Torrential, apocalyptic rain did little to douse the spirits of the crowd of people who flocked to see the sold out Presets and Cut Copy show Friday night at the 9:30 club. The two Australian, electronic, critically-lauded bands managed to blend live performances with seamless technological assistance into fist pumping, bass-throbbing sets that coerced the crowd into gleeful, pseudo-violent dancing.
The Presets were backlit by huge rows of lights that rhythmically glowed and pulsed as they started their set. The band avoided suffering under the dead weight of the drum loops used on their albums, as Kim Moyes rocked a traditional drum kit and added a rockish pulse to Julian Hamilton's bludgeoning synths and vocals.
Though the fable is that most dance acts are simply guys with PowerBooks, the Presets met in music conservatory in Sydney.
Hamilton said it was difficult to know how their classical training has affected their aesthetic.
"There's parts of disciplines that still float in your head, and they're always in the back of your mind somewhere," he said.
On stage, the combination translates well. Hamilton flitted between keyboards, reaching out to the flailing audience like a conductor, flicking switches and creating on-the-fly loops that led to living, breathing renditions of the Presets' largely electronic music. The band played its heavy-hitting dance anthems to raucous enthusiasm. "Are You The One" produced a particularly visceral response, eliciting handclaps from the entire packed club as Moyes took a break from drumming to dance along.
Cut Copy also charged the stage, re-fizzing the crowd after a lengthy sound check following the Presets set. The synthesized arpeggios of "Nobody Lost Nobody Found" provided an early high when paired with the jangly punk twang of Tim Hoey on guitar. He ended the song with some improvisation involving a drumstick, to reverb drenched effect. Singer Dan Whitford later dedicated "Stranger in the Wind" to Stevie Nicks, a song that blends appropriately Fleetwood Mac-ish textural layers of new wave-flavored synth. Live, the song translated into a slow, pulsing respite from the shoulder crunching dancing prevalent for the remainder of the set. Halfway into "Out There on the Ice," Hoey demanded the audience step it up a notch, and "Dance on three!" The band then launched into a heavier, rave-tinged version of the original, propelling the otherwise lovely lo-fi dance groove into squelching bombastic bliss.
Both Cut Copy and The Presets walked the thin line between the technological and the manual to create a show that remained true to its digital roots while making the songs raw, visceral and engaging. Their ability to blend the steely composure of electronic music with the grit of a rock outfit left the crowd lit up, dancing and stupidly blissful.
You can reach this writer at thescene@theeagleonline.com.
Before the show, The Eagle snagged some time with Presets keyboardist and vocalist Julian Hamilton.
The Eagle: How's the tour going?
Julian Hamilton: Good. All the shows have been good. Today we did a show for XM radio, I think it went pretty well.
TE: Are you working on any new material now?
JH: It's hard for us to write on the road. We find it much more productive to be in our own studio, with our girlfriends and our own coffee and everything. We find it very difficult to sort of tap into our musical hearts on when we're on tour. Getting from place to place is enough of a priority.
TE: How do you come up with new material?
JH: Once we're relaxed and at home and everything, we're usually inspired by synth sounds and go from there. We start with a cool idea, things get passed back and forth... sometimes we'll start with the words first, sometimes the words will come later. It's very collaborative.
TE: Your music makes you want to dance - do you guys ever dance when you work?
JH: Yeah, we work off what makes us move. We'll sing the words, or whatever, jump around. We really don't go dancing around the studio or anything though.
TE: You both went to music conservatory. How does that affect your aesthetic?
JH: It's hard to know, really. There's parts of disciplines that still float in your head, they're always in the back of your mind somewhere.
TE: What did you study?
JH: Piano.
TE: That obviously lends itself well to synth.
JH: Yeah, definitely. I mean, everyone finds their own way of doing what works for them. A lot of electronic groups don't have musical training or whatever, it's just different ways of working.
TE: Yeah, it seems like a lot of acts just pick up their PowerBooks and go.
JH: Exactly. I think everyone just has to find a process that fits.
TE: How was touring with Daft Punk?
JH: Awesome. As a fan it was great to see the show every night and see them backstage and everything.
TE: So you saw them without the helmets?
JH: Yes, saw them without the helmets on, they are real people.
TE: Do you have any pre-game rituals? Listen to any music to get you pumped up?
JH: No, not really. Although we do really get inspired by the music Cut Copy plays on jukebox, that random setting on their iPods.
TE: Listening to anything else worth mentioning?
JH: It's sort of difficult to keep up with current music when you're a part of that whole world of producers and musicians. You're so involved in it, you can't really step back and listen. I like albums by MGMT and Hercules and Love Affair, but I can't sit back and enjoy those records the same way I did when I first heard like a Bjork album or a Public Enemy album. It's not that the music doesn't move me. I do listen to things outside of the hype, some jazz, some classical music... but its nothing I really get that excited over.
TE: Apocolypso, your newest album - how did you start? Any specific points of reference?
JH: We kind of try to ostracize ourselves when we're recording and not see bands really so there's not a fluid connection. We just see what gets stuck in our brains and throw things around, see how we can fuck it up. A lot of people say we sound like Depeche Mode though...
TE: Does that ever get you mad?
JH: No, Depeche Mode's alright. I never really was into them though the way I was into bands like New Order, or Air, or whatever though.
TE: Any favorite venues? Places to play?
JH: Montreal is great, we always love to go there. Barcelona, Glasgow always has rocking shows. Its funny, there are some places you go and you wish you didn't have to play music and others that you wouldn't go to normally that are fantastic.
TE: How do you hear about new stuff?
JH: I really like Alex Ross, I think he writes reviews for the New Yorker. He has this really great blog called The Rest is Noise. Just read his book and that was really good as well. I like The Wire too... so those blogs. I also like this Web site called Boomkat for new music. It's like a cooler iTunes.
TE:So what do you guys do in your down time?
JH: There's really not much down time at all. You get some place, do a radio show, shower, do sound check then play. But there's not much spare time. If there is though I guess I'll go for a jog or watch a DVD, maybe try to get a nice meal and a bottle of red.
TE: What's next for you guys?
JH: Well, we still have heaps more touring to do. We recently got nominated for eight Aria awards, which are kind of like the Australian equivalent of the Grammies. We won three, including best producer, which was nice. They give out the boring ones like that before the actual ceremony, so we'll see about the rest. But we'll tour Europe, then start working on the next record.
TE: Anyone you'd like to produce for?
JH: I guess we're pretty happy producing our own music. We've tried writing and producing for other bands... but most bands I like - I'd like for them to stay the way they are. I wouldn't really want to change anything.
