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#skoaradio 08/22/2015

Really feeling this weeks show, you guys.

Things have been a whirlwind at SKOA HQ so show notes have been a little neglected the past couple of weeks. DON'T WORRY I plan on backdating some posts so y'all have the hookup though! Super excited about the new jams from Peaches, CHVRCHES, and Jacuzzi Boys from this week's show so feel free to drop me a line to let me know what you thought of those!

Until next week, fam!

<3

kibbe!

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[Watch] Tanlines - "Not The Same" (Video)

New York genre benders Tanlines expand beyond their usual two-piece ensemble to fourteen in the video for Mixed Emotions standout "Not The Same". The incredible layered sounds that comprise their music are highlighted as Jesse Cohen and Eric Emm are replicated over and over as the numerous instruments and melodies are added. The broad musical talents of the duo are met with equally amazing clothing unique to each addition. Check out the expansive pair in the player above.

In more Tanlines related news, the duo will be performing on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on December 6th, their late-night debut.

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[News] Tanlines Announce U.S. Tour Dates

Unofficially dubbed the most danceable act of 2012 by, well, myself, New York duo Tanlines will embark on their second headling tour of the year in support of their debut album Mixed Emotions. Proceedings kick off at Austin's Fun Fun Fun Fest, and will keep the pair busy for a full month of North American goodness. Fans best prepare themselves for a fun show. Check out their full tour itinerary after the jump.

Before their tour, though, Tanlines has teamed up with Urban Outfitters to put on a free show that will take place at Le Bain in New York on October 19th. With Blood Diamonds supporting, this is something you can't pass up on. Head here to RSVP.

Unofficially dubbed the most danceable act of 2012 by, well, myself, New York duo Tanlines will embark on their second headling tour of the year in support of their debut album Mixed Emotions. Proceedings kick off at Austin's Fun Fun Fun Fest, and will keep the pair busy for a full month of North American goodness. Fans best prepare themselves for a fun show. Check out their full tour itinerary after the jump.

Before their tour, though, Tanlines has teamed up with Urban Outfitters to put on a free show that will take place at Le Bain in New York on October 19th. With Blood Diamonds supporting, this is something you can't pass up on. Head here to RSVP.

Tanlines 2012 Tour Dates:
10/19 – New York, NY @ Le Bain *
11/03 – Austin, TX @ Fun Fun Fun Fest
11/05 – Houston, TX @ Rudyards British Pub
11/07 – New Orleans, LA @ Siberia
11/08 – Atlanta, GA @ The Basement
11/09 – Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall
11/13 – Calgary, AB @ Hi-Fi
11/14 – Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge
11/28 – Boston, MA @ The Sinclair
11/29 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
11/30 – Washington, DC @ The Black Cat
12/01 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
12/08-9 – Miami, FL @ UR1 Festival

* = w/ Blood Diamonds

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Do You Have All The Tracks From Our #blog6music Playlist?

 

Yesterday we had the chance to handpick some of our current favorite songs for BBC 6Music Now Playing with Tom Robinson and live tweet about our picks. In case you missed out, you can head over to their website and listen to the broadcast. If you liked any of the songs we picked and don't have them already, we have links to individual streams of the songs plus ways you can own each and every one for yourself (there are some freebies in here FYI!)

For those of you who heard it, please let us know what you thought of our picks in the comments.

Tanlines - "All Of Me" (from Mixed Emotions)

Wazu - "Happy Endings" (from their self-titled EP)

Breton - "Episodes" (from Sharing Notes EP)

Japandroids - "The House That Heaven Built"

PINS - "Eleventh Hour"

Kishi Bashi - "It All Began With A Burst" (from 151a)

TV Girl - "Lizzy Come Back To Life" (from Benny And The Jetts EP)

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[Interview] Tanlines Talk Live Performances, Trends in Electronic Music, and Their First Concerts (Part Two)

Brooklyn duo Tanlines have come a long way since their formation in 2008. After several years of releasing remixes, singles, EPs and featuring on compilations, Eric Emm and Jesse Cohen have firmly established themselves and the name Tanlines with the release of their debut LP Mixed Emotions, which dropped this past March on True Panther Sounds. The album sees both Emm and Cohen melding their collective talents into their most gratifying and seamless release so far, with each song delivering a fantastic mix of Cohen's production and drum work and Emm's emotive vocals and captivating guitar progression. Simply put, Mixed Emotions is fun, danceable, and consistently a joy to listen to.

