"The best DJs in the world"...in Brussels tonight!!

Stars of New York's infamous NLLR remix series (alongside the Bloody Beetroots, Toxic Avenger, and many more), Project Cyborg come to Brussels. See them tear up one of the best small venues in town while you have the chance - these boys are gonna be massive!

As is Jules X - wait he's already massive! Fuse, Silo, Vice parties, if it's happening, chances are he's there. Which is why we're very pleased to have him play for us too. Respect!

Plus the cool and varied sounds of the UK's Hywel Jones and your eclectic residents, DJ Jammer and Justin the Phantom. Too sick for words!

Music Muziek Musique
Sat/Za/Sam 18/10/2008
Le Doucha Bar / Nouveaux Russes
Rue Haute 4 Hoogstraat
Brussels 1000
23h till late

"rewind to the future"

MMM radio show + club

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you've probably noticed a dearth of new posts lately. Apologies for that - just too busy with other stuff at the moment. One of the things keeping me busy is the new Music Muziek Musique radio show for FM Brussel. Co-presented by the legendary Stuart 'Jammer' James, the co-founder of the MMM club night, each show can be heard online for a week from Wednesday. Check out the first one here now (just click on our icon and then click where it says 'luister' - Dutch for listen - below the word 'terug'). The first show also includes an interview with Gilli Milligan from alt. rock trio, Torpid. (And just in case you were wondering, the show is in English).

Look out for the next Music Muziek Musique club night on Saturday October 18th at the Doucha Bar (Nouveaux Russes), Rue Haute/Hoogstraat 4, Brussels 1000. Starts at 11pm, finishes about 6 in the morning.

Guests include DJs Hywel Jones from the UK, Jules X (Studio Brussel/Recyclart, etc) and the fantastic Project Cyborg, who I recently interviewed for Vice magazine.

Memory of the Month: Eurodance anthems 92-94

As this month's mixtape and musings illustrate, there's a certain stickability to the Eurodance anthems of the period 1992-1994. Snap's Rhythm is a Dancer, Corona's Rhythm of the Night, Dr Alban's Sing Hallelujah!, Haddaway's What is Love?, De'Lacy's Hideaway, Bobby Brown's 2 Can Play That Game (K-Klass Remix), Billie Ray Martin's Your Lovin' Arms have all displayed a resilience that perhaps would not have been expected at the time they were first hits. I mean you can walk into a DJ bar or mainstream club in virtually any large provincial town or city in Europe on a Saturday night and still be guaranteed to hear at least one of the above.

What's the secret? Well, sonically, they set the template for commercial pop for at least the next 15 years - they were among the first pop records to be inspired by the rave scene, to understand that scene, and yet to be designed for a mainstream audience. And they are all bloody good songs. Unlike 2 Unlimited's Get Ready for This and No Limits, which both fell between the stools of full-on rave anthem and pure pop rush. I mean hearing Get Ready for This in Tom-Tom's in Cardiff in late '91 (see the film Human Traffic for the reference) was the moment the rave scene died for me. Dross.

By contrast, I've always loved Corona, Haddaway, etc. for their ability to tread the fine line between crass commercialism and musical sophistication. One day people may speak of Torsten Fenslau and Peter Zweier in the same breath as Stock, Aitken and Waterman or Lieber and Stoller. The concept of 'classic Eurodance' suggests the process has already begun. Time to put on a shirt from Topman/Topshop, get down to your local Ritzy (or whatever) and boogie...

Meeting of the Month: Midnight Juggernauts

If Australia’s Midnight Juggernauts seemed a bit frazzled when I met them, maybe it was because they had just come from a “really weird” trip to Scotland that involved cars bursting into flames in front of their tour bus and a huge fight with a budget airline over a £2,000 excess baggage charge! The stresses of touring…

JT: You’ve just been playing Rockness and you’ve got a bunch of other festivals lined up this summer: what are your best and worst festival experiences?

Andy: Playing Big Day Out, the biggest festival in Australia. The one in Sydney was the biggest show we’ve ever played – 45,000 people. The main stage was inside a sports stadium - we’re officially stadium rockers now!

Vin: Our worst festival experience would be last year, our first European festival, which was Eurockéennes – worst because we missed our time slot. We were driving from Paris to the festival grounds and we realised our driver was driving in the opposite direction. We got there three hours late or something ridiculous. But we thought we’ve come all this way, we’ll play at 3am: we don’t care. And the only people left were like the drunkards at the end of the night who didn’t know if we were a band or some blurry colours in the distance.

JT: This summer, at the festivals you are going to, what or who are you looking forward to?

Vin: We’re playing a lot of festivals, so we’ve been seeing a lot of bands we’re really into: It was great to see Portishead, both at Coachella and at Primavera. Prince was interesting.

Andy: I think we play a festival with Devo somewhere – is that Japan? Fujirock? That will be cool.

Daniel: All these bands you want to see all playing together over here - it’s so different from the festivals in Australia: it’s crazy.

JT: When I was having a few beers with a mate the other night he, very cleverly – he thought – said to me why don’t you ask Midnight Juggernauts if they run on Midnight Oil? [MJ laugh] What’s the best way to punish him for that appalling pun?

Daniel: Cover him with oil and burn him to death I think.

Vin: Or cover him with oil and give him a nice back massage.

Daniel: One of the two.

Vin: I’m the lover; he’s the fighter.

JT: You’re playing at the Botanique, which is a former botanical gardens, if Midnight Juggernauts was a plant, what plant would you be?

Vin: The Venus Fly-Trap: we mean business, we’re beautiful to look at, but if you get too close…

JT: On your North American tour, you [Vin] kept getting mistaken for Gaspard from Justice. Did you take advantage of this confusion?

Vin: I did at the beginning. It all started one of the very first nights of the tour, in LA - Justice were doing a DJ set and I turned up to the venue with Xavier, so people automatically thought I was in Justice. People were coming up to me with [Justice] records to sign; they took photos with me. I’m not saying I slept with any Justice groupies, but I did well out of it!
JT: You’ve got quite a space age, intergalactic thing going on in your music: when and if they have commercial space flights, would you go on one?

Vin: Oh yeah. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Daniel: Aren’t they doing that soon? Virgin Galactic? We want to be the first band that plays on that.

Andy: We got asked to play at the launch of this robot developed by Honda - Asimov.

Vin: I was excited, but then we went onto Youtube, saw him in action, and our hearts sank: he’s walking up these stairs and as he’s walking he just tips over.

Daniel: And all these Japanese people come running and put sheets over him …At least we’d stand out [if we did the show] – there wouldn’t be much competition.

Vin: I thought it was kind of nice seeing him fall over like that, because it reveals human frailty: he’s just like us, he’s not perfect.
JT: You just mentioned Japan – I was looking on Youtube and I found some footage of you playing in China last year – there were loads of people with weird masks and hats in the crowd: what was going on? What was it like playing there?

Andy: We did two nights at this one venue [in Shanghai] and one of them was a masquerade ball.

Daniel: We didn’t have any costumes, so we went into this mall that was full of illegal DVDs and clothes and we ended up buying this red t-shirt and cutting it and making Rambo headbands. What else did we wear? These animal t-shirts: Andy’s was like a hawk or a falcon; mine was a skeleton of Michael Jackson.

Vin: It was fun getting to play China - it was a good opportunity.

Daniel: It was like a holiday.

Vin: We came back with loads of DVDs.

Musings of the Month: In the land of Aqua and Trentemøller

It's a Danish special this month. I've just got back from a short trip to the happiest country in the world (part business, part pleasure) and here are a few observations...Let's kick off with a verbatim transcript of a text message sent to a friend last week: "The music in this town is terrible: danish schlager pop, commercial trance, happy hardcore cover versions of bon jovi. And Peter Andre. Wake up aalborg!" The gateway to Northern Jutland is a very pleasant small city, but if you are looking for cutting edge music (or just decent commercial tunes) look elsewhere. Dr. Alban's Sing Hallelujah is about as good as it gets on the packed bar street Jomfru Ane Gade. I spotted a some posters for a tech-house night and a couple of punk gigs, none of which were taking place during my brief stay.

