Berlin Festival 2012 boasts an awesome line-up

Here are two questions that you will, without doubt, answer 'yes' to. 1. Do you like Berlin? 2. Do you like music festivals? See, told you. Double affirmatives all round. Well, combine the two and what have got? A pretty frickin' sweet way to spend a couple of days, that's what.

The Berlin Festival takes place at the historic Tempelhof Airport on September 7th and 8th and there are so many amazing acts to feast your eyes and ears upon. Like (deep breath): Grimes, Django Django, Dada Life, Sigur Rós, Franz Ferdinand, Orbital, Little Dragon, Friendly Fires, The Killers, Metronomy, SBTRKT, Daughter, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Clock Opera, Of Monsters And Men, Friends, Kate Nash, First Aid Kit, Nicolas Jaar, Miike Snow, Crocodiles, When Saints Go Machine ... the list goes on and on.

This years edition will also play host to the world’s biggest Silent Arena Aftershow Party. With 10,000+ headphones, ticket holders will be able continue partying like silent mentalists after the final main stage performance from midnight till 4am. There will also be an Art Village showcasing over 60 national and international artists. Urban art, murals, performances, sculptures and more will all be on show plus an art bazaar, bars, booths, and the Design & Record Label Market as well as the art prize and a costume competition.

A day ticket is stupidly cheap, at EUR 49 + bf, while a two-day ticket is EUR 74 + bf. A Berlin Festival + Club Xberg Kombiticket will set you back EUR 89 + bf. Score your tickets today and we'll see you there kiddos!

Keep an eye on the Facebook page for further announcements, and see the full line-up at www.berlinfestival.de

Field Day

Bobbysix.com's Editor headed to Field Day at Sydney's Domain on New Year's Day. Here's what he thought:

Right, let's make one thing clear before we start. If you're expecting a snobbish rant about the people who attend Australian music festivals, a la my Homebake diatribe last month, you're gonna be disappointed. Sorry.

Sure, there were the shirtless wonders in attendance, flexing their sizeable muscles, and there were girls with their arses falling out of the bottom of their tiny shorts, but the vibe of Sydney's Field Day was refreshingly chilled and the aggression that you will often experience at other one-dayers was joyful in its absence. Admittedly, many of the crowd looked like they belonged at that awful outdoor gym at Bondi Beach, but they were friendly enough to have come straight from an episode of Father Ted.  

Maybe everyone was hungover/on pills/both but, regardless, as I wandered the sun-drenched festival site (ruing my decision to wear jeans and astounded by the fact that I had just paid $6 for a bottle of water), people were notably smiley and chatty. I actually made a few new friends. And anyone who knows me will tell you, I generally dislike people.

And so, amid a lovely atmosphere, a bunch of worldwide musical talent set about starting 2012 with a bang. Cloud Control were an early highlight, with their lovely-as-ever indie-pop. What a fine band they are. Soon after, Gotye - seemingly making his 2,467th festival appearance of the summer - played to a huge crowd. Despite its familiarity, Somebody That I Used To Know remains a brilliant song, and the crowd filling in for Kimbra made for one of those really special festival moments. The overall sound in his set (aside from a glitch at the end) was a zillion times better than at Homebake too. The best performance of the afternoon, though, certainly came from Metronomy (pictured below). With their infectious electro/guitar pop and their charming demeanour, they are surely the perfect band for a sunny afternoon. Radio Ladio, with its singalong chorus of "R-A. D-I. OHHHHHHHHH," is a belting way to end a set too. 

As the sun set, the massively overrated Crystal Castles were typically uninspiring. Sleigh Bells are hardly the best band in the world, but, for my money, they piss all over this too-cool-for-school duo. Still, there was always excellent DJ Anna Lunoe to enjoy on one of the other stages instead. 

Headliners Justice ended the festival. Bobbysix.com is reviewing their Melbourne sideshow later this week so I won't go into too much detail here, but let's just say that their light show was hugely impressive and, no matter how many times they play it, D.A.N.C.E. sounds fucking brilliant. 

And so, as the night sky smothered The Domain and the temperature dropped considerably, even the most chiselled of blokes pulled on their singlets (I was now pretty happy to be wearing long pants) and boogied to some French electro. What an excellent way to ring in the New Year.

Review by Bobby Townsend.

Bobbysix.com's End of Year review 2011 - Jonjon

In the second of our 2011 reviews - which culminate in a grand announcement of overall winners later in the week - Jonjon talks us through his favourite albums and speaks, brilliantly, about the year:

Top 5 Albums

1. The Look – METRONOMY. 
   How can something that sounds so simplistic and dated work so well? Nuwave/disco directly through a wormhole from 1982.
2. Welcome to Condale – SUMMER CAMP. 
   A vocalist that sounds like Debbie Harry, Kate Bush and Belinda Carlisle in one and the sounds of a never ending summer. If you can’t enjoy this we can’t hang anymore.
3. Within and Without – WASHED OUT. 
   Dreamy synth perfection forms the soundtrack for someone with a better life than ours.
4. Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming – M83. 
   Excessive and over the top, it shouldn’t work but somehow it does. God knows where they go from here though.
5. James Blake – JAMES BLAKE. 
   Disarmingly simple jazz and blues electronica that has/will end up as the soundtrack to dinner parties everywhere (but you’re still allowed to like it).
   