During their recent tour, Emm and Cohen made their way to Fortune Sound Club in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada where the three of us sat down before their show and had the opportunity to chat. In part two of our interview, we discussed their live performance and the reactions they've garnered from fans, the various trends in electronic music and where Tanlines fits into that, and the first concerts they ever went to, including mine. Check it out after the jump, and, if you've yet to do so, head here to read part one.

Brooklyn duo Tanlines have come a long way since their formation in 2008. After several years of releasing remixes, singles, EPs and featuring on compilations, Eric Emm and Jesse Cohen have firmly established themselves and the name Tanlines with the release of their debut LP Mixed Emotions, which dropped this past March on True Panther Sounds. The album sees both Emm and Cohen melding their collective talents into their most gratifying and seamless release so far, with each song delivering a fantastic mix of Cohen's production and drum work and Emm's emotive vocals and captivating guitar progression. Simply put, Mixed Emotions is fun, danceable, and consistently a joy to listen to.

During their recent tour, Emm and Cohen made their way to Fortune Sound Club in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada where the three of us sat down before their show and had the opportunity to chat. In part two of our interview, we discussed their live performance and the reactions they've garnered from fans, the various trends in electronic music and where Tanlines fits into that, and the first concerts they ever went to, including mine. Check it out after the jump, and, if you've yet to do so, head here to read part one.

Continued from part one.

Adrian: How has the idea of your music being danceable translated into your live performance and how have you worked around that?

JC: When we finished the album, we thought about how do we want to play the songs live? And we talked for a long about different ways we could do it, including putting a band together and just playing the songs with a drummer, bass player, keyboard player, guitar player, because all the songs would work that way; all the songs would work with just Eric singing them alone. We tried it a little bit and it was a very different thing. I think it’s a very cool thing, it would have been a very cool way to do the tour, but I don’t think it’s something people necessarily would have been satisfied with.

We wrote this album and we thought, “Oh, it’s a very different album, very different kind of music then we’ve been making in the past. It’s not electronic music, it’s a band or whatever.” And then, once the album started to get our there and people were saying, “Oh, it’s an electronic duo,” or “it’s a dance project,” we were thinking if we go out there with a band, people aren’t going to be satisfied. I’m not sure I would be either.

A: Similarly, when Holy Ghost! went on tour, they did that, they got the whole band, and it actually worked out. It actually sounded very good.

JC: You know, it’s sort of like we stuck to what we had been doing up until the point we did this album, which was performing as a two-piece, where it’s Eric singing the songs and playing guitar and I’m doing everything else. It’s not quite like a DJ/rapper situation, but it’s close. It’s like an electronic duo.

EE: That was the best thing about being called an electronic duo.

JC: It gave us the flexibility to perform however we wanted.

EE: If we showed up just the two of us with a computer, no one is going to say, “Pfft fuck these guys, they’ve got a computer, they don’t have a drummer.” So, it’s good cause we can do that.

JC: There is always time when we are making much more money to be adding the six person band. There is always time to go in that direction

A: You can always try it out for a while, and see how it goes.

JC: We practiced on the drums and guitar with no samples or anything, and it sort of sounded like 311, so we decided to just wait for a while. But, I can tell that the direction of the songs that we’re writing are going in is the direction of more traditional instrumentation. I don’t know what will happen next.

A: How has the reaction been from fans and at concerts?

JC: Pretty good, pretty good.

EE: Everywhere is different. You do the same thing every night in every city, which we more or less do, although we do vary the set a little bit. People’s reactions are always different, but they’re generally good. No one has come up to me and said, “You should be a band. You guys need a five or seven-piece band.”

JC: It’s true. I mean, that’s sort of the thing when we first started making music three or four years ago, we didn’t play live. But, when we started to play live, we just thought we’ll do what we can do, and we weren’t really expecting anyone to be interested in it. We actually got a pretty good reaction, and a lot of people who were knew or people who work in our little record industry that we’re a part of were like, “On paper it doesn’t sound like a thing that would be good live, but it turns out that they’re live band is pretty good.” And so, that definitely made us… [pauses]

A: A little bit more confident.

JC: Exactly. I would say that if we hadn’t done that then we wouldn’t have made it this far. Playing live is definitely one of the main things that sort of pushed us to keep going. It’s way, way more satisfying to play a live show or to meet a guy who drove down from the Bronx cause he heard “Real Life” on the radio and he loves it and it changed his life or whatever. There are tiny little experiences worth way more than putting a song out that gets a lot of comments on a blog. No offense to blogs.

A: No, none taken [laughs]. I feel the same way about music sometimes. If I hear a song and it makes me react that way then it doesn’t really matter how many people are talking about it on The Hype Machine or anything like that.

