Tag Archives: London

Soulwax

Electric Brixton, London
8th April 2017

I’m at a gig, but everybody else here seems to be at a club night. For them, Soulwax are a dance act, whose ground zero was 2005’s Nite Versions, a remix/reworking of their 2004 album, Any Minute Now; for me, a fan of 1996’s Leave the Story Untold and 1998’s Much Against Everyone’s Advice, Nite Versions is the point at which the remixing took over. The Belgian Dewaele brothers, David and Stephen – plus original member Stefaan Van Leuven, three drummers (one ex-Sepultura) and an idiosyncratically stylish geometric and monochrome stage set – do seem to acknowledge their ongoing metamorphosis, as tonight’s rendition of ‘KracK’ falls somewhat between the Any Minute Now original and the Nite version; it’s lower in pitch than the latter, and heavier, but nowhere near as crunchy as the original.

Even before Nite Versions, Soulwax were eminent remixers and, in the Dewaeles’ 2manydjs guise (in which they relentlessly tour), mashup remix/DJs extraordinaire; the latter’s live shows – production sets in which they spliced together a huge variety of rock, electro, dance, hip hop and other pop classics – introduced the accompanying animated ‘musical films based on the record sleeves’ visuals that formed the twenty-four one-hour mixes in the Radio Soulwax internet radio show and free app. Apparently that nearly bankrupted them, but it the result was commendably and enjoyably innovative and inventive.

Meanwhile, the As Heard on Radio Soulwax compilations – collections of shows done for various radio stations across Europe – were highly sought after, especially the ones they they couldn’t get the clearances for and thus couldn’t officially release.

As the 2manydjs shows were properly an experience, so are these ‘Transient Program for Drums and Machinery’ shows: the concept is so polished that they recorded the new album, From Deewee, in one take.

If the fact that all the modular synths, samplers, occasional guitars, drums and vocals are live isn’t enough, the tightness of the drummers is a revelation, especially on ‘Is it Always Binary’ and ‘Missing Wires’. It’s all delightfully analogue; the sheer joy of the crowd at the energy and the imperceptible yet soulful rhythmic variations created by the three drummers alone is visceral.

Stephen Dewaele’s vocals – not very strong on record to start with – get even more lost within the mix tonight, but vocals (and lyrics even more so) seem incidental to Soulwax’s remixes and live shows; they’re not an essential part of the song form, and not treated as such. This is a shame, as they are often poignant (as in ‘The machine has taken all your cash / All the fun is happening somewhere else’ in ‘Masterplanned’), but where they do have power, it’s as an iconic motif – ‘There’s so much bullshit coming out of your mouth’ from closing number ‘Goodnight Transmission’, for example, or the repeated spoken lines ‘Part of the weekend never dies’ and ‘It’s not you, it’s the E talking’ from the Nite version of ‘E-Talking’.

From Deewee isn’t strictly the Dewaeles’ first new material since Any Minute Now; they wrote and produced all sixteen tracks on the soundtrack to last year’s Belgian film Belgica under fictional band names. ‘Inward’ by Noah’s Dark, the only track from that album played tonight, is – in the brothers’ own words – ‘apocalyptic yet danceable’, and – intentionally, yet ironically – sounds like a cover version.

Tonight leaves me conflicted; I’m despondent that Soulwax aren’t the pop/rock/indie band they were in 1998, but euphoric that they’re the successful, unique electronic experience they are now. Their late 90s slightly off-kilter charm is still there somewhere in the new stuff; amid the loops and beats and arpeggios and gurgles, the downbeat and understated ‘Trespassers’ has some of the trademark chord changes – and feeling – I fell in love with back then.

My heart mourns the guitar riff from ‘Much Against Everyone’s Advice’, the earnest beauty of ballad ‘When Logics Die’ and the rest of the lyrics of ‘E-Talking’ (surely ‘Rockstar paid me well to lie’ is a lyric too good to drop?), but my head wouldn’t want Soulwax to change any part of the exquisite whole of tonight’s show.

Photos: © Steve Dawson (top), © Jill Faure (bottom)

a-ha

Royal Albert Hall, London
25th June 2002

In the 16 years I waited to see a-ha live, I aged from 6 to 22 and Morten Harket aged from 25 to 25. Admittedly I was in the back row of the Royal Albert Hall, but to me he looked great. And Magne and Paul didn’t look too bad either. The only British date on the tour accompanying Lifelines, the Norwegian trio’s second album since their comeback 3 years ago (although they’re coming back in December), this was their first gig here since 1993. Kicking off with the title track from their previous album, Minor Earth Major Sky, they played a set of 18 songs, mostly from Lifelines but with a few older tracks (I don’t really want to say “from their heyday”, but I suppose it was really) including Manhattan Skyline, Cry Wolf, Stay On These Roads, Hunting High and Low, The Living Daylights, Take On Me (during which the crowd went mad) and The Sun Always Shines On TV (during which I went mad).

The new stuff, especially Lifelines, You Wanted More and Forever Not Yours, charts how far the band have evolved since their synthpop days in the 80s; it’s now more mellow and mature, slick production and Morten’s wonderful voice saving it (just) from MOR mediocrity. They had to change to come back, and they’ve succeeded, even though they are more Radio 2 than Radio 1 these days. Still comfortable with their old tracks, the new stuff fits in comfortably. Morten can still hold a note; during The Sun… he warbled the long high notes for longer than in 1985, and his voice’s sheer emotional power in Hunting High and Low made me cry. (True.) The coloured LCD screens behind the band enlivened the stage a bit, but mostly the show was quite static. Paul did jig about a bit with his guitar, Magne did try to rock out from behind his keyboards and guitar, and admittedly Magne, Anneli the backing singer and Sven the bassist did to a little Shadows-style dance routine during Did Anyone Approach You, but Morten’s no dancing frontman like Dave Gahan. But he’s still brilliant, and he’s still 25.

2002

Zoe Bicat, Spygirl and Joe Hughes – The Cellar, Oxford – 4th November 2002

British Sea Power – The Zodiac, Oxford – 15th October 2002

Trademark – The Jericho Tavern, Oxford – 29th August 2002

Cumulonimbus, Nervous Testpilot and Blunt Instruments – The Cellar, Oxford – 12th August 2002

a-ha – Royal Albert Hall, London – 25th June 2002

Fischerspooner – The Bridge, London – 30th May 2002

Mansun – The Zodiac, Oxford – 19th May 2002

The Soundtrack of our Lives and Sahara Hotnights – The Zodiac, Oxford – 11th May 2002

AM60 – The Cellar, Oxford – 31st January 2002