Further south in Denmark's second city, Aarhus, things are looking a little better. I headed to Gyngen, a small venue on the northern edge of the city centre. This cultural centre puts on a wide range of music by mostly up-and-coming local acts (although later this month it's one of the sites for Elektronisk JazzJuice, a jazz meets-electronica-meets-impro-meets-noise festival headlined by Cluster and Shackleton no less). The night I was there there was a young guy rapping about revolution in Danish (pretty sick self-produced beats). Not sure having your parents show up to video the show is quite so 'revolutionary' - seemed very Danish somehow though - no wonder they are such a well-adjusted people! After a short break, teenage emo punks Bad Addiction took to the stage. Trading more on enthusiasm than skill, they were a little callow for my tastes, but, hey, the kids liked it!

Aarhus is also currently hosting an effing great exhibition of music videos called Music To See. It's at the art museum, Aros, and includes works by "five of the most innovative and experimental image-makers within the contemporary music video genre": Michel Gondry, Chris Cunnigham, Anton Corbijn, Spike Jonze and Mark Romanek. There's something slightly weird about sitting in a dark room with a bunch of strangers to carefully appreciate the artistry of Windowlicker or Come to Daddy. But hey, it's cool! While I enjoyed the Cunningham, Corbijn and Jonze vids, I couldn't really get with Mark Romanek. I mean I dig what he does, I just can't stand most of the performers he works with (particularly those useless dicks Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Nine Inch Nails).

The same can't be said for Michel Gondry - brilliant images illustrating great pieces of music. As well as the infamous White Stripes, Daft Punk and Bjork videos, it was instructive to see Gondry's fabulous promo for Jean-Francois Coen's 1993 single La Tour de Pise - Paris will never look the same again...

...And as for Brussels - it's probably only in Matonge, the city's predominantly Congolese district, that you could find a music store that doubles as a hairdresser. "Chez le Professeur de Francais" at 9 Rue Francart is home to both Planete Music (where I just picked up a tasty CD/DVD double pack by Ferre-Gola - 'Sens Interdit') and to Salon Clarisse (Coiffure Dame). An interesting solution to the fiscal challenge of running a record store. I can see it now: Phonica-Pedicure...

Mixtape of the month: Sammy Bananas

Picking this month's best mixtape was really hard - tons o' good stuff!
Among the tapes just missing out were mixes by Plastic Little and our old friends MeMeMe, both on the hyper prolific No Love Lost Recordings. In a similar vein was the excellent new tape from Sinden, available exclusively from We Make it Good.

In a different vein, Riton has celebrated the release of his German-inspired LP, Eine Kleine Nacht Musik, by putting together this superb mix of diamonds from Deutschland: Zehr Gut!

But trumping them all (and thanks to the wonderful Get Weird Turn Pro for sharing) is this summertime mix by Sammy Bananas. Bonus points immediately for including Corona (see Memory of the Month), and extra kudos for the great graphics. Fave moments? The sublime blend of Happy House and Rhythm of the Night... sliding from Sammy's own Ladies into the irresistible groove of Treasure Fingers...Work Me!!!!...Get Set Go to Chromeo to Love Action - fantastic!!

Here's the full tracklisting:
Metro Area - Orange Alert Estelle - American Boy The Juan Mclean - Happy House Corona - Rhythm of the Night Sammy Bananas - Ooh Bop Foxy - Get Off Afro Rican - Give It All You Got Sammy Bananas - Ladies Treasure Fingers - Come True Dominic Fabrig - Ain’t No Fun Laidback Luke & Steve Angello - Be (Fourcolorzack’s Wineup mix) DJ Sega - Brighter Days Sammy Bananas - Work Me Nadastrom - Pussy Soul San Serac - Dub Tactics CC Peniston - Finally Sammy Bananas - Get Set Go Chromeo - Bonified Lovin (Yuksek Remix) The Human League - Love Action Janet Jackson - Rock With U Only Freak - Can’t Get Away (Solid Groove Mix)

Myspace of the month: Firesuite

I caught a powerful live set by Sheffield's Firesuite at Night & Day in Manchester a couple of weeks back. The group, which has been together five years, consists of Chris Anderson (guitar, vocals), Jemima Grace (vocals, piano), Chris Minor (bass, gratuitous nudity), and Richard Storer (drums, style). Anderson and Grace alternated vocal duties, occasionally harmonising to powerful effect. Anderson has a good voice in the Jeff Buckley/James 'Starsailor' Walsh mould, but it was when Grace took on lead vocal duties that Firesuite (incidentally, named after Stravinsky's Firebird Suite) really took off, reminding this listener of such luminaries as 10,000 Maniacs, Mazzy Star and Belly. In particular, check out 'If only time were distance' on the Myspace.

Mumbled apology of the month

So sorry - mmmblog* is gonna be a few days late this month. I do have a life you know! Come back on Sunday for the whole enchilada. And take a look at the awesome new playlist (to the right) while you wait. And if you are in London this weekend, check out this event at the ICA. Punk Robots - how good is that?!! Nearly as good as this. They'll be teaching chimps to play Seven Nation Army next.

Memory of the Month: Gods Gift

The missing link of the Manchester post-punk scene has been rediscovered, or rather it has discovered me! Gods Gift was the one band I was unable to track down for my history of New Hormones records. Now, the band's former guitarist Steve Murphy has discovered the website and dropped me a line. I had a fantastic chat with Steve over the phone last weekend, the results of which can be seen on the New Hormones site later this week. (:-)

Musings of the Month

...When the excellent Merz is touring his album in Borders rather than traditional venues, and even Moby is taking to playing acoustic shows in bars as a promotional gimmick, it should have been no surprise to see members of Dirty Projectors working the merch stall after their fine performance at the Cirque Royale the other week. DP were supporting the frankly superb Explosions in the Sky (no nonsense psychedelic rock - just what the doctor ordered). If only all gigs were this good.

...Just after last month's musings, it was announced that Duran Duran and Mark Ronson would be playing a special invite-only concert together in Paris in July, at which Ronson would be reinterpreting various Duran hits, with the whole caboodle being sponsored by Smirnoff Vodka and filmed for broadcast on the web, etc. It will probably be a mildly diverting occasion, but there's something about the buttoned down coolness of Ronson that irritates. A little too slick, a little too knowing and actually, when it comes to the crunch, a little too bland. Coffee table beats and dinner party pop. If he has to be trendy could he at least unsettle the listener a little too - like the feeling you get flicking through a copy of Wallpaper magazine in a dentist's waiting room?

...Black Kids, Black Noise, The Black Ghosts, White Denim, White Williams, White Lies...(Not forgetting the return of the Black Dog!). Are we to assume from this selection of hip new projects that we are living in a black or white world? Absolutes in place of (on top of) Absoluts? Absolutely! Now, where's that Monochrome Set LP?

Myspace of the Month: Cheezface

Cheezface, from Wilkesboro, NC (population 3,159) shares a myspace friendship with Music Muziek Musique, the awesome Drums of Death and Rustie's label Dress2Sweat. If that isn't reason enough to like him, then producing experimental /grindcore /Spanish pop(!) tracks with titles such as "demonic anus piss" and "penile bisection with a blunt instrument" in a town best known for hosting America's biggest folk and bluegrass festival (MerleFest) surely must be.
Actually, what I really like about the work of Cheezus H. Christus (aka Bryan Stancil) is the way he combines the themes of bodily waste and mutilation that were staple elements of '80s US underground greats such as Big Black, Butthole Surfers and the Pixies, with the manipulation of electronic beats and noise of a Squarepusher or Knifehandchop. "Americas Doctor" is like "22 Going on 23" remixed by the Aphex Twin, "Heat of the Bowel Movement" twists a sample taken from some early 80s stadium rockers (Asia? Yes?) and grinds it into the dust. Then it goes back and gives it another kicking just to make sure, finely balancing noise and tunefulness, humour and disgust.
With Gilli Milligan from noise-rockers Torpid frantically recording dozens of great new electronic tracks in his Brussels bolthole perhaps it's time to start joining the dots. 1980s = recession, cold war, right-wing neo liberal governments, hardcore music; 2008 = more of the same, but with 20 years of club culture in between. Time to get on the dancefloor and SCREAM!

