16 May 2013
Helen Marnie' solo album (11)
The title of Marnie's debut album is "Crystal World". The album will be released on 31 May 2013. Here's the beautiful cover:
Mashup: Ladytron feat. BRMC - Stop That Girl
A cool mashup, assembled from Ladytron's "Playgirl" and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club' "Stop". You already know how great is "Playgirl"; check also the excellent song "Stop" by BRMC.
01 May 2013
Reminder
Helen Marnie's PledgeMusic campaign for her solo album is still running: pledgemusic.com/projects/marnie. Please pledge if you want to support her.
Helen Marnie' solo album (10)
Yesterday, Marnie shot her first ever solo music video helped by some friends.
15 April 2013
TYCI interview (2013)
Q & A: Helen Marnie From Ladytron
Last month, we played our interview with Helen Marnie of Ladytron fame on TYCI radio. Here is a transcript of the interview.
SO, HELEN. YOU'RE BACK IN GLASGOW.
I moved back about October last year. I'm still settling is since it was so busy over Christmas. I'd been in London for about 12 years, then I decided to move back home. It's definitely very different to London. In London, everything is on your doorstep and really accessible, whereas in Glasgow you need to hunt for things a little bit more, but I love Glasgow. The people are great and I'm slowly starting to fit back in. It just takes time.
YOU'RE WORKING ON YOUR FIRST SOLO ALBUM JUST NOW. WHERE ARE YOU AT WITH THAT?
I'm kind of behind where I should be. I'm a bit pissed off since I thought I'd be further along by now. I'm actually doing a Pledge Music campaign to raise funds and get the record out there as it's obviously a very expensive process, but I hope people aren't too upset when they hear they'll have to wait a little bit longer.
GOOD THINGS COME TO THOSE WHO WAIT...
Hopefully so. I just want it to be as good as it can be, and I hope everyone understands that.
HOW DID YOU GO ABOUT MAKING THE RECORD?
I recorded the demos all myself but I'm a bit of a technophobe so can only take things so far. I then got a couple of producers involved, one from Ladytron and one based in Iceland, and I went out there to record it.
TELL US A BIT ABOUT THE ALBUM.
It's quite broad but plays on the themes of ‘the elements', implied and used in ways throughout the album. I would say it's quite pop – way more so than Ladytron, but I wanted it like that. I feel like I'm often the most pop element in Ladytron. As for titles, I'm not sure how much you're meant to give away...
SOME PEOPLE TELL YOU NOTHING, SO DON'T FEEL FORCED. WE'RE NOT THAT KIND OF OUTFIT...
No, it's OK! There's a song called Submariner, which is very personal and emotional to me. Hearts On Fire is another exclusive too.
YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST. TYCI, MAKING WAVES. GOING BACK TO THE START OF YOUR CAREER, HOW DID YOU GET INTO MUSIC IN THE FIRST PLACE?
I wasn't that cool when I was younger. I didn't listen to what you would class as cool stuff like My Bloody Valentine or house music. I was a bit too young for that at the time and good into that stuff later. I started playing the piano when I was about eight – classically trained – and then I was always into music and drama at school. I had a short stint at Glasgow uni when I was 17. I got into uni to do music but when I went for the interview, I decided I wouldn't do music, I would do something else. I'm not telling you what I ended up doing but I didn't last there, so I took about six months off and then decided music was what I wanted to do. I went to Liverpool University where I studied popular music and that's where I met the rest of Ladytron towards the end of my degree.
BEFORE WE DID THIS INTERVIEW, SO MANY PEOPLE GOT IN TOUCH TO SAY HOW MUCH THEY STILL RATE LADYTRON.
It's great. It's kind of surprising to me sometimes how many people have heard of us! We did really well in some places, but they never really got us as much in the UK. In a way, it's nice to have that kind of anonymity back home because I don't think I could handle it otherwise. I mean, there have been a few occasions – I got offered free cake in Starbucks once about ten years ago – but I think we have the best of both worlds.
WILL LADYTRON BE BACK AT ANY POINT?
Yes, definitely. That was a worry for the rest of the band when I decided to do the solo album – that people would think we're splitting up, so I've tried to stress all along the way that we're still together. We're just taking a year out to do things. We're all moving around – I've moved here, one guy is in America, one guys has moved to Brazil, so we're just using that time to take a step back before making a new album.
