MIDNIGHT KITES
Off the back of a #8 ARIA album and a #1 ARIA Australian album chart debut for their all-nighter of an album, twelvefour, The Paper Kites have just completed their Midnight video trilogy of late-night stories with the nostalgic Renegade. Including ethereal videos for two other tracks off the album, Electric Indigo and Revelator Eyes, the trilogy portrays stories that are set between the hours of 12 and 4am; different cities, different people, but all taking place within this transient timeframe.
HIDING FROM KARMA Melbourne indie electro-pop act The Hiding have today announced their new single, Karma My Life, along with an artistic, emotive video clip and several show dates kicking off in Bendigo at the Rifle Brigade Hotel on 29th April, moving through to Mynt Lounge (Werribee) on 6th May and finishing up at Revolver (Melbourne) on the 21st. The band’s folk-inspired percussive guitar sound takes influence from the many acoustic performances in Central Park, experienced whilst living in New York.
Adhering to the theme, Renegade follows a gang of kids who break into an aquatic cinema, La Cinequatic, in the early hours of the morning. Taking inspiration for the video
trilogy from imaginary places and those latenight hours, lead singer Sam Bentley says, “It’s been really cool actually seeing these places on screen in the videos, with people watching and asking us where they can find them – I think the idea was to create places that we would love to go to.” The vibrant concept was brought to life by director Dan Huiting and his team, alongside a real-life gang of kids as the video’s cast. Bentley enthuses, “He has such a great team and they all just tackle every challenge with such enthusiasm... he knew a local skate crew of young kids that he wanted to use for the video – it worked out perfectly.”
With a memorable hook and a happy, roadtripping vibe, the single touts a supremely positive message, a recurring theme that flows through the band’s songwriting. “Life can throw up so many speed bumps and The Hiding has experienced its fair share of these,” explains lyricist and guitarist, Anthony Salce. “It can be deflating and soul-damaging, but these are life lessons we all experience and Karma My Life is about accepting these journeys, appreciating the turning point and celebrating the ‘positive experience’ that changed your life.”
...A WORD FROM THE EDITOR Remember the birth of electronic music? Then the bands of the late ’80s that went pure synth-pop? The first electronic sounds appeared in the late 1920s, progressing with the advent of the magnetic tape recorder in the ’40s and ultimately algorithmic composition – first heard right here in Australia in the early ’50s. From there, it was a sudden, possibly even galling transition for music artistry that many would prefer to forget.
spawned by real instruments – guitars, keyboards and even drums are undergoing the PC treatment.
In fact, much of the world has – while the impact on the music industry was one of prominence and permanence, it’s a struggle to recall any electronic groups or artists of significance from earlier times.
Whether or not you’re a musical purist, the exponential expansion of the music industry, its constant devolution into the hands of one-time bedroom artists and an unlimited proliferation of no-copyright sounds means more music for everyone.
That’s a far cry from the scene today. Groups like M83 and Passion Pit have added an entirely new spectrum of polish to their almost-entirely-digital sounds, with additional layers of complexity compared with earlier formulaic efforts, while artists like Calvin Harris have used the genre to introduce a wide range of individual vocalists and singers that might otherwise have remained undiscovered. But the innovation doesn’t end there. While last millenium’s challenge may have been to create electronic songs that were recognisable in the world of rock, the bulk of today’s effort is somewhat more refined, focusing on digitally enhacing sounds music | arts | events | entertainment
The result? While the epicentre of electronica is still the humble DJ atop the club’s podium, the realm has expanded beyond recognition. Entirely new genres have risen to prominence in mainstream culture, housing everything from PsyTrance to Experimental Art to Electronic Dance Music (EDM). Fan or not, we are undoubtedly all the better for it.
Every race of people, every ethnic creed in every socio-economic tier in every country on the planet now have access to a virtuallyunlimited library of songs, from the popular to specifically vocational. More people are creating than ever before, boosting the cultural fabric of the human race, whether it’s a one-off amateur-hour job or the beginning of a professional career.
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Music: Earth’s greatest equaliser. This may not be an electronic renaissance akin to 1960s Woodstock, but it’s damn close.
Billy Dixon Your MINT editor visit mintmagazine.com.au | like us at facebook: mint mag
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