Mixtape of the Month: Christian Shank vs. A1 Bassline

It's a couple of months old now, but still worth hearing. Christian Shank from Partyshank mixes tip-top electro with the niche sound of new side project A1 Bassline (debut single 'Girl Thing' is out this month on Meal Deal). Highlights of the mix, which is available to download here include...Opening track Journey - cinematic and jittery, as wired and wide open as the soundtrack to a phonecam remake of The Warriors on the DLR...15:01 - who can resist a Sexual Seduction?...27:53 - the martial drums of Samo Ti - all fall in!...41:41 - here comes the Big Dippa!...50:26 - It's a lot: car alarm synths, wonky bass, semi-breaks and a 4/4 hi-hat - bassline house in a nutshell. Sweet as. ...52:35 - Kiss Kiss, mwah mwah...57:23 - The Jesus and Mary Chain - and why not?

Playlist:
01 A1 Bassline vs Christian Shank - Journey
02 Christian Shank - Play Around (A1 Bassline Edit)
03 Zinc - 138 Trek
04 A1 Bassline - Fasters Better, Harders Better Dub
05 T2 - Why?
06 Wideboys - Sexual Seduction (Bassline Mix)
07 A1 Bassline - Girl Thing
08 Nasti Boi - Bangorz
09 The Count and Sinden - Beeper (Fake Blood Remix)
10 Fairy Faggots - Samo Ti (A1 Bassline Switch Remix)
11 Wideboys - What You're Thinking (ft Sarah Saville-Up North Dutty Mix)
12 Cadence Weapon - House Music (A1 Bassline Remix)
13 Dexplicit - Over You
14 Duke Dumont - When I Hear Music
15 Damaged Goods - Yo Righteous (A1 Bassline Big Mix)
16 DJ Q - Shottaz
17 A1 Bassline - Big Dippa Dub Flex
18 Chemical Brothers - Boot it Again (Mowgli Mix)
19 Detboi - Gunshot
20 A1 Bassline - It's a lot
21 Chris Brown ft. T Pain - Kiss Kiss (Dexplicit Remix)
22 A1 Bassline - Somebody
23 Jesus and Mary Chain - Just Like Honey.

(By the way, the cool artwork for Girl Thing is by Ferry Gouw of Semifinalists).

Meeting(s) of the Month: Trencher

Another from the Vice Belgium stable. Here they are in their mutha tongue...

It’s a sick world indeed where Napalm Death live in harmony with Goblin, but Trencher have not only found that world they have been elected its presidents and are now busy rewriting the constitution to become leaders for life. Before that, the Casio-Grindcore pioneers had the little matter of a gig at infamous London trend-spot, The Macbeth…

JT: I thought you said ‘soundchecks are for weaklings’: Why have you just been soundchecking?

M. Shit: I’m feeling quite weak today: I’ve just got back from holiday.

JT: You’ve got some great song titles: which is your favourite?

M. Shit: ‘Chatter of Slimy Teeth’.

Pox: ‘Wounds Cordon Bleu’.

Lock-Monger: ‘Two semis don’t make a hard-on’.

JT: It’s been a while since the last Trencher album, have you been waiting till you can afford a better keyboard or something?

M. Shit: There’s nothing wrong with my keyboard! I’ve just been buying more pedals to make it sound more sick. No, it just seems to be a slow process this time round, but we’re coming up with the goods as we speak… Right now!

Lock-Monger: Not right now, not literally as we speak.

M. Shit: My mind’s only half here – I’m composing.

JT: You’re a body double.

Lock-Monger: Arse double. Yeah, we’re writing at the moment, just been busy touring.

Pox: We’ve got lots of debts as well. So we have to make money – cash…for the gash.

JT: One of your influences is 1970s Horror soundtracks. What frightens Trencher?

M. Shit: The thought of my keyboard breaking. It’s quite hard to replace.

Pox: Grannies and children, little kids, Nazis…

Lock-Monger: Fear itself.

JT: Do you have a message for the people of Belgium?

Lock-Monger: We love your beer and women.

JT: What about their chips?

M. Shit: I don’t think I’ve had the Belgian chip.

JT: They’re double-dipped.

Lock-Monger: Double-dipped!!

JT: Yeah, they fry them, take them out, and fry them again.

Lock-Monger: What, and then they eat them and throw them back in the fryer?
Fuck. Double-dipped: that’s harsh!

JT: I’ve gone through all my questions. I had a dumb question about Madonna, but I’m going to scrap that.

Lock-Monger: Go on, give us it.

JT: Ok, but it is a shit question – if you were going to cover one of her songs, which one would it be?

M. Shit: It’s obvious, but I think ‘Like a Prayer’.

Lock-Monger: Or ‘Like a Virgin’.

Lock-Monger: Like a Virgin Prayer. Mix ‘em up, push ‘em up together, put a Holiday in there.

M. Shit: Prayer for a Virgin.

Lock-Monger: Prayer for a Holiday Virgin.

M. Shit: Prayer for a Belgian Virgin.

Lock-Monger: Double-Dipped.

M. Shit: With two chips stuck up her arse… easy on the Mayo!

JT: Is there anything else you want to say?

Pox: Bring drugs to all the shows.

M. Shit: It’s hard to get them on the road sometimes.

Lock-Monger: Yeah. What else, our philosophy of life?

JT: Yeah, how do you sum up your band in one line?

Lock-Monger: Life of the party, death of life. C’mon Pox have you got any words? …No popcorn today?

Pox: See you in Valhalla you motherfucking crippled fucking jessies.

Lock-Monger: [laughing] We’re gonna end up getting boycotted!

M. Shit: Vikings will no longer listen to our music.

Meeting(s) of the Month: Ipso Facto

As originally seen in Vice Belgium, here it is in English:

Unlike Goths of yore, Ipso Facto don’t mind a bit of daylight. In fact, Rosalie and Victoria from the band actually volunteered to sit in a sunny beer garden and tell me about their plans for world domination (next step is the Gareth Jones-produced second single, ‘Little Puppet’). Kids today, eh?

JT: A lot of people comment on your image before they talk about your music, does that bother you?

Rosalie: Not really, as long as they listen to the music, coz obviously it grabs people’s attention. It’s a lot better than looking like a load of sweaty indie boys.

JT: Do you dream in black’n’white?

Rosalie: Oh no, I dream in Technicolor.

Victoria: I’m colour blind. So for me, it’s just a natural choice.

JT: Are you really colour blind?

Rosalie: I didn’t even know that. No you’re not!!

Victoria: You don’t know, I could be.

JT: Who’s the funniest member of the group?

Victoria: Sam. It’s got to be.

Rosalie: [to Victoria] You.

Victoria: I’m not funny. I’m funny as in, ‘ahh, she’s a funny one, that girl’. I’m accidentally funny. I don’t mean to be.

Rosalie: Sam’s the comedian.

Victoria: I’m just a bit odd.

JT: Before your band came along, the last time the phrase ipso facto appeared in popular culture was when Jerry Hall said it in a Bovril advert in the 1980s. Jerry chose Mick Jagger over Bryan Ferry, was she right to do that?

Rosalie: Of course she was: Mick Jagger’s really sexy.

Victoria: He is sexy.

JT: And Bryan Ferry? Not as sexy?

Rosalie: No.

JT: How would you sum up Ipso Facto in one line?

Rosalie: Are we gonna say it again? Gothic Spice Girls.

JT: Is this a cliché?

Rosalie: We’re trying to spread this so we’re mentioning it in every interview.

JT: And do people take this bait?

Rosalie: I don’t think anyone has yet.

Victoria: They don’t believe us.

Rosalie: They’ll believe us when we dominate the world! Have a movie out…

JT: You’ll need a black and white tracksuit.

Rosalie [to Victoria]: You can be Sporty.

Victoria: I’m Sporty, Scary and Ginger all in one.

JT: What question have you never been asked in an interview that you wish someone had asked?

Rosalie: Don’t know. Errr….

…[Long pause]…

Victoria: God, we’re so hypocritical.

