electropop
Little Dragon, The Boiler Room at Corsica StudiosWednesday, 13 July 2011
“It's like an advert for American Apparel,” said my companion a song into the set – and she had a point. The elegantly poised electropop of Little Dragon is so sharp, so cool, so impeccably internationalist in its outlook and presentation that,... Read more... |
CD: Little Dragon – Ritual UnionThursday, 30 June 2011
Gothenburg electro-moodists Little Dragon aren’t short of high-profile cheerleaders. All four members appeared on a couple of tracks on Gorillaz' Plastic Beach, and the band supported Damon Albarn's gang on the subsequent tour. TV on the Radio’s... Read more... |
Martin Rushent, 1948–2011Monday, 06 June 2011
Although record producer Martin Rushent was firmly identified with the punk and post-punk eras, the biggest records he had worked on before then were those of Shirley Bassey. His production of The Human League’s epoch-defining Dare changed that.... Read more... |
Singles & Downloads 13Tuesday, 31 May 2011
At one level the day of the single is gone - the 7-inch, the CD, the physical format - and yet, at another it's more relevant than ever. Sure, any track can now be downloaded from an album and hit the charts but singles, downloads - chosen... Read more... |
theartsdesk in Aarhus: SPOT Festival 2011Tuesday, 31 May 2011
On the Jutland coast, Aarhus is Denmark’s second largest city after capital Copenhagen. Its attractive continental atmosphere is amplified by the presence of this week’s temporary population, which includes visitors from Britain, Estonia, France,... Read more... |
CD: Lady Gaga - Born This WayTuesday, 24 May 2011
Why gripe about Lady Gaga? The biggest pop star on the planet is a surrealist fashion icon, fag hag hedonist, high school outsider, art pusher, sex kitten, New York hustler, tween-pop cartoon, and a whole lot more besides. What's not to like? Gaga... Read more... |
theartsdesk Q&A: Musician MobySaturday, 14 May 2011
Moby (b 1965) has been a presence on the dance scene and in global clubland for two decades. He is best known for the multimillion-selling 1999 album Play which, among other things, combined lush electronic orchestration with old field recordings of... Read more... |
CD: Africa Hitech - 93 Million MilesThursday, 12 May 2011
This is, not to put too fine a point on it, a masterpiece – but it could easily have been a bloody mess. The team-up of Mark Pritchard and Steve Spacek is the kind of thing that brings genre purists and scene snobs out in hives: Somerset-born,... Read more... |
theartsdesk Q&A: Pop Musicians The Human LeagueSunday, 03 April 2011
The Human League are one of the brightest lights in the history of electro-pop. They have had many incarnations over the years but since late 1980 the core of the group has been frontman Philip Oakey (b 1955) and singers Joanne Catherall (b... Read more... |
CD: Pet Shop Boys - The Most Incredible ThingWednesday, 09 March 2011
Let's get the obvious out of the way: yes, this is incredible. Not just the sounds, nor the ambitious staging of Hans Christian Andersen's last story as a ballet, but the fact that, 30 years since they met, Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe are still... Read more... |
CD: Rainbow Arabia - Boys and DiamondsTuesday, 08 March 2011
Cologne label Kompakt has been home to a plethora of very fine electronic dance music over the last decade. They also occasionally develop acts, as in proper bands rather than professorial Teutonic sorts standing behind laptops with intense,... Read more... |
Robyn, The RoundhouseThursday, 03 March 2011
Halfway through last night’s show, as songs segued and smooshed into each other, it became clear that Robyn has perfected a high-concept pop that’s impossible to place geographically. She might be Swedish, but bloopy Chicago house, Euro electro and... Read more... |