YOU WERE SAYING YOUR NEW STUFF IS VERY POP. IS IT STILL ELECTRO-BASED?
I wanted it to be electronic, yes. Having been in Ladytron for so long, it's just natural for me to want to do that but I think it possibly has more of a folk edge. It's got a softer, more gentle edge than what I've done with Ladytron. There's ‘real' instruments and piano as well, as well as synths.
HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT WRITING?
I have got a little set up at home and I just have a midi keyboard and a basic vocal setup. That's how it all starts – I'll write a complete demo at home that gets so far and if I think it's good, I'll work on it in the studio to make it into something more official.
HAVE YOU ALWAYS WRITTEN FOR YOUR OWN PROJECTS, OR HAVE YOU WRITTEN FOR OTHER PEOPLE AS WELL?
There's been a couple of things but I'm not sure if they ever saw the light of day… I've had a couple of things come past me that just haven't been right. I would be open to writing for other people – maybe I've grown a bit in confidence by doing my own thing and I'm completely in control which feels good.
I went back to Iceland in November and I was working on a song with my co-producer and we were working on a song together from scratch which was something completely new for me. Even with Ladytron, one person will write at home and then throw it to someone else to put a melody down or do some instrumentals. I was really shit scared about this – I didn't know what to expect but in the end, he's such a cool guy, that made me really relaxed so we were just bouncing stuff off each other which was new and I quite enjoyed that.
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE RISE IN POPULARITY OF NEW FEMALE-FRONTED ELECTRO ACTS LIKE GRIMES AND AUSTRA?
I think it's great. I'm all for more girls doing it. When we first started doing it, there wasn't very many girls on the scene, especially in electronic acts. When Ladytron first started out, it was mostly indie guitar bands in Liverpool so we were quite unusual in that we were electronic, as well as having two girls fronting it which was very unusual at the time.
DO YOU THINK THAT THE MUSIC INDUSTRY IS A BIT OF A BOY'S CLUB?
I'm not sure that's so true now. Yes, the majority of bands are boys and fronted by guys but behind the scenes, there's a lot of women writing for people, and a lot of the bigger acts like Christina Aguilera and Katy Perry are women who have a lot of influence. Occasionally yeah, you'll meet an arsehole, but generally if people think you're making good music, they want to be a part of that. I've never had any problems in the industry just because of the fact that I am a girl.
THAT'S GOOD NEWS. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO PEOPLE WANTING TO PROGRESS IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY?
It's hard because at the moment it's quite saturated. I'm always quite embarrassed when I meet new people and they ask me what I do and I say, “I'm in a band”. I feel like the must be rolling their eyes – or maybe it's me who's rolling my eyes, because it seems like everyone is in a band now. Nowadays, it's all so accessible that you can do it yourself. If you've got a laptop and some software, then you should be able to produce something to a standard where it can be heard by other people in demo form.
When Ladytron first started, we didn't go down the conventional route. We didn't do any gigs at all. We made all the music and then got airplay on Steve Lamacq and John Peel and that's how we got noticed. I'm not sure if that's how it would happen now but I always felt like a lot of bands just gigged constantly in pubs but weren't getting any exposure outside of that. You need to send your music to people who are in a position to play it. Gigging obviously gets you into a position, once you have been noticed, to have all your stuff together and play it but it doesn't necessarily get you out there, so I would approach things like radio and get a manager.
AND WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE YEAR – FINISHING THE ALBUM? PLAYING SOME SHOWS?
Yes – we'll get the album finished soon (although not as soon as it should be!). I'm not sure what will happen. Will people like it? And if they do like it, will I have to play gigs? It'll be good but I'll be scared...
Source: http://www.tyci.org.uk/wordpress/?p=1628
Last month, we played our interview with Helen Marnie of Ladytron fame on TYCI radio. Here is a transcript of the interview.
SO, HELEN. YOU'RE BACK IN GLASGOW.
I moved back about October last year. I'm still settling is since it was so busy over Christmas. I'd been in London for about 12 years, then I decided to move back home. It's definitely very different to London. In London, everything is on your doorstep and really accessible, whereas in Glasgow you need to hunt for things a little bit more, but I love Glasgow. The people are great and I'm slowly starting to fit back in. It just takes time.