Rosalie: Yeah, we’re always moaning about how they’re always asking the same old questions, I wish I could write the interview. But now I’m put on the spot, I can’t. I’m sorry.

JT: Ok, what’s the dumbest question you get asked then?

Rosalie: So, you’re very like The Horrors, how does that feel?

JT: Do you have fans that follow you to every gig?

Victoria: We’ve got one: he’s Spanish.

Rosalie: It’s pretty much just one.

JT: One stalker.

Rosalie: And he’s probably going to read this.

JT: [backtracking] He’s not a stalker: he’s just a big fan.

Victoria: He should get recognition, you know.

Dance Europe Express (Cardiff-Brussels-Lausanne-Budapest)

Music Muziek Musique presents Dance Europe Express

From Cardiff - Rockem Sockem Robots
(Deep House and Breaks)

From Brussels - Nauru
(DJs Sensu [Manna, Plain, Café Belga] and Tuks [Toma!] play underground pop music in the broadest possible sense. When your name references a former tax paradise now run by an ex-Olympic weightlifter, there's few limits to what you might expect. Hearing is believing though, so no boasting ... just music ... loud ...)

From Lausanne - Leo & Tamara
(It's more than passion that links Leo [Creaked Records] & Tamara behind the turntables, open-minded and always interested in new sounds and exciting vibrations, they play their fine slices of electronic, rock, techno, experimental, hip-hop, noise, pop and more to build up a no-genre alike set that will leave you stuck to the dancefloor!)

From Budapest - Polymorphin
(Minimal techno from the Schallschnelle Records recording artists)

Plus your eclectic and danceable residents, DJ Jammer & The Phantom

Venue: Nouveaux Russes, Rue Haute 4 Hoogstraat, Brussels 1000
Date: Saturday May 31 2008 (doors: 23h - till late)
FREE ENTRY

www.myspace.com/musicmuziekmusique
"one more time..."

More Moby at Belga

Here's another pic from last night. There's loads more on Facebook.

Secret Moby gig!!

It's not often you head down to your local boozer and discover a world famous rock star is playing a secret acoustic show there that night. That's what happened to me yesterday, so here's a little report...

Moby - Café Belga, Brussels Wednesday May 7, 2008

Following a day of rumour and buzz – is he really coming? THE Moby? Really?? – The diminutive New Yorker stepped onto a makeshift stage at Café Belga a little after 9pm. A several-thousand-strong crowd had gathered in and around the trendy bar in Brussels’s Place Flagey to hear a ‘secret’ gig by the multi-platinum musician.

Strapping on an acoustic guitar, and accompanied by the considerable vocal talents of Joy Malcolm, Moby opened the show with ‘Natural Blues’, before playing a selection of old favourites (including ‘Why does my heart?’ and ‘We are all made of stars’), a track from new album, Last Night, and some unusual covers (‘Ring of Fire’, ‘Walk on the Wild Side’).

After set closer ‘Lift me up’ left the crowd chanting his name, Moby returned for an encore that included minor key renditions of Twisted Sister’s ‘We’re not going to take it’ and ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ and an improvised jam (!) “Do I know any more songs?” the singer asked himself. One more: ‘Me and Bobby McGee’. Kris Kristofferson’s song famously defines freedom. Here’s another definition: ‘Freedom’s just another name for being able to play an acoustic set in a bar when you are a rock star!’

Musings of the Month

...Jones the Rhythm...
Great to read that Grace Jones will be playing live at the Meltdown Festival in London next month. The first picture disc I ever bought was the 12" of Slave to the Rhythm (fantastic record) so I've got fond memories of Ms. Jones. And if there was anyone making better albums than her in 1980/81, I haven't heard them (as good maybe - stand up Talking Heads - but not better). If this description of going to see one of her live shows from the pages of Pop Justice is anything to go by, everyone at the South Bank on June 19th will be in for a treat!

...You call this progress? Or the thin end of the Wedge...
I was amazed to pick up a flyer the other week and discover that Shoreditch chancers Trash Fashion had been booked to play at the Fete Du Progres, the annual May Day fundraiser of the French-speaking Belgian socialist party, the PS, which took place last night. I'm sure Billy Bragg is polishing his cover of It's a Rave Dave as we speak. Twats!

...In search of Cosmic Disco, or the DJ and the producer...
Sadly (or not at all), I missed the Trash Fiasco in order to be at the 6YCC event at the Eskimo Fabriek in Ghent, celebrating the sixth birthday of Culture Club, the nightclub where Soulwax's Dewaele brothers cut their teeth as resident DJs. The main reason for going was to catch a Hercules and Love Affair DJ set. As the timings got all awry, I missed a big chunk of this, which, for some strange reason, was taking place essentially in the foyer of the venue (a former textile factory - very stylish, although the corridor linking the main rooms kept reminding me of the Panamian prison at the end of Season 2 of Prison Break). What I did hear was cool, although I think I prefer Herc & LA's own records. By contrast, Felix Da Housecat, whose recordings usually leave me cold, played a storming set in the main room. I guess that just proves that being great at cutting tracks doesn't mean you'll be the best at playing them, and vice versa.

...Wearing my Rolex, or Grime doesn't play...
Despite entering the UK pop charts at no. 4, Wiley's 'Wearing my Rolex' has divided opinion. Some think it's a cheesy pile of dog's doings, others that it's the best thing to happen to Grime for years. I'm taking the middle ground. Yes, it is pretty cheesy, and perhaps overreliant on the DSK sample (a good track to rely on, mind). But in its defence, when was the last time you went to a club and danced to Grime? I mean, really danced? A case in point, Team Mega Mix played at MMM in March and they played a storming first set. When they hit the decks again later on in the night, they dropped Dizzee Rascal's 'I Luv U', a quality record, but one that, especially outside the UK, is as welcome on most dancefloors as a punk cover of The Birdy Song. Cue a sudden influx of bodies at the bar, and a quick change of musical direction in the DJ booth. Maybe Wiley is wiping away too much of the Grime from his sound, but he should be applauded for taking the genre in a new direction.

...Musique (Concrete) for the Masses...
Nice to see an article acknowledging the pioneers of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. In the same way that trade journals and in-house magazines have sometimes been the first to bring cutting edge graphic design to the mainstream (for instance Bradbury Thompson in Westvaco's Inspiration for Printers magazine of the 1940s), so the radiophonic workshop, in its functionalism, brought avant-garde techniques to a wider audience, under the guise of making weird sounds to illustrate drama. Musique Concrete for the Masses indeed! Given Delia Derbyshire's later career in psychedelic rockers, The White Noise, it seems like good timing to be heading over to London to catch Ipso Facto this weekend. IF have probably never heard The White Noise, but they sure sound as if they have...

Memory of the Month: 'Hard Times' in Thatcher's Britain

In the September 1982 issue of The Face, THE UK style magazine of the '80s, journalist Robert Elms wrote a feature entitled "Hard Times: The New Young Soul Rebels". You can find it in NightFever, an anthology (published in 1997) of The Face's pieces on the 'club scene' (a term the magazine if not coined, made into common currency). Beyond a few music journalists, musicians, and music obsessives with long memories, the 'Hard Times' article and the short-lived, but surprisingly influential 'Hard Times' movement Elms championed are long forgotten. So, what's the skinny?

In a nutshell, 'Hard Times' was about listening to Soul music from the late '60s/early '70s with a political edge (Curtis Mayfield, Gil Scott-Heron), as well as early '80s black music with similar sentiments (the original version of 'Money's Too Tight to Mention' by the Valentine Brothers, 'Cash Money' by Prince Charles & The City Beat Band and 'Drop the Bomb' by Trouble Funk being prime examples, along with, a little later, 'Ain't no rockin' in a Police State' by Black Britain). You would listen to this music while out enjoying yourself clubbing in Soho, however, to express your solidarity with the 3 million unemployed elsewhere in Thatcher's Britain, you would wear stylised versions of workwear, ripped Levi's 501s and sleeveless leather jackets.

