In marking the 30th anniversary of Wham’s first release “Wham Rap,” George Michael announced a new single to be released this Friday. That’s last week’s news, actually. But starting yesterday, he’s been posting stills from his upcoming video for “White Light.” The above image was released today on his website (and far better than the darker one from yesterday). From GeorgeMichael.com.
The Big D BearDance brings in the Brit-based DJ HiFi Sean to the turntables at its annual TBRU dance party, but you probably knew him well before tonight’s event.
Sean Dickson made his splash in music in the late 80s and early 90s as the frontman for The Soup Dragons who struck gold with the singles “I’m Free” and “Divine Thing.” But even as a waifish, hipster frontman for a popular band in an exciting alt-rock and pop music landscape, Dickson didn’t let go of his DJ dreams — but it was also a hint of other things.
“When I would mix and DJ back then, I would play a lot of ‘gay’ music,” he said. “That should have been a clue!”
The men from BearDance have announced the headlining DJ for this year’s Big D BearDance. Back in March, they brought in the DJ team Blowoff featuring Bob Mould and Rich Morel to pack the house at Station 4. For 2012, the nonprofit group will host London’s (by way of Glasgow) DJ HiFi Sean. Also known as Sean Dickson, he’s initially famous for his work in the 90s alt-group The Soup Dragons mostly known for the single “I’m Free.”
I talked a bit with Ami Sadeh and Darren Graff of BearDance about how they come to their choice of DJs for each event. Read more about how the selection of HiFi Sean and details on March’s Big D BearDance after the jump.
The Foo Fighters continue to make the late night TV scene with some big time queer music faves. They appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman Tuesday night rocking the hell out of Joan Jett‘s “Bad Reputation.” This was a sort of encore performance from the band’s sold out show at Madison Square Garden Sunday where Jett joined in on the Foo action.
In September, the band appeared on Conan show, performing with former Husker Du and Sugar frontman Bob Mould.Where Jett stands on her own in the first, Mould blends in quite comfortably with the Foos. And with good reason. The band has given big time props during their career and he partook in the recording of the Foo Fighters’ latest album Wasting Light.
Videos after the jump.
2.5 out of 5 stars
SEE A LITTLE LIGHT: THE TRAIL OF RAGE AND MELODY
By Bob Mould (with Michael
Azerrad). 2001 (Little, Brown)
$25; 404 pp.
………………………….
It all starts with “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.” It continues with the itsy-bitsy spider, the ABCs and being a little teapot. From there, you embrace whatever your older siblings are listening to until you develop your own musical tastes. Maybe you started with records, moved on to the cassette tapes, CD and now, your iPod is full.
The point is, you’ve never been without your tunes.
But what about the people who make the music you love?
When Mould was born in 1960 in the northernmost end of New York, he entered a family wracked with grief: Just before he was born, Mould’s elder brother died of kidney cancer. He surmises that the timing of his birth resulted in his being a “golden child,” the family peacekeeper who sidestepped his father’s physical and psychological abuse.
“As a child,” he writes, “music was my escape.”
Mould’s father, surprisingly indulgent, bought his son guitars and young Bob taught himself to play chords and create songs. By the time he entered high school, Mould knew that he had to get out of New York and away from his family. He also knew he was gay, which would be a problem in his small hometown.
He applied for and entered college in Minnesota, where he started taking serious guitar lessons and drinking heavily. His frustrations led him to launch a punk rock band that made a notable impact on American indie music.
Named after a children’s game, Hüsker Dü performed nationally and internationally, but Mould muses that perhaps youth was against them. He seemed to have a love-hate relationship with his bandmates, and though he had become the band’s leader, there were resentments and accusations until the band finally split.
But there were other bands and there were other loves than music, as Mould grew and learned to channel the rage inside him and the anger that volcanoed from it.
“I spent two years rebuilding and reinventing myself,” writes Mould. “Now that I’ve integrated who I am and what I do, I finally feel whole.”
If you remember with fondness the ‘80s, with its angry lyrics and mosh pits, then you’ll love this book. For most readers, though, See a Little Light is going to be a struggle. Mould spends a lot of time on a litany of clubs, recording studios, and locales he played some 30 years ago — which is fine if you were a fellow musician or a rabid, hardcore fan. This part of the book goes on… and on… and on, relentlessness and relatively esoteric in nature.
Admittedly, Mould shines when writing about his personal life but even so, he’s strangely dismissive and abrupt with former loves, bandmates, and even family. I enjoyed the occasional private tale; unfortunately there were not enough.
Overall, See a Little Light is great for Mould fanboys and those were heavy into the punk scene. For most readers, though, this book is way out of tune.
— Terri Schlichenmeyer
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition August 26, 2011.
I’m digging how they gays are representing (even if by accident) in A.V. Club’s Undercover 2011 project. In June, I posted this item where bands covered George Michael and the Indigo Girls. Last week, Bob Mould jumped in and covered, well, himself. He performed “If I Can’t Change Your Mind” by his old band Sugar. Watch it here.