JC: Yeah, it’s way harder to quantify. I think that’s part of the evil of the music Internet in that so much of it is about quantifying comments, views, and all of the good things about music, and it’s always been this way. It’s like that with record sales too. The things that people actually like about music are not quantifiable.

A: It’s personal.

JC: Right, it’s hearing a song ten years later and feeling the same way you did ten years ago. Those are the things that people actually like about music, and all those different ways to quantify aren’t missing the point because business relies on doing that, that’s how you make money. But that’s not why people care about music, and so for us, releasing music on the Internet is not ultimately that satisfying.

A: So the live experience is much more satisfying because you see first hand people’s reactions.

JC: Yeah, and also making songs that will hopefully linger a little bit longer than just like a track, or a remix. I don’t think anybody has ever had a remix change their life.

A: There are some good remixes out there.

JC: There’s a couple! And the sad thing is, in those cases the remix sort of outshined the original song.

A: RAC does some very good remixes though.

JC: Who?

A: RAC, the Remix Artist Collective. Ever heard of them?

JC: No.

A: It’s a few musicians from around the world, primarily André Allen Anjos, who do really good remixes. “Home” by Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros. That remix by RAC is fantastic.

JC: Don’t get me wrong, there are remixes that I’ll hear that are fantastic, but I do think that you have a different relationship with it than you do with an original song that you’ve heard forever. With a remix, there is an additional layer between you and the music. It’s just different.

A: Because it’s someone else’s influence on top of the original influence.

JC: Yeah, it’s just, you know, whatever [chuckles]. But anyway, that’s pretty much how we’ve grown to think about music, and ourselves, and what we want to try to do, what we want to try to create. Also, the electronic music world, that’s a world that moves extremely fast, with a lot of trends, and I think realistically being thirty-something guys, with our background, and where we come from musically, that’s not a game that we could play well. That’s a game for some other type of musician, like either a twenty-two-year-old kid from London that’s super inspired and is making some raw shit that no one has ever heard before, or a guy who has been in it for a long time and understands it really well. That’s not our background, and that’s just a game that we don’t want to play, didn’t want to play, trying to keep up with that. It was more we wanted to write an album of music.

A: That’s an unfortunate case, though, where a lot of artists are well known for a year or something like that and then quickly disappear. That happens a lot in electronic music, and even things like dubstep, as much as people like it now, it will eventually fade away.

JC: Yeah, I mean it’s definitely something we’re fighting also because we are associated with a tropical, 2009 wave of tropical-inspired electro, or whatever it is that was at the time when we started making music. I definitely feel the force of people wanting to tell us that’s not relevant anymore like they would in the electronic world. I think the album that we wrote, I believe, transcends that because the core of every song that we wrote could be from anything. But, I definitely feel the “game,” just in terms of how people write about us, and I guess that’s the price of making music in part of that world.

A: Even with this in mind, you guys have done really well for yourselves.

JC: [humbly] Thank you, I think so too.

A: And honestly, I had a huge electronic phase a couple of years ago, and it’s kind of gone away, well, sort of.

EE: I had a Zeppelin phase a couple of years ago [laughs]. I listened to nothing but Zeppelin, and now I don’t. Although when I hear the songs on the radio I know them all.

A: Well that’s good at least. It’s just one of those things where I had that huge phase, but I don’t really need to go back to it, and a lot of the songs, I don’t feel, have really kept up with my life. I don’t really feel anything for them anymore, whereas something like what you both have done can last for years and years, the lyrics especially. It’s the kind of stuff that happens in all walks of life, so it’s very relatable.

JC: I hope so. It’s interesting, releasing music in 2012 is completely different than releasing music in 2009. It’s amazing how much things change, and how quickly they change.

EE: Our perspective is different too. It makes a real difference.

A: And considering how far you guys have come, what excites you about the current situation and everything that’s going on right now?

EE: In terms of everything that’s going right now, the most exciting thing is playing for people, you know, looking forward to a show that day, and when it’s over the show the next day. Maybe not so much the day off because we’re having to drive for a long time or get up at seven in the morning to drive to Seattle to play on the radio at noon. But, we still look forward to it.

A: What does the future hold you, then? And what are your plans after the tour?

JC: If you have a career as an artist or an entertainer, and we have a career as both, it can be very difficult to plan for anything. Our plan is just to work hard, and try to seize every opportunity we can make for ourselves.

EE: We just say yes to everything.

JC: I mean, we want to do whatever we can to reach as many people as possible, and I don’t know how exactly you can do that. Right now is a hard time because a lot of things are out of our hands. We already wrote the album, we already made the artwork that we wanted to make. A lot of the creative decisions were made already, so it’s just letting the ball roll down the hill and see how far it goes. It’s not up to us anymore.