It sounds laughable, and it was. The excellent website, My Cassette's Just like a Bazooka?, which gathers details of all the cassettes given away free by the NME in the 1980s, includes some choice analysis of 'Hard Times' and its malign influence. Music critic Simon Reynolds devoted about a quarter of his first book, Blissed Out: The Raptures of Rock, to shooting down the theories of Soul as the music of resistance, propagated by the likes of Elms and Paolo Hewitt in the early-mid '80s. 'Hard Times' was one aspect of this wider trend (which Reynolds dubbed 'Soulcialism') and its influence could be seen everywhere from Simply Red's cover of 'Money's Too Tight..' (their first hit) to Bros's ripped jeans. Thankfully, the rave scene and the alternative rock revival of the late '80s/early '90s killed all that stuff stone dead. But, it did have its moments, as this live version of 'Cash Money', complete with Princess Di lookalike, illustrates. Dance before they drop the Bomb!

Myspace of the Month: Shed and Sunbird

Couldn't decide between two alternatives for the first Myspace of the Month, so they both get the nod.

First up is the remix page of "French Electro-Pop band", Shed. This trio's music - influenced by the likes of Depeche Mode, Air, Portishead and Morcheeba - is pretty cool, but what really grabbed my attention was this message: "Welcome to this official SHED myspace friends remixes, You can listen some great remixes from friends!! We hope you enjoy them! If you are interested to do remixes of us, just ask us and we could sent to you the separate tracks." Sure beats paying 5 notes to remix Radiohead's 'Nude'!

The other page to check out this month belongs to a young Belgian guy called Adriaan who records as Sunbird. Based in Leuven, his mellifluent electronica reminds me of Royksopp and A Man Called Adam at their finest. "It is found again. What? Eternity! It is the sun mingled with the sea," as Arthur Rimbaud might have said when contemplating a drunken daytrip to the Belgian coast with his lover Paul Verlaine. We tried to book Sunbird to play live at Music Muziek Musique a few months back only to discover that Adriaan had broken his back! Thankfully, he is on the road to recovery (his music sounds like an analgesic, so I'm sure it helped). Sunbird's debut album hits the streets later this month - check it out.

The Bulgarian: Codeword 'Fidget'

“MEET ME in Room 511,” said The Bulgarian. I checked my watch, had I gone back in time and stumbled into the plot of a bad Cold War thriller? No, this was Brussels 2008, and I was being invited to interview one of the rising stars of the ever-expanding world of Fidget House. A self-confessed 'global citizen', The Bulgarian (aka Dimitre Vassilev) has been tearing up dancefloors from Camden Town to Cape Town with tracks such as ‘Crazy Dog Biscuit’ and ‘Jack it Like a Zombie’, a string of sick remixes, and a mixtape for the super hip No Love Lost Recordings (NLLR).

JT: Hi Dimitre, your background is quite unusual: tell us a bit about yourself.

TB: I was born in Bulgaria, so hence The Bulgarian. I lived in South Africa for the last 16 years, so that’s pretty much home as well. I was living in London last year, but then I decided to check out Bulgaria - I’m living in Sofia now: it’s very nice.

JT: You’ve got a few different aliases - how long have you been calling yourself The Bulgarian?

TB: Just about a year and a half now. With The Bulgarian I try to do the whole Fidget thing and stick to that. Stuff like Mr Elastik is more techno, minimal, electro - whatever takes my fancy. I’ve also got a side project with another friend called Tone Deaf Junkies, where we do just abstract electronica. It’s just to keep things easy for people to follow. If it were up to me I’d do it all under one alias, but it can get a bit tricky trying to market it all.

JT: What do you think of the name Fidget?

TB: It’s cool. I like it. I got into that genre just before it had a name. It’s better than what I was calling it – electro-jack [chuckles]. The thing that put me on to Fidget was a few years back I was in Bulgaria on holiday and popped over to Serbia for the Exit festival. And Switch happened to be playing in the dance arena and after a few too many beers and several thousand watt sound system, it all sounded really good. I’d never heard that before: I was just like, “I have to do this!”

JT: One of the tracks you’ve done as The Bulgarian is ‘Crazy Dog Biscuit’ with Spoek from Sweat. X. How did that [collaboration] come about?

TB: I’ve known Spoek for a while. I used to have a studio with a mate in South Africa. Spoek came in to work on a hip-hop album for another South African MC. And then he worked with Markus in Sweat. X. I knew Markus from before: I mean there’s not very many of us in South Africa doing this. So I knew what Spoek was capable of and one day I just gave him a shout to see if he wanted to do something. The first track we did together was ‘Jack it like a Zombie’. That was really good, so we did ‘Crazy Dog Biscuit’ to follow that.

JT: You say you know a lot of the other people there – do you think of it as being a South African ‘scene’?

TB: It’s hard-pressed to call it a full-on scene, especially with Fidget. Last year I was the only guy doing Fidget House. Sweat. X is a bit different, but it would have been pretty much only them and me doing this more London-y, Euro-style thing.

Before I left I was way more famous overseas than in South Africa. I used to get maybe one gig every two months or so in South Africa. And when I came back [to tour in February and March] everyone and their grandmother wanted to come along. People were asking: “Have you been to South Africa before?” I was like [sarcastic tone] “yeah-eah” [chuckles]. “Where are you from?” [deadpan] “Here”. It’s funny but I suppose that’s the way it is.

JT: I suppose South Africa is quite isolated in a way.

TB: Yeah, there are so many things. We’ve got the worst Internet in the world! You have limits – everyone gets 3 gigs a month [of bandwidth] and that’s it! Downloading anything more than an MP3 is a bit of an issue there.

JT: Would you say you had any specifically African elements in your music?

TB: I don’t think like that, I just make music for myself. I have at times put in African elements. And Spoek’s pretty African [laughs]. I lived there for 16 years, I’m sure it influences me in some way or another. I don’t like that box of ‘African music’ – all tribal-y or whatever. There’s enough of that. I try to do something else.

JT: You’ve been doing quite a few remixes. What’s been your favourite so far?

TB: It’s hard to say, I mean I love all of them. But the most high profile one I’ve done so far is the remix I did for Larry Tee. That was quite something else because they contacted me out of the blue, which was quite a cool surprise.

There’s one that just came out for the Round Table Knights ('Hold me Back'), which is a really cool song. I like that a lot. I’m doing a lot – I’ve got about four on the go at the moment.

JT: If you could remix anybody in the world, who would it be?

TB: Anybody? Ooh, tough choice… Nine Inch Nails would be fun. Trent Reznor’s been a big influence as a producer through the years.

JT: As well as the tracks we’ve already mentioned and all the remixes, what else have you got lined up?

TB: I’ve started a label – it’s called Feta. In Bulgaria we just call [Feta] cheese – it’s something that’s very integral to our culture there. And it sounded cool! I’m doing it with another guy called Vlad Sokolov, who runs Sokolov Sounds. He’s from Serbia originally, also Feta country.

JT: He’s more into Breaks, isn’t he?

TB: He was, but he’s come to the conclusion that [whispering] Breaks is finished… Shit…Whoops…[Close to mic] Errr, no, Breaks is cool! So me and him started Feta together. We’re trying to do vinyl releases [as well as downloads] but we’ve just had a problem with the distributors. We’ll see – that’s still in the air now, but definitely that’s the plan. I’ve had quite a few deals with a few labels where, when I’ve signed it was for a vinyl deal, and then a few weeks later they’re like, “we can’t do vinyl any more” – it’s happened to me three times so far.

Downloading, whether it’s legal or illegal, is having such an effect on the music industry – it’s a whole new ball game. I’ve actually been considering going almost ‘open source’ on my music, but it’s a bit tricky to do that. I’ll probably have to get a bit bigger and make a bit more money first!

JT: Would you like to do a full-length album as the Bulgarian?

TB: I don’t know. The Bulgarian is very party music. I don’t know how suited it is to an album. It would be fun to do, but I’d like to make it a bit more varied, which also runs the risk of alienating people: “Where’s my Fidget, man? What’s this melodic stuff, I don’t like it.”

That’s far in the future I think, it’s too early to think about that.

JT: So, how do you sum up your music in one line?

TB: Don’t take it all so seriously: it’s just life.