YOU'RE WORKING ON YOUR FIRST SOLO ALBUM JUST NOW. WHERE ARE YOU AT WITH THAT?
I'm kind of behind where I should be. I'm a bit pissed off since I thought I'd be further along by now. I'm actually doing a Pledge Music campaign to raise funds and get the record out there as it's obviously a very expensive process, but I hope people aren't too upset when they hear they'll have to wait a little bit longer.
GOOD THINGS COME TO THOSE WHO WAIT...
Hopefully so. I just want it to be as good as it can be, and I hope everyone understands that.
HOW DID YOU GO ABOUT MAKING THE RECORD?
I recorded the demos all myself but I'm a bit of a technophobe so can only take things so far. I then got a couple of producers involved, one from Ladytron and one based in Iceland, and I went out there to record it.
TELL US A BIT ABOUT THE ALBUM.It's quite broad but plays on the themes of ‘the elements', implied and used in ways throughout the album. I would say it's quite pop – way more so than Ladytron, but I wanted it like that. I feel like I'm often the most pop element in Ladytron. As for titles, I'm not sure how much you're meant to give away...
SOME PEOPLE TELL YOU NOTHING, SO DON'T FEEL FORCED. WE'RE NOT THAT KIND OF OUTFIT...
No, it's OK! There's a song called Submariner, which is very personal and emotional to me. Hearts On Fire is another exclusive too.
YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST. TYCI, MAKING WAVES. GOING BACK TO THE START OF YOUR CAREER, HOW DID YOU GET INTO MUSIC IN THE FIRST PLACE?
I wasn't that cool when I was younger. I didn't listen to what you would class as cool stuff like My Bloody Valentine or house music. I was a bit too young for that at the time and good into that stuff later. I started playing the piano when I was about eight – classically trained – and then I was always into music and drama at school. I had a short stint at Glasgow uni when I was 17. I got into uni to do music but when I went for the interview, I decided I wouldn't do music, I would do something else. I'm not telling you what I ended up doing but I didn't last there, so I took about six months off and then decided music was what I wanted to do. I went to Liverpool University where I studied popular music and that's where I met the rest of Ladytron towards the end of my degree.
BEFORE WE DID THIS INTERVIEW, SO MANY PEOPLE GOT IN TOUCH TO SAY HOW MUCH THEY STILL RATE LADYTRON.
It's great. It's kind of surprising to me sometimes how many people have heard of us! We did really well in some places, but they never really got us as much in the UK. In a way, it's nice to have that kind of anonymity back home because I don't think I could handle it otherwise. I mean, there have been a few occasions – I got offered free cake in Starbucks once about ten years ago – but I think we have the best of both worlds.
WILL LADYTRON BE BACK AT ANY POINT?
Yes, definitely. That was a worry for the rest of the band when I decided to do the solo album – that people would think we're splitting up, so I've tried to stress all along the way that we're still together. We're just taking a year out to do things. We're all moving around – I've moved here, one guy is in America, one guys has moved to Brazil, so we're just using that time to take a step back before making a new album.
YOU WERE SAYING YOUR NEW STUFF IS VERY POP. IS IT STILL ELECTRO-BASED?
I wanted it to be electronic, yes. Having been in Ladytron for so long, it's just natural for me to want to do that but I think it possibly has more of a folk edge. It's got a softer, more gentle edge than what I've done with Ladytron. There's ‘real' instruments and piano as well, as well as synths.
HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT WRITING?
I have got a little set up at home and I just have a midi keyboard and a basic vocal setup. That's how it all starts – I'll write a complete demo at home that gets so far and if I think it's good, I'll work on it in the studio to make it into something more official.
HAVE YOU ALWAYS WRITTEN FOR YOUR OWN PROJECTS, OR HAVE YOU WRITTEN FOR OTHER PEOPLE AS WELL?
There's been a couple of things but I'm not sure if they ever saw the light of day… I've had a couple of things come past me that just haven't been right. I would be open to writing for other people – maybe I've grown a bit in confidence by doing my own thing and I'm completely in control which feels good.I went back to Iceland in November and I was working on a song with my co-producer and we were working on a song together from scratch which was something completely new for me. Even with Ladytron, one person will write at home and then throw it to someone else to put a melody down or do some instrumentals. I was really shit scared about this – I didn't know what to expect but in the end, he's such a cool guy, that made me really relaxed so we were just bouncing stuff off each other which was new and I quite enjoyed that.