A: It’s more or less up to fans who want to listen to it.

JC: Yeah, we could say we only want to do these things, we only want to play these cities, we only want to do this. We’re not really trying to do that. We’re trying to do as much as much as we possibly can, honestly. I think that any audience is a good audience as far as I’m concerned, and I wanted to create as many experiences as possible where our music is the soundtrack.

A: That’s a great mentality.

EE: It’s exactly that, there’s no better feeling than that.

JC: We actually met these kids and our show was the first they ever went to.

A: Really?

EE: Yeah! You meet people like that and it’s like, “Wow.”

JC: It was crazy. I mean most people ten years later are embarrassed by the first show that they went to.

EE: Right. True.

A: Your first show?

EE: My first show? That’s hard to say…

JC: They Might Be Giants.

EE: My aunts took me to see The Temptations when I was eight-years-old.

A: That’s not the worst first show.

EE: Yeah, it was great. But what do I remember from it? Not much.

A: I don’t even want to tell you my first show.

JC: [insistently] You have to now.

EE: How bad could it be, unless it was Nickelback.

A: No, no, it wasn’t Nickelback. I absolutely despise them.

JC: But they’re Canadian. You’re contractually obligated to not hate them if you’re Canadian.

A: I feel like if you’re Canadian, you’re contractually obligated to hate Nickelback.

JC: Oh, I see, I see. So what was it?

A: Do you know the hip-hop group Swollen Members?

JC: Uh huh, are they from Vancouver?

A: Yeah, that was my first concert.

EE: I don’t even know them, so that’s not that bad.

JC: Yeah, that’s all right. What year was that? 2006?

A: No, I think it was 2002.

JC: So, you were eleven or twelve?

A: Yeah [laughs].

JC: All right, anything you do when you’re that old is fine. Just let it go.

EE: I would really not beat yourself up over that. It’s really not that bad. And once again, thank you for giving us gifts.

JC: Yes, thank you.

A: No worries at all. Thanks for taking the time to do the interview.

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[Interview] Tanlines Talk Lyric Writing, the Creative Process, and "Danceable" Music (Part One)

Brooklyn duo Tanlines have come a long way since their formation in 2008. After several years of releasing remixes, singles, EPs and featuring on compilations, Eric Emm and Jesse Cohen have firmly established themselves and the name Tanlines with the release of their debut LP Mixed Emotions, which dropped this past March on True Panther Sounds. The album sees both Emm and Cohen melding their collective talents into their most gratifying and seamless release so far, with each song delivering a fantastic mix of Cohen's production and drum work and Emm's emotive vocals and captivating guitar progression. Simply put, Mixed Emotions is fun, danceable, and consistently a joy to listen to.

During their recent tour, Emm and Cohen made their way to Fortune Sound Club in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada where the three of us sat down before their show and chatted about their debut album, what influenced the creation of the LP, the differences between "dance" music and "danceable" music, and I surprise them with a couple of gifts from local Vancouver record store Red Cat Records. After the jump, you can read part one of my two part interview with Tanlines, with the second part set to go live tomorrow morning at 11:00am EST.

Brooklyn duo Tanlines have come a long way since their formation in 2008. After several years of releasing remixes, singles, EPs and featuring on compilations, Eric Emm and Jesse Cohen have firmly established themselves and the name Tanlines with the release of their debut LP Mixed Emotions, which dropped this past March on True Panther Sounds. The album sees both Emm and Cohen melding their collective talents into their most gratifying and seamless release so far, with each song delivering a fantastic mix of Cohen's production and drum work and Emm's emotive vocals and captivating guitar progression. Simply put, Mixed Emotions is fun, danceable, and consistently a joy to listen to.

During their recent tour, Emm and Cohen made their way to Fortune Sound Club in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada where the three of us sat down before their show and chatted about their debut album, what influenced the creation of the LP, the differences between "dance" music and "danceable" music, and I surprise them with a couple of gifts from local Vancouver record store Red Cat Records. After the jump, you can read part one of my two part interview with Tanlines, with the second part set to go live tomorrow morning at 11:00am EST.

Adrian: Given that the two of you have been making together since 2008, you’ve had a lot of time to define your sound. Describe the initial period of Tanlines, the first couple of years, and what approach did you take when making your debut LP?