An alternative version of this interview was published by Vice Belgium, check it out at: http://vice.typepad.com/vice_belgium/2008/04/interview---the.html

Markus of the Month... Or, an African sex ritual gone wrong

SOUTH AFRICA'S Sweat. X – MC Spoek Mathambo and studio boffin Markus Wormstorm – have been making waves with their highly original, highly sexual take on Miami Bass and Booty House (“Go black, go low, go fast/ Go pussy, go titties, go ass!”). I met up with Markus prior to a solo DJ set in Brussels at the end of the duo’s recent European tour.

JT: You’re in Brussels. Belgium seems to have recently discovered Nu Rave: is that a good thing?

MW: Ha ha ha ha. I’m kind of two ways about it – to me, Nu Rave is a fashion concept, what is it, summer 2007? And it kind of went hand-in-hand with a dance music revival, and a lot of things were classified as Nu Rave, whereas to be blunt to me it’s oh-so-passe right now. I’m really into dark colours and leathers at the moment. But, I dig the attitude: the party harder frame of mind.

JT: When Sweat. X play, what do you want the audience to think? What do you want them to come away feeling?

MW: We want our live show to be a very dirty thing. We want to create the feeling of some sort of African sex ritual gone wrong. We love performing at floor level, mixing with the people, getting bumped and punched and kissed. I love getting swarmed. We’ve been performing together for a while now and we’ve reached a point where we’re really confident and we can really just fuck around. We’ll just leave loops running and run around the crowd and slap asses - climb back on stage and do some more shit. It’s a very interactive thing.

JT: Where’s Spoek tonight?

MW: He’s probably got to do some chores around the house! He’s got a really demanding grandmother. He’s Ndebele, he’s royalty – I mean a lot of people claim that in Africa. But because he’s the youngest male in an Ndebele family it’s really not done for him to leave the house. He’s supposed to look after his Grandma and his mum and that’s probably what he’s doing right now.

JT: Does that play havoc with your tour schedule?

MW: No, not really man. But his grandma doesn’t like me and I don’t have much to say to her either! She’s like 90 - we just glare at each other. Her whole thing is she can’t understand why they need him to fly around – she’s sure there are enough singers, you know what I mean [chuckles].

JT: And what does she think of the music?

MW: She doesn’t get it man. I mean we’ve recorded some stuff at his house – she’ll just open the door and just stand there and look at us. Like something out of a Lynch movie - fucking eerie.

JT: People are talking about a bit of a South African scene, with guys like you and The Bulgarian getting known internationally. Do you feel part of a movement?

MW: Definitely. My contemporaries and I, when we started doing stuff back in ’99, we sort of set the cornerstones in a lot of ways for electronic music [in South Africa]. I have a studio in Cape Town called Say Thank You Studios, and we do a lot of production, so it’s like an outlet for a lot of artists… One of my partners owns one of the biggest nightclubs in Cape Town, The Assembly. Also we did a lot of shows – a night called Shadow Works, a night called Bookers – and it’s really something we had to build up, the scene of say 2,000-3,000 people that we have now in Cape Town, that’s all off our work. There weren’t bands coming out [from Europe] – we were left to our own devices.

JT: Who else should people be listening out for from South Africa?

MW: Oh man, Felix Laband. I mean Felix is a genius – he’s got a bit of a [self]-destructive streak, but I think he’s one of the greatest musicians we’ve had in a long time.

JT: Do you feel any affinity with other people who are mixing electronic music with sounds from Africa, say Baraka som Sistema?

MW: I’d have to say no. We do African music because we’re from Africa. I don’t think we’ve at any point set out to sneak in a couple of bongos into a song to give it that ‘ethnic’ feel.

JT: It’s African because you are?

MW: Exactly. And I don’t think we’ve ever thought of designing it to be that.

JT: You’ve said [what Sweat. X is doing] is not IDM, it’s not pushing boundaries, you just want people to have a good time. You’re obviously intelligent guys – some of the photo shoots you’ve done are pretty ironic. Do you want people to see the joke as well?

MW: So much of our stuff is based on private jokes between us. I guess you can’t help sneaking that irony into it. I mean we are indie dudes and we are allowed to do whatever we feel like. But do you mean as far as the history of South Africa goes?

JT: I don’t know…

MW: Spoek’s funny, Spoek says we’re like the Apartheid After Party. And what’s this other shit he says? He says we’re a 20-metre acryclic painting of a black hand holding a white hand… We did this one song – do you know what BE is? Black Empowerment. We did this track called ‘Markus Wormstorm is on some straight BE shit’. I think that’s about as political as we’ve got.

JT: What’s happening next with Sweat. X? Any plans for an album?

MW: We’ve got two new labels – we’re still in the process of getting everything together, but we’re putting some stuff out in the States, something called the Saviour and Messiah EP, and we’re doing the Throwing Shade EP and Throwing Shade album later in the year.

JT: Do you get many requests to remix other people?

MW: Yeah, we do get asked and we do ask other people, but nothing ever seems to materialise. We haven’t done anything yet. I really want to do something with Game Boy/Game Girl, these kids from Melbourne, Australia. It’s like this big guy and these two girls and this producer called Miami Horror. I think they are awesome.

JT: If you were forced to sum up Sweat. X in one sentence, how would you do it?

MW: Chasing the season till our blood runs cold.

Mixtape of the Month: Dmitry Fodorov

WITH A new release just about every week, it's no surprise that the first mmmblog* Mixtape of the Month award goes to an artist from the No Love Lost Records stable. Number 44 in the NLLR Mixtape Series is a 13-track, 49-minute blast of white heat from Russian DJ Dmitry Fyodorov. Anyone who remixes The Village People's 'Sex over the phone' AND 'I wanna be your dog' AND puts them on the same playlist deserves maximum respect. Favourite moments in the mix?... 05:53: Swen Weber's 'Samba de Bochum' kicks in and it's like stepping out of a Berlin fetish club onto the sands of the Copacabana: Electro shadows and light...19:04: The sudden realisation that you are dancing to the Village People and it's all right!...38:37-40:51: polyrhythms-a-go-go!!...45:35: Here comes Iggy...!

Here's the full tracklisting: 01 Dmitry Fyodorov - 'Halford Rawk' 02 Swen Weber - 'Samba De Bochum' 03 Dmitry Fyodorov - 'Carnage' 04 New Order - 'Blue Monday (Dmitry Fyodorov Edit)' 05 Buy Now - 'Body Crash (Arrow!!!'s sold Out Remix)' 06 The Village People - 'Sex Over The Phone (Dmitry Fyodorov Edit)' 07 Frankie Goes To Hollywood - 'Relax (Sex Mix)' 08 Dmitry Fyodorov - 'MD5VS.SHA-1' 09 Dmitry Fyodorov - '1b-1' 10 Deadmau5 - 'Stereo Fidelity' 11 Dmitry Fyodorov - 'Greetings, D!' 12 Dmitry Fyodorov - '1987' 13 The Stooges - 'I Wanna Be Your Dog (Dmitry Fyodorov's Steak Lunch Remix)'

And here's where you can download it. Enjoy!

Rewind to the future: A brief history of MMM

After this month, Music Muziek Musique, the monthly club for music lovers, will be taking a break. This season-long (August 2007-May 2008) experiment to see if Brussels could support a club night with an experimental, but pop, approach to programming, will be winding down till the autumn. And the result of the experiment? Ask us this time next year! (;-). If you look through this blog's archives, you can read the complete story of the night so far (flyers, playlists and all). Here's a brief recap:

August 23 - As well as your eclectic residents, DJ Jammer and The Phantom, doing their thing, Gilli from Torpid plays a solo set as Yikez! and DJ Sensu spins his favourite soul and disco tracks (first in the 'Another Side of...' series of guest sets).

October 5 - We play the Flaming Lips album Zaireeka in its entirety on a bunch of CD players and boomboxes. Sweet. The Balkan Hot Step Soundsystem from Ghent do their thing.

November 2 - The fabulous Tapedeck come over from London for a DJ set. Plus we hear another side of Radio Limburg's Gijs Ramboer, a very talented techno DJ, when he's not being a sports reporter!

