, there's a page on our website that I have been a bit lax in checking. Whereby, we invited our fans to do covers of our songs and the quality is really good. 'The Great Escape', 'Your Scene Is Dead' and 'History Repeats' were popular choices." It's time to stir up a bit of controversy. Does 'Your Scene Is Dead' take on extra significance here in Manchester? This is greeted with a wry smile and then some more diplomacy; "I dunno, obviously Manchester continues to produce good bands. I don't know what function the scene has or what part the industry has in scenes. Because of the internet and that, I imagine scenes will still exist, but geographical scenes may disappear. Myspace and MP3s presuppose the extinction of the live show, but you will always get local bands with no money who will keep the live scene going." And, not to mention bands for which music is a live experience and who retain a dynamic, like We Are Scientists. With singer/guitarist Keith Murray strolling in and chilling out, exchanging a witty back and forth with the interviewee, it is a good time to discover how creative differences are resolved? "We don't, our songs represent where we've gotten to, I suppose to a point we are all equally dissatisfied with. We value what each member brings to it, though." It is apparent that this is a clued up and genuine muso, so what does the term "indie" mean to him these days? "I think there are two meanings; indie as a lifestyle and indie in financial terms, it describes a certain handicap, it lacks label backing and production skill. It has lost its meaning these days. Since the grunge days really, when the raw sound became popular the usefulness of that meaning of the term, has been dismantled." It is possible to argue that the term has a third meaning that just refers to artists who can think and act for themselves, with or without label and production backing. A member of such a group has just answered the above question. Given that the band has been together for five years and released three EPs, on top of their well known exhibits, are they still a changing and empirical outfit? "Yeah, we'll never stop being a band in transition." With influences as broad as The Ronettes, Art Brut and even Mudhoney (who are name-dropped with pride at one point during the introductory chit-chat), it is hardly surprising that the band is going to fluctuate in its sound and impact. For many their jovial nature and focused set saved the NME Tour of 2006, from turning into an Arctic Monkeys circus. There is an impressive amount of people waiting outside the venue three hours before the doors open for their benchmark gig. The constantly evolving nature of We Are Scientists, coupled with their buoyancy for music and life makes for a dynamic and enthralling formula. 'Crap Attack' is available now through Virgin Words: Dave Adair

tags: | we are scientists | history repeats | the apollo theatre | manchester | wembley | more...