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE RISE IN POPULARITY OF NEW FEMALE-FRONTED ELECTRO ACTS LIKE GRIMES AND AUSTRA?
I think it's great. I'm all for more girls doing it. When we first started doing it, there wasn't very many girls on the scene, especially in electronic acts. When Ladytron first started out, it was mostly indie guitar bands in Liverpool so we were quite unusual in that we were electronic, as well as having two girls fronting it which was very unusual at the time.
DO YOU THINK THAT THE MUSIC INDUSTRY IS A BIT OF A BOY'S CLUB?
I'm not sure that's so true now. Yes, the majority of bands are boys and fronted by guys but behind the scenes, there's a lot of women writing for people, and a lot of the bigger acts like Christina Aguilera and Katy Perry are women who have a lot of influence. Occasionally yeah, you'll meet an arsehole, but generally if people think you're making good music, they want to be a part of that. I've never had any problems in the industry just because of the fact that I am a girl.
THAT'S GOOD NEWS. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO PEOPLE WANTING TO PROGRESS IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY?
It's hard because at the moment it's quite saturated. I'm always quite embarrassed when I meet new people and they ask me what I do and I say, “I'm in a band”. I feel like the must be rolling their eyes – or maybe it's me who's rolling my eyes, because it seems like everyone is in a band now. Nowadays, it's all so accessible that you can do it yourself. If you've got a laptop and some software, then you should be able to produce something to a standard where it can be heard by other people in demo form.
When Ladytron first started, we didn't go down the conventional route. We didn't do any gigs at all. We made all the music and then got airplay on Steve Lamacq and John Peel and that's how we got noticed. I'm not sure if that's how it would happen now but I always felt like a lot of bands just gigged constantly in pubs but weren't getting any exposure outside of that. You need to send your music to people who are in a position to play it. Gigging obviously gets you into a position, once you have been noticed, to have all your stuff together and play it but it doesn't necessarily get you out there, so I would approach things like radio and get a manager.
AND WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE YEAR – FINISHING THE ALBUM? PLAYING SOME SHOWS?
Yes – we'll get the album finished soon (although not as soon as it should be!). I'm not sure what will happen. Will people like it? And if they do like it, will I have to play gigs? It'll be good but I'll be scared...
Source: http://www.tyci.org.uk/wordpress/?p=1628
14 April 2013
Marnie
This section is dedicated to Helen Marnie's solo career. As solo artist, she is known simply as Marnie. In 2012 she started recording her debut album. The producers of Marnie's debut album are her Ladytron band mate Daniel Hunt and the Icelandic musician Barði Jóhannsson. She also run a PledgeMusic campaign to fund the making of her album. The album is due May 2013.
Marnie described the album as "...straight from the heart. I can't put it any other way. It means a lot. It is me, noone else. It is everything around me, my loves, my life, hopes and loss. I wanted to create an electronic album with more of a pop element and pristine vocals. Lyrically, the album is expansive, but the Elements do play a part in much of the record, with the sea being particularly dominant and reoccurring".
Links
Marnie biography
Marnie pictures
Her Facebook page
Her Twitter account
Helen Marnie's Wikipedia page
News
Helen Marnie' solo album (11)
Helen Marnie' solo album (10)
Helen Marnie' solo album (9)
Helen Marnie' solo album (8)
Helen Marnie' solo album (7)
Helen Marnie' solo album (6)
Helen Marnie' solo album (5)
Helen Marnie' solo album (4)
Helen Marnie' solo album (3)
Helen Marnie' solo album (2)
Helen Marnie's official Facebook page
Helen Marnie' solo album (1)
Daniel Hunt will produce Helen Marnie' solo album
Interviews
TYCI interview (2013)
Helen Marnie interviewed by Lauren Mayberry from CHVRCHES (2013)
The Electricity Club interview (2013)
Discography
Studio albums
Crystal World (2013)
Singles
TBA
Videos
Album trailer
29 March 2013
Destroy Everything You Touch (covered by The Faint)
Ladytron and The Faint co-headlined a North American tour in 2009. The Faint also covered "Destroy Everything You Touch". The result? It can't compare with the original but it's still pretty enjoyable.