Jesse Cohen: Yeah, the first couple of years I would describe as our experimental period, where we were just sort of making songs, making tracks. We did all different kinds of things. We did remixes. We did a 12”. We did compilation appearances. A 7”. We released music in just about every single format other than an album in those first two years, and we also started playing live in the middle of those two years, also. Basically all those experiences led to us sort of figuring out how we wanted to approach the album, you know, which was just writing songs around Eric’s vocals. That was pretty much the main thing, and we had just sort of settled on sounds that we liked, synth sounds that we liked, bass sounds that we liked, drum sounds…

Eric Emm: A palette.

Jesse Cohen: Yeah, just sort of a palette of sounds, and Eric’s guitar and voice obviously. So then, when we went to write the album, we were doing less experimenting with sounds and more just songwriting.

Adrian: And speaking of songwriting, the LP is titled Mixed Emotions, and Eric, you do most of the songwriting. Describe the emotional ambiguity of the album as a whole, the lyric writing process, and how the music reflects what you’re vocalizing.

EE: Well, the way we write is we first make the beat. We’ll get together and Jesse will play a drumbeat usually, and we’ll start adding some music on top of that. We usually know if something is good, and we can sense that okay this is good and we’ll keep playing with it. And then, sometimes we’ll be like, “eh, I don’t know,” in which case we’ll do something different. But, usually when we sense that something is good, the next day we’ll go to the studio, I’ll play guitar over it and then I’ll try to do vocals. So, I’ll take it, I’ll listen to it, and I’ll just start singing. The singing starts as sort of a reaction to the music, and typically I’m just singing the things that come to my head and often it’s just, like, a melody. And I think the thing is the melody first and the lyrics second.

I just read an interview with James Mercer of The Shins, and he was asked sort of a similar question about you know, like, what’s the fun part about writing? It’s writing the moment it happens is the best. And, he said writing the lyrics is sort of the homework, and I can definitely relate to that, because after that initial burst of creativity has passed you’re faced with thinking about… You know often times the lyrics on the record are things that just came out, and they stayed, and they made sense. But then, that second verse is always the tough part.

A: So, it’s just a lot of looking at the instrumentation you’ve made and just seeing what comes out?

EE: Yeah, it’s like reading what comes out of you, and trying to understand what it is and how to complete the thought.

A: With that in mind, what went into influencing the album, whether it’s music past or present, or life in general, or where you’re from?

EE: Life in general is a great way to put it.

JC: That’s a good album title. In fact, I’m putting that on my list.

EE: Definitely add that to the list.

A: If you take that, I get credit for it.

JC: Yes, absolutely. You’ll get thanked on the album. That’s the credit you’ll get for that.

EE: Yeah, just like we thanked the Rolling Stones.

JC: “Mixed Emotions” is a Rolling Stones song.

EE: Well, I mean, it’s not an unusual phrase. Anyways, so I think a lot of the songs lyrically were sort of informed by the situation that we were in where we had just done this tour of Europe and we were coming back from the tour to start working on our album. Halfway through this tour in Europe we got a phone call from my sister-in-law, who lives in the building that our studio is in, and she said that we got an eviction notice from the building, cause it was an illegal warehouse, loft kind of place. And that sort of sent us a little bit into crisis mode. We were so psyched to start working on our record, and that was all we were thinking about and it was immediately sort of… [pauses].

A: Just a big shock.

EE: Yeah. And that just snowballed into these bigger thoughts about life and change and transition, and your age and where you’re at, where you thought you would be, where you’re headed; things like that.

JC: I co-sign everything he just said [laughs].

EE: But really, when people ask us about the lyrics and the meaning and all that stuff, and I would think there’s a simple answer. It’s sort of along the lines of what you said in terms of life in general. It’s sort of like basic life things.

A: Life problems, life situations.

EE: You know. Some of the songs are about relationships.

A: That happens a lot in music.

EE: Exactly, it happens a lot in music.

JC: All the songs are about me.

EE: A lot of the songs are about Jesse.

A: And his relationship problems with you?

EE: Yeah, cause he can’t sing, and he doesn’t really write lyrics. You know, I wanted to get some of his story out there.

JC: I think it would be funny, though, if there was a duo where one person wrote the lyrics and all the songs were about the other guy [laughs].

A: What would that be called then?

EE: Tanlines.

JC: In terms of the process, I don’t know, but I know the feeling of spontaneously writing music, and it’s sort of like a dreamy state that it comes out of. And I imagine with lyrics, when Eric would just write stuff while he was singing. Sometimes then you listen to it the next day and the melody is there, but then, you have to do the homework of filling in the blanks, filling in the lyrics. Or looking at the lyrics and really thinking is that something I actually want to say or is that not something I want to say, and you make some adjustments. I imagine it’s not that unlike when you’re at your most inspired. And you’re a writer. Do you ever just write?

