She’s come a long way from her days on Australian Idol, to be sure… At least something good came out of that abortion of a karaoke competition.

Here’s her video clip for the single ‘Clean White Love’ from the Gold certified Wonder.

From the band:
“While Susie is currently on expedition in New York enroute eventually to Berlin… and now making a visit to SXSW this coming week… Paul Ranking completed a second video for the track RIVER.

It was shot before Susie’s disembarkation and their great going-away-show at Brisbane Powerhouse in late Jan where they play both albums in their near completedness. Paul has pieced together another spirited visual interpretation drawing forth the pagan in a dark river forest. Online now and desecrating television shortly.”

Then there are the others. Those who, like water, seem to drift towards good music, but get distracted along the way. Those who begin drifting towards Depeche Mode, but for some reason get stuck in a puddle, listening to The Horrors. Those who slide towards Iron Maiden and instead flow headlong into the cave of Wolfmother, never to return.

This is a symptom of ignorance. There are those who claim The Horrors album Primary Colors is a work of technical genius. How amazing, they say, that it sounds like such a period piece. It could have been made in the 80s! … I find it hard to understand this argument. The album took a year to record and produce and in the end it sounds like something made 30 years ago, using technology of which Depeche Mode could only dream. This is an achievement? I saw them live at the Big Day Out and was severely underwhelmed. Skinny white boys playing halfheartedly. Luckily their clothes and hair were very nice, so the show wasn’t a total loss.

I won’t keep talking about The Horrors, they have enough people giving them far too much attention already. I’m talking about the strange fact that popular music itself seems to have been diverted from its rush towards greater and greater musical depths and has been caught in a self-referential cul de sac.

The Medieval period of music lasted for 900 years, from 500 to 1400. In the early part of this period there wasn’t even a rhythmic notation system, we had to wait until the 1200s for that. Following the Medieval period we have the 200 year long Renaissance period, 1400-1600. Then we have Baroque, 1600-1760, 160 years. Classical, 1730-1820, 90 years and the Romantic period, also 90 years. And then there was modern music.

Radios and phonographs spread music across the world. There is an explosion of new musical genres. Jazz rises to the fore in the early part of the 20th century and leads on into blues and roots, themselves informed by the black gospel tradition. Boogie woogie is a white pastime. Rock is birthed from blues and ska is birthed from rock, heard tinnily on Caribbean receivers – this leads into the righteous reggae tradition. Rock music becomes the dominant paradigm from the 50s onwards, running alongside folk music during the 60s and early 70s. Suddenly technology brings us synths and disco arises like a giant flaming drag queen in the night. Heavy metal, progressive rock, disco, punk – the 70s is alive with variety, a burgeoning ecosystem of music. New wave takes over from punk and the 80s is replete with early electronic music, some of it awful, some of it genius, all of it brand spanking new.

Look at the difference between ‘76 and ‘91. 25 years is the difference between The Sex Pistols and Nirvana. Then take ‘91 to ‘06. What’s the difference? Not very much.

The development of music technology has allowed further refinements of existing genres, but that seems to be all the collective genius of humanity is able to achieve. Look at the accelerating development of music from 500 to 1990. The development is almost exponential – 900 years, 200 years, 160 years, 90 years, the 20th century’s brilliant burst, then… nothing.

Yes, electronic music is relatively new. But not much has been done with it besides the collating and re-arranging of recent melodies, rhythms and themes. We seem to be stuck in nostalgia, unable to move forward, to move away from the spectacle that lies behind us. Is that the reason? Is it simply that the 20th century was the golden age of music, the likes of which will never come again? If not, then why?

Producing an exact replica of the Mona Lisa using modern materials is a technically challenging task, but it requires little or no creativity. I don’t know how to spur our musicians on to greater heights, but I certainly know that imitating the past is always a mistake. That is why most of the music I hear these days is met by my cynicism. I’ve heard it before.

Featuring a plot ripped directly from the back of a cornflakes packet and set and costume design worthy of Nero’s orgies, it’s an example of the bad taste that grips America and its loyal allies and shakes, until you don’t even want to be human anymore.

The video is below for those of you without neural function.

[Courtesy of the musical taste-impaired Popbytes.]

Recent live shows have seen them best confuse the two, playing beautifully-constructed songs torn apart by fuzztone jams and odd electronics.

After three acclaimed albums with The Strokes, his latest release has been hailed completely beguiling and showcases his trademark raw energy, effortless cool and tantalising guitar riffs melded with daring yet appropriate electronic flourishes.

He has become credited and known to both critics and fans as an innovative composer, mesmerizing performer and all-round genuine rock star.

JULIAN CASABLANCAS TOUR DATES
Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney – May 2010

Pre-sale from Wednesday 17 March, 12 noon AEDT– Thursday 18 March, 12 noon AEDT
General public on-sale from Tuesday 23 March, 9am local time

Thursday 6th May
The Tivoli, Brisbane
Tickets: Ticketek 132 849 or www.ticketek.com.au

Friday 7th May
Palace Theatre, Melbourne
Tickets: Ticketek 132 849 or www.ticketek.com.au

Sunday 9th May
Metro Theatre, Sydney
Tickets: Ticketek 132 849 or www.ticketek.com.au, Metro Theatre 02 9550 3666 or www.metrotheatre.com.au

‘Dick Chicken’ is the tale of an empowered, escapee piece of fried chicken who rises to the top against the odds, and turns the tables on the chicken-munching public. NSFW WARNING: This video has been rated M!

Abbey Road Live have announced that they will be recording The Pixies on their entire New Zealand and Australian Doolittle Live tour, offering high quality CD sets to fans immediately after each show.

The recordings are strictly limited to around 1000 per night, and some are available for pre-purchase via www.doolittlelive.com, with the balance for sale at the show.

I’ve ordered mine, and as far as I can tell you don’t actually have to show proof that you’re heading to the gig in order to purchase a CD. There’s an option to have the recording shipped to your house, so for all those who couldn’t afford tickets, this just might be a cool way to experience the shows on the cheap.

The only question then would be, which of their three Sydney shows will be the best?

This is Wagons last run of headline shows before stepping back into the studio to continue working on the follow up to ‘The Rise And Fall Of Goodtown’. If both band’s unabashed whisky-swilling and rough and ready on-stage antics are anything to go by, they believe that above all else music should be fun. We’ll drink to that!

WAGONS & THOSE DARLINS EAST COAST STAMPEDE!

Wednesday 26th May
Beach Road Hotel, Sydney

Friday 28th May
Annandale Hotel, Sydney

Saturday 29th May
Clarendon Hotel, Katoomba

Sunday 30th May
Brass Monkey, Cronulla

Wednesday 2nd June
Ruby’s, Belgrave

Thursday 3rd June
The Theatre Royal, Castlemaine

Friday 4th June
The National Hotel, Geelong

Saturday 5th June
The Corner Hotel, Melbourne

Sunday 6th June
The Corner Hotel, Melbourne

Every ticket purchased receives free Wagons/Those Darlins Digital E.P. featuring unreleased exclusives and live recorded rarities! Tickets are available now from www.lovepolice.com