November 23 - MMM relocates from Windows to Smouss Cafe to be able to include the huge talents of guest DJ, James Holroyd. The Bugged Out! and Back to Basics resident comes straight from the Chemical Brothers show in Antwerp, where he has been warming up the crowd for the main event, to play Another Side of... for us. Awesome! The full bill is a full-on Vaudeville experience, starting with Davyth Hicks (ex-Revenge, ex-Lavolta Lakota) playing his favourite classic rock, punk, post-punk, goth and grunge records). Hicksy is followed by DJ Slick from Eddy Tornado et les Scandaleux, perhaps the best Rockabilly DJ in Belgium. Closing the night we have the subtle skills of minimal techno DJ, Fernando Daxta (Sirius Pandi records).

December 21 - A pre-Xmas party - Fight Night! Beatles vs Stones, Kompakt vs Kitsune, etc.

January 18 - Back to Smouss after December's show at Windows, and a guest appearance from The Human Jukebox (aka Guillaume Maupin), plus a second slot for Davyth Hicks.

February 22 - Music Muziek Musique presents Unknown Treasures, 'an evening of illegal, unreleased and rediscovered music' at a secret location in Brussels.
Probably my favourite MMM - the secret location turned out to be my flat - yes, I threw a 'facebook party' and survived! There was something kinda cool about random strangers showing up at my front door asking for 'the club'. The guests were very cool too - the illegal part was supplied by DJ Le Clown from Rennes, a lovely guy who makes great audiovisual mash-ups; the unreleased part by Tarzan, a Brussels-based duo with a fine line in downtempo electronica mixed with rock. We also had the pleasure of DJ Jammer's rediscovery of an unreleased Pete Shelley acoustic set, recorded for Piccadilly Radio in Manchester in 1979.

March 21 - Music Muziek Musique presents The Long Good Friday. Harold Shand would have been proud: we brought over three awesome, up-and-coming DJ duos from the UK - Team Mega Mix, STDJs and MeMeMe - for a night of wonky basslines and sick beats. Appalling weather conspired against us, but the Barrio Cafe still rocked.

May 31 - So, here's where season one ends - at Nouveaux Russes with Dance Europe Express (Cardiff-Brussels-Lausanne-Budapest). Our special guests will be Rockem Sockem Robots (Cardiff), Nauru (Brussels), Leo & Tamara (Lausanne) and Polymorphin (Budapest). Eclectic, international, experimental, but accessible, just like MMM as a whole. Seems like the ideal way to sign off for the summer. Hope to see you there! Thanks to everyone who has supported us, and especially Jodie Davies-Coleman in Durban for the great posters and flyers. Till the next time...

This blog is changing

THIS BLOG has had a makeover (or a 'relooking' as they like to call it here in Brussels). From May 1st, the Music Muziek Musique blog becomes mmmblog* (thanks Hanson!), a monthly blog for music lovers. As there are a million and one music blogs already, why should you bother checking this one out? Well, don't bother coming and checking it if you are just looking for Mp3s to download. mmmblog* won't be doing that unless the musicians in question offer us the Mp3s and ask to have them put up. And don't come here every morning looking for some flannel about Amy Winehouse's latest arrest, or whatever. mmmblog* will be about quality of posts, not quantity. In fact, aside from a few notices about upcoming Music Muziek Musique events and DJ playlists, I'm only going to be posting stuff once a month! That's right. The first day of each month, you can read all my thoughts for that month. You can read it as a micro blog, you can read it as a boutique blog, as long as you read it.
So what, you may ask, can we read? Each month's regular posts will be organised into one of five categories: Musings of the month (reflections on stuff that's been happening in the world of music in the last month); Mixtape of the month (I pick the best mixtape I've heard in the last month and explain why I like it); Myspace of the month (same principle as the mixtape, surprisingly enough); Memory of the month (could be a review of a classic album, could be a piece about a forgotten genre, record label, musical movement, whatever); Meeting(s) of the month (interviews with the music-makers - for the first month, it's a bit of a South African special, as I catch up with The Bulgarian and with Markus from Sweat. X).
Enjoy!

Tropa playlists

Here's more or less what I played at the Tropa Disco Bar the other week (this is before we started tag-team DJing!). It was a fun night, looking forward to playing there again in the near future.

Set 1:
John F. Kennedy - Ask not what your country
Pilooski - Can't there be love? / Not lost in translation - Pick up lines: English to French
Cadence Weapon (A1 Bassline remix) - House Music
Royal House (Club Mix) - Can you Party?
Crookers - My Penny
Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Chew Fu refix ft. J-Cast & Substantial)
Buraka Som Sistema - Yah (Cosmic Remix)
Diplo - Diplo Rhythm
Róisín Murphy - U know me better (Toddla T Nu Remix)

Set 2:
King Creosote - You've No Clue Do You (Atlantic Conveyor Mix)
Hercules and Love Affair - Blind
Cut Copy - Hearts on Fire (Joakim Remix)
Billie Ray Martin - Your Loving Arms
Numero# - Hit Pop
Telex - Moskow Diskow
The Chemical Brothers - All Rights Reversed
Headman - Catch me if U can (Tronik Youth Remix)

Dance Europe Express (Cardiff-Brussels-Lausanne-Budapest)

Music Muziek Musique presents Dance Europe Express (Cardiff-Brussels-Lausanne-Budapest)

From Cardiff - Rockem Sockem Robots (Deep House and Breaks)

From Brussels - Nauru (DJs Sensu [Manna, Plain, Café Belga] and Tuks [Toma!] play underground pop music in the broadest possible sense. When your name references a former tax paradise now run by an ex-Olympic weightlifter, there's few limits to what you might expect. Hearing is believing though, so no boasting ... just music ... loud ...)

From Lausanne - Leo & Tamara (It's more than passion that links Leo & Tamara behind the turntables, open-minded and always interested in new sounds and exciting vibrations, they play their fine slices of electronic, rock, techno, experimental, hip-hop, noise, pop and more to build up a no-genre alike set that will leave you stuck to the dancefloor!)

From Budapest - Polymorphin (minimal techno from the Schallschnelle Records recording artists)

Plus your eclectic and danceable residents, DJ Jammer & The Phantom

Venue: Nouveaux Russes, Rue Haute 4 Hoogstraat, Brussels 1000
Date: Saturday May 31 2008 (doors: 23h - till late)
FREE ENTRY

www.myspace.com/musicmuziekmusique

"One more time..."

Allegro ma non Tropa!

As a one-off party for the hell of it, DJs Sensu (Cafe Belga), Tuks (Cafe Bota Stereo), Gijs Ramboer (Dallas-Houthalen/Radio Limburg) and The Phantom (Music Muziek Musique) will be playing at the Tropa Disco Bar on Rue St Catherine (opposite Monk) on Saturday April 19 from 10:30 pm till 2:30 am.

There's no concept this time, just a bunch of our favourite music. Hope you can join the fun.

Cheers,
Raf, Marta, Gijs and Justin
p.s. If you've never been to Tropa, a Filipino disco/karaoke joint, it has to be seen to be believed:http://www.asianplace.de/tropa/news.php

Tropa Disco Bar
Rue St. Catherine 21/23
Brussels

FREE ENTRY

Rogue playlists

I just realised some playlists from MMMs past have not yet been posted. Here's a couple (as best as I remember) to tide you over. Cheers, The Phantom.

January 18

1st set:
Alan Shephard - Freedom 7 / A Mountain of One - Ride
Radiohead - Bodysnatchers
Fujiya & Miyagi - Cassettesingle
James Holroyd - Juju edit 3
Chemical Brothers - Galvanize (A-ux Remix)
Common - Driving me wild (feat. Lily Allen)
Kano feat. Kate Nash - Me and my microphone
GoldieLocks - Social suicide
Marvellous Macc Mello - Ayo (freestyle)
The Grime Reaper - Passport
Wax Stag - Folk Rock
Depeche Mode - Master & Servant (En Masse Sweaty Rework)
Free Blood - Never hear surf music again (Adventures Close to Home Remix).