   

Top 5 TV shows

1. Community. 
   “Six seasons and a movie”. Never popular, it appears doomed so now is the chance to vent your frustration online as that always works.
2. Wilfred. 
   Yes it’s a remake of an Australian show. Also an improvement. Elijah Wood tries to kill himself and is introduced to a rather large talking dog. “Come on Ryan! These are big existential questions, best left for boring Russian novelists and teenagers on acid. Real people don't think about this shit!” Never a truer statement.
3. Archer. 
   Mix James Bond, Harvey Birdman and Arrested Development and you get this. Sick, depraved and very, very smart. “Just the tip?”
4. Beavis and Butthead. 
   “I’ll get a tattoo of a butt that has a butt-shaped tattoo on it, and I’ll get it right on my butt.” Don’t dismiss it out of hand as that won’t make you look smarter, no matter how many books you may own (but have never read).
5. Angry Boys. 
   There was the inevitable backlash against Chris Lilley but honesty is rarely popular. Terrifyingly accurate as always, it was aggressive, fearless, very dark and yet had a strongly emotional core.

Highlight of the year:

I don’t want to dismiss the deaths of thousands in Syria, Tunisia, Congo, Egypt or anywhere else (well not on purpose, nor were those deaths a “highlight”) but I have to go with the Murdochs’ appearance at the UK media phone hacking inquiry. The “Dirty Digger” (I never wanted a job with News Corp anyway) being called to give evidence was astounding. It didn’t achieve much but at least it happened. James Murdoch’s floundering was schadenfreude 101 and don’t forget the pie to the face. Will the UK media culture change? Not unless they’re all taken outside and shot. Will News Corp change any operational standards? I doubt it. But it was nice to see a parliamentary democracy actually doing something about an issue for however a short period. Pity action on the economy seems beyond them. 

2011 in words:

The year of protest (thanks for stealing my opinion Time Magazine). Whether or not this signals real change is anyone’s guess. There have obviously been some changes; however Egypt hasn’t exactly become a utopia following Mubarak’s removal, you’re a brave person to protest in Syria and I doubt the Politburo in Beijing is quaking in their boots. Italy’s still screwed despite Berlusconi resigning, austerity cuts are occurring across all of Europe and Putin and Medvedev don’t appear to be going anywhere. In the US? Well the Occupy movement still exists... but proved in many respects that elements taken for granted in the US constitution mean bugger all. We fell in love with Julian Assange, Australians realised that as a nation, they’re still terrified of small numbers of brown people in rickety boats appearing on the horizon, morons thought Lil’ Kim had died and we didn’t get a chance to fall in love with Crownies. Because it was shite. What a year. What an absolutely balls year. Oh well, at least some hippies/hipster student types got pepper sprayed. Hooray!

Prediction for 2012

We’ve got a US Presidential election to look forward to, more economic turmoil, Baz Luhrman butchering The Great Gatsby and and, er, war with Iran? Oh... good. 

Jonjon - Contributor
Jonjon reviews albums with an iron fist. He has given up the Sydney sun to relocate to grimy old London. Absolute madness.

Field Day tickets - on sale now.

Have you heard? New Year's Day is the new New Year's Eve? With the weak long-since having crawled into their beds, it's when the rest of us push on like mad fucks. And where do we continue the party? At Sydney's Field Day of course.

Tickets are now on sale for the upcoming festival at The Domain, so, if you wanna start 2012 with a bang, you're best advised to get hold of one asap. The line-up includes two of the hottest properties in dance music, Calvin Harris and Example, who join French electro-maestros Justice, along with the dubstep stylings of Modestep and a bunch of local talent including Flight Facilities, The Aston Shuffle and Cloud Control. Also on the awesome bill are the likes of Crystal Castles, Metronomy, Moby (DJ set), Gotye, Anna Lunoe and heaps more.

Check the full line-up at the Field Day website, and book your tickets with our good friends at Fuzzy. We'll see you there. Let's party like it's 2012. Which, of course, it will be.

Friendly Fires - Pala

Ah yes, it’s that time of year. As England enjoys the two rain-free weeks that pass for summer, its musicians are damn sure gonna make the most of it. Hot on the heels of Metronomy’s summertastic new offering is the long-awaited second record from Friendly Fires, and with it comes the carnival atmosphere we have come to expect from the St Albans trio.

