Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Death Of A Disco Dancer - Poly Styrene R.I.P.

UK punk icon Poly Styrene has died, age 53, on the eve of releasing her comeback album Generation Indigo (produced by Youth). As the lead singer of X Ray Spex she forged a unique place in punk - while others were screaming and being noisy, Styrene was being insightful, screaming and noisy. While best known for in-our-faces 'Oh Bondage Up Yours' and 'I Am A Cliche', it was later single 'Germ Free Adolescents' that unnerved the most. Her single 'Virtual Boyfriend' was only recently released.



Saturday, April 23, 2011

DZ + Deathrays > DZ

I Oh You deliver the no-fuss goods again with the new release from Brisbane duo DZ Deathrays (pictured above at Maggie Mae's, Austin TX). The thrash-out-with-your-balls-smashed-about band were simply known as DZ before their recent trip to the States, where they discovered they'd been booked into dubstep showcases due to confusion with the Canadian DZ. Problem solved with the addition of Deathrays to their name. The band were one of the Aus showcase highlights at SxSW from where they have returned home armed with the Brutal Tapes EP. The extended player features new single 'Rad Solar' and previous breakout 'Gebbie Street'. And while it may be difficult to mistake them with their former dubstep namesake in sound, the EP finds them dabbling in remixes (including a bare knuckles mix of 'Rad' by Gold Coast team Surecut Kids). But don't be fooled by the inclusion of two House Party Versions of tracks - that's 'house party' as in 'recorded live at a house party', they haven't yet gone four-to-the-floor (but we're ready for it when they are, Surecut Kids pub club sound may act as a gateway genre) - and one of DZ was donning a Midnight Juggernauts tee in Austin.