A: All the time. I paint, also, so that happens a lot where I’ll just start painting something and spend an entire day on it, and not really eat, and at the end of the day look at it and say, “I created this.”

EE: That’s exactly it.

JC: I hear with writing it’s the same thing, where you’ll just start writing and you tell your mind not to stop, you just write. You can do really creative work, but then you might read it the next day and say, “Half of this is crap. Half of this isn’t really something I would want to stand by.” I think it can be the same thing with music. You want to get to a zone where things are just coming out of you. Then the next part is the processing of that, and then you listen to it and you think, “Is this going to stand out or do I have to change it?” The good stuff stays.

A: That happens quite often, where I’ll look back at an essay or review I’ve done and go back and think, "This is absolute crap."

JC: Do you ever write back to the band and apologize to them?

A: Well… no… [laughs]. What if I gave it a good review and then go back and tell them it was actually bad?

JC: No, never tell them. Never, ever, ever.

EE: Never, never, ever say anything. Always be confident even if you’re not.

A: [laughs] Well, getting back on track, in 2009 the two of you did an interview where you talked about the idea of your music not so much being "dance" music, but rather "danceable," and how that was a very prominent idea. You also used Depeche Mode as a reference point, and I actually have a gift for you guys.

JC: Is this a Nardwuar style interview?

A: Perhaps, just a bit.

[Here, I presented both Jesse and Eric with a vinyl copy of Depeche Mode’s 2001 album Exciter—pictured at the bottom].

JC: Wow! That is amazing!

A: And do you guys know a lot about Talking Heads, and David Byrne, the frontman of the band?

JC: Yeah, of course.

[Here I presented them with the 12" vinyl of David Byrne’s 3 Big Songs—pictured at the bottom].

JC: Oh my god.

EE: I’ve never even heard this record. I don’t even know what it’s called.

JC: Is it a solo album?

A: It’s a three song single called 3 Big Songs.

JC: I’ve never even heard of that album.

EC: Man, this is too nice. You can’t do this.

A: No, it’s for you to keep.

JC & EE: Thank you very much.

A: You're welcome, and with the idea of these bands and their sound, it’s not dance music, it’s just danceable.

EE: It’s just music you can dance to.

JC: If you feel like it.

EE: Or if you’re sitting at your desk typing an email.

JC: I think when you call your music dance music, you’re asking a lot of the audience.

A: You’re expecting the audience to dance to it, and you’re forcing this on them, whereas bands like Depeche Mode or Talking Heads established the idea that you can listen to it if you’re depressed, you can listen to it if you’re happy, you can dance to it if you want to, you can not dance if you want to. How did that come to influence your music, and how has it come to influence the new album?

JC: I would say that if anything we wrote songs on this album and it’s not a conscious thing. I think it’s again who we are and where we come from. We’re not dance music guys. A lot of the music I like is sort of rhythmic-oriented music, so the music that I make is rhythmic. That’s really all I can do, and melodies too. But the main thing I can write is like drum patterns, drum beats, and sort of rhythmic stuff. So that’s what I gravitate to, and I don’t really think that’s Eric’s background, or at all. There’s a combination of things, but we’re sort of torn on the dance thing because it’s not who we are. I know it’s not who we are. We write these songs, like these pop songs, and the last thing I would do is call it dance music. The last thing I would do is to ask something of someone.

A: Force something upon the audience.

JC: Right, and if you do that and people don’t dance then it’s a failure, like everyone sort of failed collectively. It’s like, why aren’t you dancing?

EE: There’s nothing worse than asking people to dance.

JC: That’s the worse thing to do. Or have you ever been out at a wedding or a show and someone is like, “Come on, come dance!” and you don’t feel like it? That’s taking a good thing and making it a very bad feeling.

A: This is reminding me of childhood where they would force you to go to dances at school, and it’s the worst thing ever. I feel like if music is forced upon you, then it becomes that much less gratifying to listen to.

JC: Also, people’s relationship with music is very personal, and they want to experience music the way they like to experience it. They don’t like to be told how they ought to be experiencing it. I mean, we just write songs that we like, and trust that if we’re good, and our songs are good, then people will respond to them in any way that they want to. That’s all you really ask for. And, I mean, we have a lot of songs with a 4/4 thump on them, just cause it works, and I like that, I think it sounds good.

A: And it makes sense, it’s a very catchy drum beat.

To be continued...