Produced by Paul Epworth and recorded in Sussex, New York and a cottage in France, Pala’s sound shows steady evolution rather than any major direction change. The dancey electro-pop of latest single and opener, Live Those Days Tonight, could have nestled comfortably on their excellent first album and Blue Cassette continues in the same vein, “As I hear your voice/It sets my heart on fire,” sings Ed Macfarlane. Before the chilled, R&B feel of the record’s title track temporarily and necessarily slows the pace a little, the potential singles just keep coming; firstly through the shimmering disco and catchy high vocals of Running Away and then the pounding drums of Hawaiian Air. Sure the lyrics about taking a flight are a bit dumb, but they soon make way for a massive, euphoric, soaring, sweeping chorus that sums Friendly Fires up.

Simply, Pala further proves that all this band really wants to do is make you dance until you can dance no more. It’s always party time in Friendly Fires’ world and when they bring these songs to a festival stage near you, you know it’s going to be awesome.

Metronomy - The English Riviera

New line-up, new sound. If second album, Nights Out was a messy-yet-fun affair, then The English Riviera sees Metronomy deliver a slice of deliciously tight indie-pop. More than ever before, the English band actually sound like, well, a band.

Joseph Mount, the group’s vocalist and creative force, has always been able to pen a catchy tune, but on this third long-player he has really refined the Metronomy sound and created a clean sounding, coherent record that, as the name suggests, is a perfect representation of the rather delightful charm of the English summertime.

Amid smooth bass-lines, catchy electronic organ hooks and laid-back guitars there are fresh and perky tunes here, like lead single The Look. The album’s sweet and hopeful tone is best illustrated by the rather lovely Everything Goes My Way. On it, newbie Anna Prior offers a disarming Charlotte Hatherley-esque vocal amid oohs and handclaps. “It feels so good to have you back, my love/I’m in love again,” she chirps, before frontman Joseph Mount pops up to turn it, slightly surprisingly but wonderfully, into a duet. “I’ll never up and run,” he replies. “I’ll stay right here.” It’s really rather heart-warming. Later, The Bay shows that Mount, even when largely going back to basics, still likes to push his sonic boundaries as the song whooshes and swirls through synths and harmonies.

The English Riviera presents itself as the feel-good album of the summer in England, and rightly so. This is a fine record, and certainly Metronomy’s best to date.

Review by Rob Townsend

The Belligerents - Such A Crime

Some facts about The Belligerents. They are a five piece. They are from Brisbane. They mix dance, punk and discopop. They have supported Metronomy, Neon Indian and Breakbot. They've just released a video clip for Such A Crime. They'd like you to watch it. Here it is.

If you like what you hear/see, then they are in the midst of an Australian tour, so you might be able to check them out in the flesh, as it were. Visit their Myspace for dates.

Words by Rob Townsend

Metronomy at Becks Bar

I took in Metronomy as part of the Sydney Festival last week:METRONOMY
PIVOT
TOTALLY MICHAEL
Becks Bar, Hyde Park Barracks
15/01/09

The Popfrenzy Party burst into life with a short, fun set from Indiana’s Totally Michael. With bubblegum punk-pop guitar hooks played over a backing track and samples, the solo artist spent much of his time off the stage running around the floor “like a dumbass” [his words] singing and rapping in a style that wouldn’t have been out of place soundtracking an American teen movie.

With rain lashing down outside, Pivot’s (below) edgy post-rock instrumentation filled the marquee. As always, their sound was intense, daunting and inventive as guitar grooves fought their way through dense synths and the insistent drumming of the wonderful Laurence Pike. It was an all-out aural attack, yet, while the inclusion of a knob-twiddling third member has certainly added layers to their sound, it hasn’t necessarily enhanced their stage dynamic. I suppose they’ve been a trio for long enough now for it to no longer be an issue, but, back when their live show consisted of only the two brothers, it all seemed so much more primal and exciting.Not many bands arrive on stage wearing their own light show, but London-based Metronomy boasted lights on their wrists and guitars, and had glowing chests, like a trio of techno ETs. Opening with Holiday, their indie/dance crossover was charmingly ramshackle, like Klaxons before they became the polished act they are today. Indeed, in the middle of The End Of You Too, their computer said 'no', and they had to start the whole song over again. This minor hiccup barely affected the tempo though; as their show was irrepressibly upbeat with drum machine, keys, guitar and funky basslines complimented by sax, melodica and Bee Gees harmonies. In amongst the indie/electro insanity and the occasional cheesy choreographed dance moves, there were some really strong moments, like the chorus of Heartbreaker and the A Cappella opening of sweet love song, A Thing For Me. Another computer glitch couldn’t stop Radio Ladio bringing their show to a raucous end and, as the Brits made their way into the night, Totally Michael was back for another ridiculously energetic set, again performed exclusively from the floor in front of the stage. He ended by inviting the whole crowd back to his place. “I’ve got a tight-ass hotel room,” he declared. “Let’s party all night.”