The Perfect Kiss

Stef scored me a ticket to see LCD Soundsystem on Saturday night, and, needless to say, they were exceptional. Oh. Oh. Finally, I got to see James Murphy ramble his way through a set of disco-punk excellence direct from the DFA. Murphy and the 'system were in fine form too tweaking knobs, rolling basslines, and, um, duh, cowbell were in abundance. So good. Us vs Them was huge. Yeah was a lovely, dirty mess. Someone Great was cell-phone-in-the-air bliss. So so good. I even managed to do some scenestar spotting while I was there, which included spying some Van She-sters, Teenagersintokyokans, Lost Valziez and standing next to a Juggernaut. Call me the new Perez. Of indie music. Laaaaame.

LCD Soundsystem - Someone Great (Radio Edit)

I guess there really couldn't be a better time to post this interview with the band's keyboardist royalty, Nancy Whang. So read on.

D: What’s your input into LCD Soundsystem? Everyone knows that it’s James Murphy’s project, but how do you guys bring it out as a full band thing?

N: LCD Soundsystem is very much James’ own project. It’s his music and it’s his ideas. I don’t think there’s really any specific strategy to take to the live band side of things, we basically just get together and play…that’s not very enlightening…but it’s a very organic thing. In a way, we’re like the best LCD Soundsystem cover band in the world. But seeing us live is a totally different experience than just sitting at home and listening to an album.

D: With the release of Sound Of Silver and the band’s stature rising even higher, has that made being on the road easier?

N: Well I don’t really know what our stature is! We’ve played some really amazing shows in the past twelve months. We’ve done lots of fun gigs to really good, responsive crowds, and that’s increased our stature a bit which in turn makes it more comfortable for us to keep on touring. But looking back at the whole year of 2007, I don’t think I’ve spent more than ten days at home at a time. I don’t mind it all of the time, but even when were in Brazil, surrounded by the beaches of Rio de Janeiro, I just couldn’t wait to get home.

D: Do you get homesick because you’re on the road so much?

N: Yeah I absolutely do. You get homesick when you’re doing this all the time. We were supposed to play a show in Mexico [not so long ago], but it was cancelled right before hand, and I couldn’t have been happier! Sometimes all I want is to look at my apartment, and be in New York City with my friends.

D: So what’s next for the band after you guys come out to Australia?

N: I’ve been working on this new record with Jaun Maclean. It’s going to be really cool. He’s amazing. As for us as a band, well after we do this Big Day Out tour, we’re just kind of done for a while. But not even for a while, we’re just done.

D: Does that mean you guys are like done done?

N: Well, not done done, I don’t think. I’m not really sure on the specifics, because of course James will still make new music, and we’ll probably play a bunch of shows, but we won’t be the kind of band who puts out a new record and then tours it for a year only to go back home at the end of it all and just do it over again. We’re all really over that. It’s just too exhausting for us. The bittersweet part of it is that after touring for almost two years for the first record, and now another year or so for Sound Of Silver, we’ve been able to do some incredible shows, and I like playing. I like playing LCD Soundsystem songs and I like playing with these people. That’s what I’m going to miss the most. We’re all old and tired and we just don’t want to live on a bus anymore. So, yeah, we’re basically just taking a break from all that…for an indefinite period of time.

D: I'm starting to see why it's bittersweet.

N: But I’m lucky though, I get to hang out with these guys all the time. It’s kind of weird, because we’re in this bus for a month spending pretty much every second of the day with each other and then we fly home and on the way back into the city someone will say “so…you guys want to get some dinner?” I feel really lucky to be able to play music with James and Pat who really are my two best friends.

I've been thinking more and more about the state of electro/hipster/indie/dance and the over-use of distortion. And the more I think about it, the more I think that the DFA sound is going to have a major rennaisance this year. Yes, I know, they never left. I get it. But the whole French banger/grinder thang kinda took the spotlight away from the disco-punk stylings of the New York label. Yet with the likes of Hercules & Love Affair, the new Hot Chip album, my new favourtie band, Holy Ghost!, and of course the world beating Sound Of Silver, they've got the goods. The distortion fad will fizzle, but the DFA touch has legs to keep on going. And look at this, James & Tim are back to remixing.

M.I.A. - Paper Planes (DFA Remix)

It's only a rip but I think it's pretty wonderful. I've heard some people hating on it, but bah, I love it.

Who's with me?

LCD Soundsysem MySpace
DFA Records MySpace
DFA Store