The Unicorn Lives

Having a penchant for silly things like unicorns is more common than you might think. If memory serves, I think that’s how I discovered insane band Gay Against You long ago, whose song ‘Gay Unicorn’ brought me endless joy (and still does). Nowadays Joe Howe has moved away from the high-pitched exuberant glee of that band and is making some spacier, deeper, but still crazy songs in their own right. Joined by Bastian Hagedorn, Joe now creates clumsy, fun and unpredictable messy electronics by the name Ben Butler & Mousepad, splitting their time between Berlin and Edinburgh. I think they are resigned to the idea that “more is more”, as every part of their songs are filled with silly synth wobbles, patchy drum beats and shattering stabs of higher notes.

They have some darker, denser songs like ‘Electric Bamber Boo’, where moogs battle over dance beats with the persistent, unbridled energy of Disasteradio, but I prefer the typically more light-hearted fare like ‘Hum Ghar Sajan’ and the friendly, bendy ‘High Life’.

Their output is varied – ‘Supermotion’ manages to sound both retrospective and futuristic, with its gleaming synths and shuddering bassline, replete with decorative keyboard swipes. And the mutant collage that is ‘Formed For Fantasy’ reminds me of parts of Jonny Greenwood’s epic Bodysong.

BB&M’s multi-pronged songs feel like they’re piecing apart your brain and replacing old memories of sounds with new ones. They’ve worked on a synth opera, and released an EP that was recorded using only analog vintage synths. Their latest, debut album Formed For Fantasy, is available for pre-order from their Tumblr, and will be out on London’s LOAF records.

Ben Butler & Mousepad- Future Tent: MP3

Ben Butler & Mousepad- Bandcamp

Posted by Sarah Gooding under Berlin, Edinburgh, Germany, Scotland, UK
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Fruit Fight! Crunk, Rattle n Roll

Sadly Gameboy/Gamegirl is no longer together, but when I asked the band this week if they could play a show in Auckland in June, they said they’d consider reforming for one final show. Let’s hope it happens.

For those unfamiliar with Gameboy/Gamegirl, they are a three piece electro hip-hop troupe from Melbourne, Australia, whose music is all about the party and making the most out of life while you’re young enough to do so. Their lyrics are quirky and totally make fun at mainstream American hip-hop, rapping about things like fruit salad and milk rather than money and whores. It’s definitely more appealing to indie kids than a mainstream audience, but that’s because they don’t fake it.

Gameboy/Gamegirl has released a selection of singles and an EP. Their single ‘Fruit Salad’ was remixed by Brizilian’s Bonde Do Role and is available as a b-side. Their EP titled Golden Ghetto Sex contains 5 original tracks with 3 remixes and can be purchased along with the singles from the band’s myspace page.

Also, check out the music of Miami Horror who is the producer behind Gameboy/Gamegirl. He is currently touring the world playing shows with Bag Raiders and Cut Copy.

Gameboy/Gamegirl- Rumps Pumps: MP3

Gameboy/Gamegirl- Sweaty Wet Dirty Damp: MP3

Gameboy/Gamegirl- Myspace

Posted by Nick Fulton under Australia, Germany
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Cathedral With No Eyes

Nearing the end of their European tour which included a Valentines gig with Islands, Railcars has been having an extended pre-release party of sorts, as they announce the upcoming release of The Cathedral With No Eyes EP, a one-song, 22-minute-long adventure to be released in late April. In Amsterdam at 4am the other night, Aria Jalali, the brains behind Railcars, sent Einstein Music Journal via email a very drunken interview they conducted somewhere in Europe. He also sent the above picture with the simple description, “negative 6 degrees in Heidelberg”. I mean, why not pose like Jesus on a balcony in blue underwear?!

Railcars – Myspace

Posted by Sarah Gooding under Germany, San Francisco, The Netherlands
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Stereo Total w/ JD Samson and Moron Says What?!?!

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Whammy Bar, Auckland

Credit must be given to the promoter Mr Matthew Crawley for this one. His decision to allow Moron Says What?!?! to open was a brave one, but one that totally paid off. The four Auckland girls played an energetic set to an adoring crowd, including both JD Samson and Francoise Cactus (Stereo Total) who stood in the front row and enjoyed every second of it. Running through all of their songs in true chaotic MSW fashion, including an awesome sped up version of ‘Wikipedia’, they were then put on the spot when asked to play one more song. But wow! They delivered with a rap about moustaches, originally written for the Brand New Math moustache party a few months ago, it was brilliantly recycled.

Moron Says What?!?! had one of the best nights of their lives. After their set Cactus whipped them away for an interview; she is apparently writing a book about girl bands. There are also rumours that JD Samson suggested she’d like MSW to tour Australia and the USA with her.

JD Samson then got on stage to do her thing. It took the crowd about ten minutes to realise she was even DJing and by the end I think some people still hadn’t noticed. But honestly, anybody could play top 40 indie hits from their laptop; it just happened to be the girl from Le Tigre playing them.

The crazy exuberance of Stereo Total brought everyone back together. Packed with screaming, smashing of drum sticks and some amazingly catchy pop songs, Cactus and Brezel Goring’s charisma filled the bar with happy faces. Creating all sorts of eclectic sounds from what looked like home made instruments, Goring laid the perfect foundation for Cactus’ pleasantly cheeky bi-lingual pop vocals. It was possibly one of the smaller crowds the European band had played to in some time, but the duo seemed to thrive on it. Complete with a drunken stage invasion, a breast-flashing friend of the band and Goring smashing a spot light with his drum sticks, the show was unforgettable.

Stereo Total w/ JD Samson and Moron Says What?!?! live photos

Moron Says What?!?!- Sleep: MP3

Posted by Nick Fulton under France, Germany, New Zealand
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