2nd set:
Chromeo - Fancy Footwork (Guns'N'Bombs Remix)
Hot Chip - My Piano
Andrew Weatherall - Feathers
Plug&Play - She only fucks with the music
Black Kids - I'm not gonna teach your boyfriend how to dance with you
Vampire Weekend - Mansard Roof
M.I.A. - Paper Planes (Rene Goulet's Golden Girl Conspiracy)
Digital Primate - My bush would make a better president
DJ Blaqstarr (featuring Rye Rye) - Shake it to the ground
Bizarre Inc. - Playing with knives (L-Vis 1990 Mom's Gone to Baltimore Mix)
Q Project vs Tribe of Issachar - Champion Junglist Sound (Jim Sharp Bmore Remix)
Raghav feat. 2 Play - It must be love
Herve - Let's get dirty
Dude n Nem - Watch my feet (Pop Rawkus Let me see you Juke Remix)
Avril Lavigne - Girlfriend (Party Time 2000 Remix)
King Creosote - You've no clue do you (Kris Menace Remix)
Dead Disco - You're Out (FrankMusik Remix)
FrankMusik - Three Little Words (Partyshank Remix) / Three Little Words
Black Russians - Tom Cruise...(demo)
Copycat - Fade to Pretty Vacant
Late of the Pier - Bathroom Gurgle
Does it Offend You, Yeah? - We are Rockstars (Pornophonics Remix)
Justice - Phantom pt 2 (Soulwax Nite Version)
Jason C. Burke - Feud / As made famous by... - Save a Prayer (karaoke version) / Mystery Jets - Diamonds in the Dark (Tapedeck Remix)
Foals - Hummer
DJ Le Clown / Snakefinger / Missy Elliott - She's a Model
Santogold - L.E.S. Artistes
Chromatics - Running up that hill
Burial - Raver
A Mountain of One - Warping of the Clocks.

"We're in the common market now..."

Well, the weather might have been appalling - that's the last time I come up with a sacreligious party title on a religious holiday (;-) - but the music was great. Hats off to Team Mega Mix, STDJs and MeMeMe for an awesome night of dancefloor mayhem. And thanks to Gilli and Michael for their help and to everyone who braved the elements to be at The Long Good Friday. True party animals.

Playlist

Here's my playlist from last night (it's a slow builder as I was first on the decks). Big shout out to Team Mega Mix (loved the interview on FM Brussel), STDJs and MeMeMe. Cheers now, The Phantom.

Sarah McLachlan - Fumbling towards Ecstasy (Junior Boys Mix)
Studio - West Side
Sods (Cover/Remix by Rework & Trentemøller) - Copenhagen
The Unknown Cases - Masimbabele (original '83 version)
John Miles - Stranger in the City (Pilooski Edit)
Burial - Night Bus
Rufus Wainwright - Tiergarten (Supermayer Remix)
The Black Dog - Train by the Autobahn (part 2)
Maggotron Crushing Crew - Miami Bass Express
Player Player - Think Fast (Bolt Action Five & Flawless Victory remix)
George Michael - Outside 08 (Kimono Kops Remix)
Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Chew-Fu refix featuring J-Cast and Substantial)
Róisín Murphy - You Know Me Better (Toddla T Nu Remix)

And then came the Teds...

New Hormones on the Beeb (and the MDMA)

Some coverage of The Phantom's New Hormones website. Here's a piece for BBC Manchester online. And here's what the Manchester District Music Archive made of it. More to follow...
Oh, and many thanks to Jon Savage for allowing use of his article on The Secret Public on the site. Respect!

Bosh, Bosh, Bosh!!!

Great to see Seb and Alax from Tapedeck on their own manor at Bosh! at the Old Blue Last in Shoreditch last Friday. Check out the killer bassline on the semifinalists remix on their Myspace! Have a listen to Burmese Days too - they played live at the OBL. The band's Myspace says they sound like Orange Juice and The Smiths. More like Subway Sect and The Band of Holy Joy, I reckon. Fronted by a stick insect (think a teenage Jarvis Cocker with long curly hair). Could go places. Just like Cajun Dance Party: Thom Yorke's a fan already. A big thank you to singer (and new driver) Daniel Blumberg for going out of his way to help his big brother (the S in STDJs). Watch out for those traffic wardens!

More for FACT

A review of the Transardentes Festival in Liege. And look out for a profile of The Black Dog very shortly.

An interview with The Kills

For Fact magazine. Read what Jamie Hince had to say to my questions here.

The Phantom

The Long Good Friday - 21.03.08

Music Muziek Musique presents

THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY

Starring 3 of the UK's hottest new DJ duos

Team Mega Mix
STDJs
MeMeMe

MeMeMe say: "We like electro, bmore, house and techno... We like BASS! We've been billed alongside Sinden, Nightmoves, Crystal Castles, The Presets..."
STDJs say: "We play bass heavy dance music. We make bass heavy dance music. We've been billed alongside Erol Alkan, Switch, Digitalism, Chromeo, Bondo do Role..."
Team Mega Mix say: "We don't take anything too seriously. Originally our outfits got us bookings, but now we can make any night good. We'd never play anything by Tiësto, trance, Trash Fashion or shite indie bands." Team Mega Mix have played alongside Tapedeck, Partyshank, Punks Jump Up, The Coconut Twins...

www.myspace.com/musicmuziekmusique
"a little bit more than a hot dog"

The New Hormones story

The Phantom's complete history of New Hormones, the first indie record label, is now online. Click here to read more, or here to see an article about the new site.

A night to treasure

Thanks so much to everyone who came to Unknown Treasures last Friday - the best MMM yet.

If you weren't there here's what you missed:

A brilliant live set by Tarzan launching their debut album, Every Cut a Boom Cut! (The band has 50 copies of the CD for sale, each one in a unique handmade sleeve - well worth getting)

A fantastic live set by DJ Le Clown - His audiovisual mashup of Soeur Sourire (The Singing Nun) brought a smile to everyone's face.

Plus, DJ Jammer rediscovering such Unknown Treasures as a Pete Shelley acoustic set and The Phantom going Booty crazy in the wee small hours.

See you for The Long Good Friday at Barrio Cafe, March 21!

Unknown Treasures - Feb 22

Music Muziek Musique presents

UNKNOWN TREASURES: An evening of illegal, unreleased and rediscovered music

Featuring DJ Le Clown: France's king of the bootleg brings his unique brand of audiovisual mashups to Brussels (http://www.myspace.com/djleclown)

+ a special live set by Tarzan - playing tracks from the classic (and as yet unreleased) album "Every cut a boom cut" (http://www.myspace.com/tarzanbxl)

+ your eclectic residents: DJ Jammer & The Phantom

Fri 22.02.2008 at a secret location in Brussels
(Email: mmmbrussels@gmail.com, leave your name and contact details and we'll let you know how to find the party!!)
Doors: 21:30; we play what we like, you pay what you like

www.myspace.com/musicmuziekmusique

"Shhhh. Don't tell SABAM!"

The Human Jukebox

Thanks to everyone who came down to Smouss last Friday on a typical cold, damp Brussels January night. And a big round of applause for Guillaume Maupin, aka The Human Jukebox, for two fantastic and highly entertaining sets - check out the video!

Music Muziek Musique is back at a secret location in Brussels on February 22nd for an all-illegal special. Shhhh, don't tell SABAM! More details very soon.

Peace out, The Phantom

FREE PARTY - JAN 18

To kick off 2008, Music Muziek Musique is throwing a free party at Smouss Cafe. Roll up, roll up for:The Human Jukebox, the brilliant creation of Mr. Guillaume Maupin - feed him money and he plays the song of your choice (from a selection of hundreds) live from inside his purpose-built jukebox.

Fight Night II (sometimes the sequel is even better):
Funk vs Disco; Glam vs Grunge; Ska vs Reggae

Plus the very best new music we could find (Indie. Rock, Booty House, BMore, Electro, and beyond).

With your electic residents, DJ Jammer and The Phantom, plus special guest Davyth Hicks (Revenge, Lavolta Lakota).

Friday January 18 (from 21:30 till late)
Smouss Cafe, Rue du Marche au Charbon 112 Kolenmarkt
Brussels 1000

"rewind to the future"