24 March 2013
City Weekend Shanghai interview (2013)
At the close of the '90s, the chasm between electronica and indie was vast. Integrating lush '70s analogue synths with indie sensibilities, a new quartet called Ladytron helped bridge the two communities, and neither indie rock nor electronica has been the same since.
Founding member Reuben Wu continues to navigate disparate worlds—whether as member of Ladytron, DJ, artist or photographer. Ahead of his DJ set at 390 bar tonight, Wu shared a few insights into how he connects the dots, both personally and artistically.
His photography depicts some of the planet's oddest cultural and natural landscapes with meticulous minimalist composition and selection of colors. His series on the Atacama Desert, for instance, juxtaposes the sparse rocky palate of the landscape with colossal futuristic telescopes of local observatories. The photography is as stunning as Wu's music, with which it shares more than a few parallels.
Fortunately, in the role that brings him to Shanghai—as a traveling DJ, Reuben can embrace lighter digital technology, performing with an arsenal of CDs that spans several eras and styles.
CW: We're excited to have you playing Shanghai again.
Wu: I can't wait to come back. It's always exciting when I'm China. There's lots to explore.
CW: We've loved your music for years, but only recently discovered your stellar photography. When you're touring, are you also working on your photography or are the visual and sonic missions separate?
Wu: Creatively, I see them as separate entities, but practically, they've always been intertwined. Essentially, it was traveling with the band that encouraged me to do more photography. That's where it was inspired from: all these places that I was traveling to. I'd be on tour or DJing and I'd make time to explore these amazing places around the world. In this case, though, I won't be doing as much more exploring because I'm also busy writing new material for the next Ladytron album.
CW: Is your art photography strictly film or do you do digital work as well?
Wu: 98% of it is shot on film. However, I do own a digital camera and use it occasionally. I like film. I like the look of it. I enjoy the process of having a negative in front of me. It's not entirely analog. I'm not a purist. I have my negatives processed then I scan them digitally. It's like the music in that we use a lot of analog equipment. But the way we sequence and produce on top of that is via digital means. So, it's a combination of the two worlds.
CW: In terms of the analog element with your synthesizer work and photography, are there other aesthetic parallels?
Wu: There always has to be an element of balance. That's as far as it goes really. I don't like images that are too complicated. I like simple images that show composition and lines, and simple subject matters. And I suppose in the music that's what I attempt to do as well. I go for rich compositions that sound simple but there's a lot of texture embedded in that. The other parallel is of course that you're always carrying huge amounts of equipment with you. My camera is big, and so are the keyboards.
CW: What's your setup for your DJ tours?
Wu: Very simple. I just use CDJs. I enjoy DJing and having a drink while I DJ, and if I drop a beer on the laptop, that's the end. But CDs, they're kind of disposable.
CW: What do you like to see in a crowd?
Wu: I just want people to dance. I can see that while we're performing with the band and Helen and Mira are at the front, they have to have their on stage characters. But DJing is just a bloke playing music and it's nice to see people dance and not worry about who's playing the music. I like to be down in a corner, where I can be as close to the crowd as possible.
CW: What are you playing on this tour?
Wu: There's a lot of tracks I'm playing at the moment. One of the artists I've been following is Daniel Avery, who's on Erol Alkan's Phantasy Sound label. I enjoy playing his stuff. It's kind of house-y, electro-y. Goose is another band I've been playing. What else? A lot of old stuff. A lot of acid. "Voodoo Ray" by a Guy Called Gerald. "Acid Thunder" by Fast Eddie … It depends on what the crowd is like. With me being in the band, sometimes they'll want me to play something more indie, a little more post-punk, a bit more raw. I'm anticipating that Shanghai will be more electronic.
CW: With Ladytron, what's the process after you decide that you're going to create a new album?
Wu: We start writing individually. We've never really lived in the same city before. We've always been geographically apart. Now more than ever. I'm in Chicago. Daniel's in Sao Paulo. Helen's in Scotland. Mira's in London. It would be hard for us to get into a room and write together. And that's never been how we've worked together.
It's always been first as individuals, and then reviewing everything together, and then working on each other's songs. That's how we've always worked. And it goes well with how we make music. We do get together down the line and in the studio when we start fleshing out the tracks.