Shitdisco

Shitdisco, along with bands such as the Klaxons, Datarock and Goose, have been hailed as one of the forerunners of the current old-school-inspired indie dance renaissance - Notion caught up with them as they record their debut album in London following a hugely successful national tour. The origins of Shitdisco are a classic tale of the sort of student behaviour that make parents shudder and mates from home jealous - all night parties in a Glaswegian tenement with no security, a bring-your-own policy and an in-house band that play till dawn and beyond. Above ground level the floors warped so much it was like dancing on a trampoline and unwanted mattresses were routinely disposed of by setting them alight and launching the flaming mass down to the street below. So infamous were the parties that the house became a mecca for Glaswegian party-goers, "half of Glasgow claims they went to one of those parties" reckons Joel, but it came to a sad yet inevitable end with the threat of a massive lawsuit from the landlord. So No. 61 was no more but the DIY disco beginnings it spawned gave rise to the band name - their house was literally a shit disco and as Jan points out "if we didn't have that place we probably wouldn't have formed the band." so its place in the band's history is assured. Well almost, but just to be sure they have one final request "We want to get a plaque on the wall outside! A laminated paper plate maybe…anyway, the myth has overtaken the reality of those parties, its one of those things. A friend was walking behind these two girls who were on the way to school in Glasgow after one of the parties and she overheard them saying how they'd heard there was blood on the walls at No.61!" The regular parties lived on in Glasgow's immense disused railway tunnels with revellers sometimes walking several miles until they heard the hum of the generator and music. Tales of these parties follow a similar theme to those held at No.61, in that everyone seems to know someone who was there, but the concept of having a massive free lash-up with 100 mates in a giant tunnel is a concept totally foreign to Londoners (and pretty much anyone else) which gives the band an essential 'they really used to do that??' factor. However, one unfortunate side-effect of playing a gig in a large tunnel is that the fumes from your generator tend to a hang around and slowly poison you - another hurdle the band had to overcome whilst up in Scotland. Life changed for the band once they were signed and finished University, they were able to play at slightly more salubrious venues boasting such luxuries as ventilation, mains electricity and a bar - all previously unheard of at a Shitdisco gig. Some months on they've ridden high on a wave of indie dance music during 2006 and played at several massive festivals and some major venues around the UK to thousands of fans, the band have come some way from No.61 and dank Glasgow tunnels to sitting in a plush London recording studio spending some serious cash on recording an album that will undoubtedly follow the sound already established through their currently available material. From the music played at their early parties and a love of old-school dance came a sound that clearly harks back to the early to mid 90s heyday of dayglo dance music and the themes of rebellion and having a very good time whilst doing the rebelling part. Just as The Prodigy, one of the band's main influences, used the inner sleeve artwork of their Music For The Jilted Generation album to protest against the restrictive Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994, Shitdisco also have a mild rebellious streak. Their recent single 'Reactor Party' was an ode to underground parties held near disused nuclear reactors in Soviet bloc countries, a swift route to martyrdom in the name of having a good time it might seem but maybe they don't take themselves as seriously as that suggests… "the first record I bought was N-Trance's 'Set You Free' from Our Price with some vouchers I got for Christmas" admits Joel, whilst Joe adds "My first was 'Cotton Eye Joe' by the Rednex…" Some counter-claims involving several slightly more choice examples of 90s dance music follow, the Chemical Brothers and so on, but the sound of Shitdisco is clearly influenced by some of the more popular dance records of the era and is all the better for it. The album recording sessions have had to wait until they finished a nationwide tour with the Klaxons and Datarock, two bands they have a lot in common with both musically and socially "It wasn't like a tour really, it was more like a massive party. …everyone getting hammered every night. I think Datarock had done that all a few years before, they're a little bit older. They're really nice guys but a little bit more reserved whereas we went out partying every night but we were all seeing eye-to-eye by the end of the tour. All really nice guys though" remarks Joe, who also reveals a t-shirt bearing the words The Klaxons Are C**s . Pure irony he assures everyone as they're actually planning to collaborate "we're going to do more stuff with the Klaxons - definitely. We've been planning it for ages." There's also an interesting urban myth that follows the band around - apparently they'd play any free party as long as there's a willing crowd, electricity and enough cold beers to keep them going 'till dawn. So, will they play my front lounge if I give my housemates a tenner to go to the pub and invite all my mates round? Or, rather more charitably, if a Notion reader asked you to play at a party would you do it? Someone might be in luck it seems as Darren explains "it'd have to coincide with something we're doing but yeah. We'd have to be in or near that place, Glasgow or London are always good" and is it like the A-Team - nobody knows quite how to contact you but someone eventually manages? Not at all, "just go on myspace or email us" is the simple answer. "But Darren's got to heal before we can do it" Joel explains, referring to their drummer's recent and unfortunate accident that resulted in a badly broken arm. The arm-bending incident occurred after some late-night dancing on top of the tour van, the dancing wasn't a problem but the dismount was and the band have employed a session drummer to fill in for Darren recently. But to his credit, it was only days since he was released from hospital, he still performed an admirable Bez-style dancer/percussionist role during their recent gig at Kokos in Camden despite his arm being held together by a metal plate and a handful of bolts. One of the reasons Shitdisco have garnered so many fans during their short lifespan outside of Glasgow is because their music harks back to a time when dance music was fun and care-free. It didn't take itself seriously in the 90s and the sort of DIY spirit that prevailed then is something Shitdisco are keen to carry on, they've played at free parties with The Rapture ("we knocked a gas radiator off the wall and almost caused a huge explosion…we almost wiped out The Rapture, the Klaxons and ourselves in one night" adds Joe) and there's nothing to stop them being as big as their friends from New York. Just turn off the gas before they play in your front room and wave goodbye to your deposit. www.shitdisco.co.uk Words: Ben H Murray

tags: | shitdisco | ben h murray | klaxons | goose | datarock | london | glasgow | scotland | uk | more...