Mould has major cred with Sugar and his first band Husker Du. He still rocks it solo, but you might recall he’s also one-half of Blowout, the DJ team that served up the music at this year’s BearDance.
And if you just want a little more Mould, check out the great interview he did on Sound Opinions last month.
If you were at the Big D Bear Dance this past spring, you got to bathe in the greatness that is Bob Mould. He’s one half of the Blowout DJ team that spun the tunes for all those grizzlies and polars and what not. But he’s more famous for his role in alt-rock bands Husker Du and (a personal fave) Sugar, as well as his solo career. On top of that, with all that he’s done in music in a variety of guises, he’s also the least affected music star I’ve ever had the privilege to chat with.
He tells all about his life in music and coming out in his brand new autobio See A Little Light: The Trail of Rage and Melody released just last week.
Anyway, he seemed to randomly appear last night on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. He and The Roots (Fallon’s house band) performed a cover of Sugar’s “If I Can’t Change Your Mind.” Mould has a husky voice to begin with, but I was bummed that he sounded a bit off yesternight.
RICH LOPEZ | Staff Writer
lopez@dallasvoice.com
When the beat drops Friday night at the Big D Bear Dance, expect the furry men attending this year’s Texas Bear Round Up XVI to pack the dance floor tightly (the only way, actually). That’s because the beefy bearish tag team of Bob Mould and Rich Morel debut their popular event Blowoff in Dallas, merging rock and electronica. Oddly enough, they didn’t start out as the go-to guys for ursine events — but they sure fit in.
“We fit the demographic,” Morel laughs. “But really, it just sort of happened.”
“We became this music event that the bears found,” explains Mould. “They liked us and it was a natural fit. There was no adjusting that we made from just DJing initially, but I do think it’s more of a dance night than music night. I play less indie rock than I would.”
The team had met in music circles before, but teamed up in Washington, D.C., back in 2003 for their first gig together. Their musical philosophies merged nicely, but Mould had ulterior motives for the union: The party was really just a way for Mould to meet people in his new hometown.
“I didn’t have any friends and I just had this idea that if we threw a party, I’d meet more people,” Mould chuckles. “I made flyers and just started passing them around.”
What? Mould needs friends? This is the same guy who helmed such bands as Husker Du and Sugar. But he was alone in a new city, and did something about it.
“I knew Rich was there and we got together to write music,” he says. “But now it’s taken on this life of its own. We worked really hard at it and have taken chances with music by mixing rock and low-fi with electronica and progressive house. I think that has been setting us apart.”
The team credits some of their success to their sound. Their newer trance and vocal mixes are less hyper. Sometimes the chill lo-fi indie rock stuff doesn’t go over well, but bears especially those like Mould and Morel are willing to dance to their beat.
“We’re a bit audience specific,” Mould says, ”because people our age like to dance to it, too.”
Mould hasn’t left his rock roots behind. He’s recently performed surprise shows with the Foo Fighters at the request of Dave Grohl and appeared with Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard onstage. Before he became an iconic beardaddy DJ, Mould was already an icon for a new generation of alt-rockers.
“It’s very flattering when they ask for me,” he says. “It’s nice to know people like them are influenced by my stuff. But really, we’re all storytellers, we reinterpret them and the stories get passed on. It’s the legacy of music.”
Mould’s own story will be put to print this summer when his autobiography, See a Little Light: A Trail of Rage and Melody, rolls off the presses.
“It was quite a trip to relive everything, “ he says. “Readers will see an interesting life. It’ll touches on public and private stuff, but no animals were harmed in the making of this book — except me. “
Where Mould ends with rock, Morel would seem to start with dance, but that’s not the case. Morel was kind of a rocker as well and applied his remixes to less dance driven bands like The Killers and The Doors. What Morel did find as that the space where they play is dependent on the tone and with bigger rooms (such as Station 4), certain records are just going to work better.
“Our goal is to get them there on the dancefloor,” Morel says. “Different stuff works, but really, you just can’t make everyone happy. At a certain point, it’s fine.”
Morel thinks what sets them apart, besides the music, is their set up. The team play in hour chunks, tag-teaming every 60 minutes. This gives them time to socialize and get a drink — and the mix-and-mingle contributes to their success.
“We strive for a friendly club experience,” Morel says. “We don’t have a separation from the crowd while playing.”
They’ve done bear events around the country including New York, Provincetown and Chicago, so Mould’s feeling confident that they will tap into the right musical nerve for this crop of Dallas bears.
“I’m planning on doing what I do best,” Mould says. “I hear this is one of the more fun bear events so I can’t wait. I’ll be staying Saturday night so I’ll get to hang out.”
But Mould lives in San Francisco now and Morel resides in D.C. So how do they get ready?
“We show up!” Morel laughs.
This article appeared on the Dallas Voice print edition March 18, 2011.