CW: It sounds very organic in process. Or, do you plan ahead to have a certain feeling?
Wu: It comes from the first demos we create. Each of us has different tastes musically, but we have a lot in common. That allows us a diversity ideas, and I also think that's how each album sounds different from the others and at the same time maintaining identity, which we've always had. Working as a group, we get so many more ideas than if it was just one person coming up with the songs.
CW: You said you're writing some of the new album while you're traveling. Is the laptop how you approach songwriting or do you have other equipment when you travel?
Wu: I'm living in Chicago, and while I'm away, I do have a laptop and midi controllers with me. I do try to take out analogue synthesizers with me too. But in terms of writing demos and coming up with basic ideas, soft synths are useful tools. What we end up doing is layering a lot of analogue synths on top as well. When we get into the studio with all the dusty old gear, that's when we stop swapping sounds out.
CW: What do you think of the analogue revival with Korg's MS-20? Exciting, or do you still prefer the old analogue synths?
We've used a lot of MS-10s and MS-20s and they're fantastic. But they are old and weren't really designed to be taken out on tour. And many times on tour, we've had MS-20s go down just like that. One's broken, then another one's broken. So, we've often found ourselves on eBay on the road, winning these MS-20s and have them delivered to us to cities downstream. And we pick these up and they replace the old MS-20s.
It's a costly and stressful process. We've had missed deliveries. We had one missed MS-20 that we kept missing and it kind of followed us around. So, we've thought for more than 10 years, wouldn't it be amazing if Korg came out with a new MS-20 that didn't break down? And finally, the new MS-20 mini has come out and it looks like everything we've wanted. I just wish it was full size.
CW: Anything else you should tell our readers that we forgot to ask about?
Wu: I think it will be exciting year. I hope we will be playing shows. And we'll have a remix album out of remixes by other people of our last album in the next few months. And I hope the new album will be out in the autumn.
Source: http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/shanghai/articles/blogs-shanghai/shanghais-nightlife/interview-ladytrons-reuben-wu/
Founding member Reuben Wu continues to navigate disparate worlds—whether as member of Ladytron, DJ, artist or photographer. Ahead of his DJ set at 390 bar tonight, Wu shared a few insights into how he connects the dots, both personally and artistically.His photography depicts some of the planet's oddest cultural and natural landscapes with meticulous minimalist composition and selection of colors. His series on the Atacama Desert, for instance, juxtaposes the sparse rocky palate of the landscape with colossal futuristic telescopes of local observatories. The photography is as stunning as Wu's music, with which it shares more than a few parallels.
Fortunately, in the role that brings him to Shanghai—as a traveling DJ, Reuben can embrace lighter digital technology, performing with an arsenal of CDs that spans several eras and styles.
CW: We're excited to have you playing Shanghai again.
Wu: I can't wait to come back. It's always exciting when I'm China. There's lots to explore.
CW: We've loved your music for years, but only recently discovered your stellar photography. When you're touring, are you also working on your photography or are the visual and sonic missions separate?
Wu: Creatively, I see them as separate entities, but practically, they've always been intertwined. Essentially, it was traveling with the band that encouraged me to do more photography. That's where it was inspired from: all these places that I was traveling to. I'd be on tour or DJing and I'd make time to explore these amazing places around the world. In this case, though, I won't be doing as much more exploring because I'm also busy writing new material for the next Ladytron album. CW: Is your art photography strictly film or do you do digital work as well?
Wu: 98% of it is shot on film. However, I do own a digital camera and use it occasionally. I like film. I like the look of it. I enjoy the process of having a negative in front of me. It's not entirely analog. I'm not a purist. I have my negatives processed then I scan them digitally. It's like the music in that we use a lot of analog equipment. But the way we sequence and produce on top of that is via digital means. So, it's a combination of the two worlds.
CW: In terms of the analog element with your synthesizer work and photography, are there other aesthetic parallels?
Wu: There always has to be an element of balance. That's as far as it goes really. I don't like images that are too complicated. I like simple images that show composition and lines, and simple subject matters. And I suppose in the music that's what I attempt to do as well. I go for rich compositions that sound simple but there's a lot of texture embedded in that. The other parallel is of course that you're always carrying huge amounts of equipment with you. My camera is big, and so are the keyboards.