Depeche Mode's 'Exciter' [2001]

David Byrne's '3 Big Songs' 12" [1981]

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SKOA Presents, Some Kind of Mixtape, Reviews kibbe SKOA Presents, Some Kind of Mixtape, Reviews kibbe

[SKOA Presents] Some Kind of Mixtape: March 2012

Spring is officially here! The sun is peaking out through the clouds and all the good little music lovers on the planet are getting a head start on finding that perfectly epic summer jam. As usual, we've been pouring over tracks from artists far and wide on our never ending quest to bring you the best of the best from the past month. Rocko has even come more out of his blogging hiberation in the past month because the releases are increasingly getting better and better. Without further ado, please enjoy Some Kind Of Mixtape: March 2012 below, have a peek after the jump at the "liner notes" to see why we picked the tracks we did, and make sure you head over to 8tracks and your mixtapes with us!

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3

Kibbe, Shey, Adrian & Rocko

Some Kind of Mixtape - March 2012 from skoablog on 8tracks.

Spring is officially here! The sun is peaking out through the clouds and all the good little music lovers on the planet are getting a head start on finding that perfectly epic summer jam. As usual, we've been pouring over tracks from artists far and wide on our never ending quest to bring you the best of the best from the past month. Rocko has even come more out of his blogging hiberation in the past month because the releases are increasingly getting better and better. Without further ado, please enjoy Some Kind Of Mixtape: March 2012 below, have a peek after the jump at the "liner notes" to see why we picked the tracks we did, and make sure you head over to 8tracks and your mixtapes with us!

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3

Kibbe, Shey, Adrian & Rocko

Some Kind of Mixtape - March 2012 from skoablog on 8tracks.

 

Clock Opera - "Once and For All" (from Ways To Forget, released April 23rd via Moshi Moshi/ Island Records)

Clock Opera are preparing to release their debut, Ways To Forget, later this month we've had numerous twinkles from the band since last year. "Once and For All" opens the album with a slow building intro that rises into a spine tingling track of crescendos and vocal work. It's a perfect opening album track and it opens the door to an album that truly is wonderful. Every track is impeccable, this included. You listen intently as each nose and blip you feel is meant to be exactly where it is. No filler. Just pure musical goodness. - Shey

Pillow Fight (Emily Wells x Dan The Automator) - "In The Afternoon" (from In The Afternoon Single)

Whenever super producer Dan The Automator gears up for another "passion project" such as Handsome Boy Modeling School, Deltron and Lovage you know its gonna be an amazing listen and down right fun. with Dan and his newest project Pillow Fight with singer/songwriter Emily Wells. The two hooked up through mutual buddy, DJ extraordinaire Kid Koala (who also collaborates on the project) and the rest has been history since. Pillow Fight are gearing up to release their debut album later this year with David Choe providing the visuals and if it's like any of Automator's previous projects its gonna be sexy. - Rocko

The Cribs - "Come On, Be A No-One" (lead single released April 23rd, taken from In the Belly of the Brazen Bull, out May 7th via Wichita)

The band of Brothers from Wakefield, The Cribs, have come a long way since their early days and their Self-titled debut back in 2004. They're readying the release of their fifth studio album, In the Belly of the Brazen Bull, and this track is their first in a few years. Raw and sing along worthy it's a welcome return from the boys. The track is set for release on the 23rd of April with the album dropping a month later in May. Get your fix of what's to come in the shape of "Come On, Be A No-One". - Shey

Binary - "Modern Man" (from their upcoming single release "Modern Man" out on April 23rd)

I am so excited about what London band Binary have up their sleeves. They keep releasing singles that hit the spot for me every time. Their latest single, "Modern Man" is no exception to this. You can try your hardest, but this song will take over your brain in a matter of seconds as singer David Troster croons snotty lyrics while its moaning guitars and gritty bass line weave back and forth in the darkest parts of your mind. If you enjoyed "Prisoner" at all you are definitely going to want to grab this track the second it drops on April 23rd. - Kibbe

Rocket Juice & The Moon - "Poison" (from Rocket Juice & The Moon)

In music, 2012 so far has been the year of Damon Albarn with the return of Blur, the release of a new Gorillaz tune, producing the upcoming Bobby Womack record, the upcoming release to Albarn's opera Dr. Dee and the recent collaborative project with good friend Tony Allen and Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rocket Juice & The Moon. RJ&TM's sound is that of a polished world music, funk jam session with tons of guests (Erykah Badu, M.anifest, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble and more) and is as organic as you can get for a studio album. Check out the sexy, standout track "Poison" which features Albarn on the vocals and make sure you pick the band's album which is out now. - Rocko

Future Unlimited - "The Coast" (from their debut self-titled EP)