Nightmares On Wax

Nightmares On Wax

George Evelyn aka Nightmares On Wax, is fast becoming a British hip hop institution, whether it’s writing or DJing, he’s been performing at the highest level since the early 90s. Notion caught up with him 100km outside of Madrid as he reaches the halfway point of his latest idea. He’s moving his studio from Leeds to Ibiza and decided to drive with all his stuff in a converted van while recording new music. I’ve flown to Spain to hear what he’s got to say about the compilation he created for the first record of the ‘My Definition’ series (a major insight into what made him who he is, from the first record he ever bought to the track he would most like to remix and everything in between), what he’s been up to and what the future holds. The Nightmares On Wax ‘My Definition’ album is very personal. How did you go about picking tracks that represented your life? “This is only the third mix compilation I’ve ever done and I like to choose them wisely. You know you’ve got it right when it feels right with you and the person you’re hooking up with to do it. Sometimes it’s nice to switch off and do stuff like this. I don’t DJ as much anymore – I’ll do it for a month and then will stay in the studio for two months. There was a nice overlap with DJing and choosing the tracks for the album.” How long did it take to put this together? “They asked me to do this over a year ago now – it’s the first one of a series and it took that long to get it right. It was nice to take my time over choosing the tracks. I wanted to choose over 50 tunes and then take the best mix of those. You don’t always get to do what you want on compilation tracks. Even though it’s called ‘My Definition’ I wanted my one to be like a journey, which probably says a lot about my music. I wanted to get back to the “head nodding society.” Which connects to the social surroundings I come from – whether I’m just listening to music at home or at a club; I want to be nodding my head to the tunes. I wanted to take it back to that. That’s why I’ve put in some new stuff and also some stuff that was around when I first started clubbing. There’s gonna be some people who have never heard of some of the tracks. I chose some of those as they remind me of really dancing and b-boying. There’s not many other types of music that make you do that – not where you have people going up and taking each other on. When I finally got down to what I wanted, I realised I had the album – I just had to put it together, and see where the journey took us. I’m really happy with it as it’s come out in a way that I like to listen to music. There’s enough on there so I can share some of the artists on the record with people who may never have heard of them, they’re from part of an era they might not know about. A lot of the tracks like the DAS EFX one are from what people are calling “the golden era” now. I remember breaking in the clubs and in sports centre to them. They weren’t just hip hop tracks – they were massive tracks in the clubs. I think the basis of most hip hop tracks now come from that time with the way people like Tribe Called Quest changed beat constructions. Although a lot of the stuff called hip hop now isn’t true hip hop in my opinion – it’s just a fact. They’ve taken small bits of hip hop and put it in pop records – it’s more “hip pop” nowadays.” Were there any tracks that nearly made it but didn’t quite? “There was a Sizzler track that came out on Jet Star and remixed by Bronx Dogs that I really wanted. I only unearthed it recently. I’ve just moved to Ibiza so I’ve had to go through all my tunes – and I’ve got like 10,000 tunes to go through, so putting this album together was done at the perfect time. There was a bunch of stuff that didn’t make it, for example there was a Keith Mansfield, KPM library track ‘Morning Glory’ that was used in the Danger Doom album. I loved the track, it’s awesome but it didn’t make the album as it wasn’t right for the mix. I think you can tell from the journey that my influences are really heavily rooted in hip hop but there’s a lot of soul in there too.” What’s your favourite track on ‘My Definition’? “My favourite track at the moment off it is the Camp Lo and Black Nostalgia using the Curtis Mayfield loop. I just can’t believe I forgot about that tune! It’s like WOW! That’s such a classic. It’s in my box now – as soon as I rediscovered it about eight months ago it’s been in there. It’s a timeless classic and works in any club. I also like the Black Grass one and JD73– that’s British, honest music and I like the fact a lot of people don’t know about them so I hope they’ll go and check them out and buy their albums. I would have liked it to have come out in for the summer to be honest but I hope it keeps the summery feeling through the winter months.” Is there any one artist you wish you could work with? “The Crusaders. Definitely The Crusaders. I put that on last because it makes you feel good. It’s like the last track when you’re playing a club – that’s how the night should end. If people don’t know The Crusaders, they should get to know them… they used to be called the Jazz Crusaders and were a heavy influence on my music. That track has a real smoking memory for me, I first discovered that tune in ’88 in the summer when me and my mates used to sit and smoke to it.” You’re from Leeds, which always seems to be a bit like Manchester’s poorer brother for music, have you got any plans to go back