CW: What's your setup for your DJ tours?
Wu: Very simple. I just use CDJs. I enjoy DJing and having a drink while I DJ, and if I drop a beer on the laptop, that's the end. But CDs, they're kind of disposable.
CW: What do you like to see in a crowd?
Wu: I just want people to dance. I can see that while we're performing with the band and Helen and Mira are at the front, they have to have their on stage characters. But DJing is just a bloke playing music and it's nice to see people dance and not worry about who's playing the music. I like to be down in a corner, where I can be as close to the crowd as possible.
CW: What are you playing on this tour?Wu: There's a lot of tracks I'm playing at the moment. One of the artists I've been following is Daniel Avery, who's on Erol Alkan's Phantasy Sound label. I enjoy playing his stuff. It's kind of house-y, electro-y. Goose is another band I've been playing. What else? A lot of old stuff. A lot of acid. "Voodoo Ray" by a Guy Called Gerald. "Acid Thunder" by Fast Eddie … It depends on what the crowd is like. With me being in the band, sometimes they'll want me to play something more indie, a little more post-punk, a bit more raw. I'm anticipating that Shanghai will be more electronic.
CW: With Ladytron, what's the process after you decide that you're going to create a new album?
Wu: We start writing individually. We've never really lived in the same city before. We've always been geographically apart. Now more than ever. I'm in Chicago. Daniel's in Sao Paulo. Helen's in Scotland. Mira's in London. It would be hard for us to get into a room and write together. And that's never been how we've worked together.
It's always been first as individuals, and then reviewing everything together, and then working on each other's songs. That's how we've always worked. And it goes well with how we make music. We do get together down the line and in the studio when we start fleshing out the tracks.
CW: It sounds very organic in process. Or, do you plan ahead to have a certain feeling?
Wu: It comes from the first demos we create. Each of us has different tastes musically, but we have a lot in common. That allows us a diversity ideas, and I also think that's how each album sounds different from the others and at the same time maintaining identity, which we've always had. Working as a group, we get so many more ideas than if it was just one person coming up with the songs.
CW: You said you're writing some of the new album while you're traveling. Is the laptop how you approach songwriting or do you have other equipment when you travel?
Wu: I'm living in Chicago, and while I'm away, I do have a laptop and midi controllers with me. I do try to take out analogue synthesizers with me too. But in terms of writing demos and coming up with basic ideas, soft synths are useful tools. What we end up doing is layering a lot of analogue synths on top as well. When we get into the studio with all the dusty old gear, that's when we stop swapping sounds out.
CW: What do you think of the analogue revival with Korg's MS-20? Exciting, or do you still prefer the old analogue synths?
We've used a lot of MS-10s and MS-20s and they're fantastic. But they are old and weren't really designed to be taken out on tour. And many times on tour, we've had MS-20s go down just like that. One's broken, then another one's broken. So, we've often found ourselves on eBay on the road, winning these MS-20s and have them delivered to us to cities downstream. And we pick these up and they replace the old MS-20s.It's a costly and stressful process. We've had missed deliveries. We had one missed MS-20 that we kept missing and it kind of followed us around. So, we've thought for more than 10 years, wouldn't it be amazing if Korg came out with a new MS-20 that didn't break down? And finally, the new MS-20 mini has come out and it looks like everything we've wanted. I just wish it was full size.
CW: Anything else you should tell our readers that we forgot to ask about?
Wu: I think it will be exciting year. I hope we will be playing shows. And we'll have a remix album out of remixes by other people of our last album in the next few months. And I hope the new album will be out in the autumn.
Source: http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/shanghai/articles/blogs-shanghai/shanghais-nightlife/interview-ladytrons-reuben-wu/
22 March 2013
What's next for Ladytron
- Helen Marnie's debut album (May 2013);
- "Gravity the Seducer" remix album (soon);
- 6th Ladytron studio album (this year or next year);
- Ladytron live DVD (announced last year but not a word since then).
- "Gravity the Seducer" remix album (soon);
- 6th Ladytron studio album (this year or next year);
- Ladytron live DVD (announced last year but not a word since then).
21 March 2013
Mira Aroyo's new DJ mixes
Ladytron shared new DJ mixes of Mira Aroyo. These mixes include excerpts from Ladytron's upcoming remix album.
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