First and foremost, I love synth pop. Holy Ghost!'s debut album was one of my favorites from last year, and Nashville duo Future Unlimited have quickly and deservedly taken their place in my recently played list. Despite being relatively unknown until very recently, Samuel D'Amelio and Dave Miller's brand off '80s infused synth pop stands out immediately as incredibly catchy and appropriately atmospheric. Their debut self-titled EP was released only two weeks ago, and since then the song "The Coast" has been heavily replayed. It evokes the prominent styles of '80s music, that being pulse-pounding synthesizers and distant, brooding vocals. On every level it displays a love for the 1980s, but with that, Future Unlimited have gone further, giving the song an unexplainable modern relatability. "The Coast" is simply a fantastic and distinct representation of '80s influenced synth pop. - Adrian

St. Lucia - "The Old House Is Gone" (from his debut EP St. Lucia)

The slow build. The glittering synths. The echoy vocals. We've heard it a million different ways over the past few years. For some reason though, the way that St. Lucia pulls it all together for "The Old House Is Gone" from his self-tiled EP that dropped earlier this month just takes it to the next level for me. This song comes on and suddenly my heart gets lighter, I have a huge smile on my face and I just want to do my best Scott Stapp impersonation and just fling my arms back and dance around in the sunlight. It's so ethereal on the ears and euphoric in your heart. I absolutely love it. As far as I'm concerned, St. Lucia isn't going anywhere but up from here. - Kibbe

Indians - "Magic Kids" (from the Magic Kids 7" single)

In a month where Scandinavian pop dominated my eardrums—I'm looking at you Miike Snow—it was a massive surprise to hear Danish group Indians' brand new single "Magic Kids." Differing from their Scandinavian contemporaries, Indians encapsulate a melancholic song in a melancholic package. It is this package that is so captivating, though, as it takes you through an atmospheric dreamscape of ambient chimes, arrays of wave synths and distant, crooning vocals. It's an alluring single that only makes me more impatient to hear more from this Copenhagen outfit. - Adrian
Jack White - "Sixteen Saltines" (from his upcoming debut album Blunderbuss out on April 23rd)
It's really hard not to worship everything that Jack White touches. Although admittedly it took a bit for "Love Interruption" to grow on me, I took to "Sixteen Saltines" within seconds. This is Jack White at his best. His signature guitar sound shines so brightly in this song that you could go blind. It's got just a tiny touch of that White Stripes feel to it as well, so extra bonus for those of us who miss them terribly. I'm also having a hard time not thinking about his somewhat-recent divorce with Karen Elson while hearing these and trying to deduce what went wrong in their relationship based on the subject matter of these latest singles. Either way, I am super amped to snatch up this album in a couple of weeks and then rock out at Roseland Ballroom in May. - Kibbe

Plugs - "On and On" (from their upcoming debut album Plugs)

For those who have yet to hear former Does It Offend You, Yeah? member Morgan Quaintance current band, Plugs, its time for you to get familiar just in time for their upcoming debut album releasing this year on Eurostar Records. These Euro rockers came onto the scene in 2010 with more of an electronic influenced, rock sound as displayed in their first single "All Them Witches" and their 2011 single "Black Microdots" and have transcended themselves within a two year period to showcase they are more than a one genre band. And that they do, as shown in their recent single, the rock heavy tune "On and On" which provides vocal melodies very reminiscent to the sound of Beck Hanson's. Keep an eye out on these guys for what is next to come. - Rocko

Tanlines - "Not The Same" (from their debut album Mixed Emotions, released on March 20th via True Panther Sounds)

Tanlines debut album Mixed Emotions had me hooked from the get go. The Brooklyn duo's experimental style, which sees indie rock infused with elements of synth pop and several worldly genres, draws you in immediately and never lets go. No matter what the mood of the song, whether it's more upbeat ("All of Me") or more contemplative ("Nonesuch"), each one has something that makes it unique yet they are all cohesively addicting to listen to. "Not The Same" is particularly great, though, as it's simple progression and evocative lyrics meld effortlessly with catchy percussion. But, what makes the song so good is Eric Emm's vocal works, which sees a lot of breadth here, hitting emotional highs and thoughtful lows. "Not The Same" is a standout song from a standour album. - Adrian

Japandroids - "The House That Heaven Built" (from Celebration Rock, released June 5th via Polyvinyl)

What's not to love about a two piece that can create this much noise! Japandroids returned in March with "The House That Heaven Built", the first track taken from their newly announced album Celebration Rock, it's big, it's brash and for me I played it on repeat about 10 times in a row upon first hearing it. That's always a good sign. For me this track also feels like Summer and the past week in the UK has been unusually great so that's another reason to play this track really loud. The perfect soundtrack to the perfect sun-filled day. - Shey

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