to doing nights in the city to refresh the scene? “Leeds is a great city, it’s an innovative place with a lot of talent but it’s only known for its house music. A lot of people ignore the alternative scene it has there like the Invisible Circle stuff or the guys doing the dub step down at the West Indian Club like Sub Dub - these people should be in the town centre but they’re not offered the Saturday nights, as the club owners only care about numbers. The bar culture there has really hit it hard as well as people can drink there until late and then go on to the clubs at like two or three in the morning. I feel the clubs don’t promote their residents enough at the clubs either – they rely on the guests coming in. With so many students in Leeds, they should big up their residents to keep punters coming back to the club every weekend – not just coming once to see the guest. I’ve done promoting and stuff but it doesn’t interest me anymore. I started doing it when I was 15 and it got to the point where I was thinking “I’m just paying for everybody’s night out.” You book people you really want to see but only you and the DJs know who they are and not the Joe Public. It’s a lot of hard work for not a lot of return. I’d rather throw a house party and everything be free.” How long have you been on this road trip? What’s it like driving and writing at the same time? “It started about six days ago and we’ve been travelling from Leeds across France and through the Pyrenees. I’ve only seen about a quarter of it. Once you’re in that creative bubble, you’re not coming out of it. We had an amazing time the other day coming through the mountains at this little village called Toldra. It had been pissing it down all morning and then we hooked up this fresh new tune and the sunshine in this tune was there and as it really came alive the clouds parted. We were driving through this canyon with the tune and the sun and the synchronicity was there totally – that was like when I really felt it. I don’t really remember France, it didn’t really grab me… and the time through Pyrenees took anything that France might have left me with away.” “We’ve treated the writing exactly the same as we would in a studio – the whole process is exactly the same. We just made sure everything was comfortable in the van as we didn’t want to change the way we work. The number one thing about our writing is to not be premeditated about it, just go with it and see what comes. That’s exactly what we’ve done – tunes have just been opening up. We’ve been knocking two of them out a day. And that’s fucking wicked – I’ve never done that in my life. My whole vision for this trip was just like my vision for my music; it’s about a journey and not about a destination. To actually physically do it… it’s like “This is it! Let’s do it and see what happens.” I’m in no doubt that we’ll have an album by the time we get to Ibiza.” So you’re driving from Leeds to Ibiza. Why are you stopping in Spain? “I just thought I’ve got to get from Leeds to Ibiza. I’ve got to get my studio there and there’s no way I’m putting it on a truck and hope that it turns up – that’s just not gonna happen. So the only way to bring my gear was for me to bring it with me. And I figured I might as well do something with my gear if I was with it. I’m picking up different musicians up on the way and have been creating beats the moment we left Leeds and we’re seeing what happens. We just figured this bit of Spain would be cool to stop off for a couple of days and hook up with some more musicians. To me, if you can think of something then you’re going to be able to do it. Luckily everyone else has helped co- ordinate it and I’ve been able to concentrate on the music. It’s 10 days until Ibiza and I’m like “I’m gonna make this album in that time” and what a beautiful way to make that album. We’re videoing it and everything for a DVD and we’re never going to forget this time we’ve had. It’ll be cool when we get there – my wife will be there with my mum and we’re all going to have a big banquet and chill in the pool for a few days. I’ve got no idea how the others are gonna get home though – they’ll all have to hitch through Europe I guess.” What’s next on the horizon then? “Well after ‘My Definition’, this album we’ve been writing will drop at some point next year. In between those two releases we’ve got about five projects with my label Wax On Records with different artists finishing off albums. We’ve got a remix EP coming out with people from the label and people I’ve met on my travels – it’ll be with a load of bedroom producers that are trying to get a look in. That EP will be out for early next year I think and then as I said, this album will be out for the summer. I’m the busiest I’ve ever been and it’s all good. Everything’s good.” ‘My Definition’ is, as Nightmares On Wax intended, a real journey through hip hop seen through the eyes of someone who has lived every step of it. It’s got classic tracks that aficionados will kick themselves for forgetting about, and will open the eyes of the generation of younger fans to the music that formed the foundation for what they’re listening to now. ‘My Definition: Nightmares On Wax’ is out now on Apace Music Words Josh Jones Pictures: Mattia Zoppellaro

tags: | george | evelyn | nightmares on wax | british | hip hop | notion | madrid | leeds | more...

12

NEWSLETTER!

Click here and sign up to our weekly newsletter, to get the latest Notion goodness.