FIVE FAVOURITES: Das Beat

Formed during lockdown in 2020 to counteract chronic boredom and reignite their creative spark, Berlin-based duo Das Beat craft quirky electronic tunes with an indie disco edge. Together, German actress & vocalist Eddie Rabenberger and Canadian musician Agor (Blue Hawaii) blend elements of new wave, synth pop and disco to create their playful and provocative tunes, which culminated in the release of their debut EP, Identität, earlier this year.

We think one of the best ways to get to know a band is by asking what music inspired them to write in the first place. We caught up with Eddie to ask her about her “Five Favourites” – five songs that have inspired her song-writing techniques. Check out her choices below and scroll down to listen to Das Beat’s single ‘Jackie’ at the end of this post.

 

1. John Cale – ‘Dying on the Vine’ (Accoustic Version)
This song has been one of my favourites for many years. I can’t help but to default to it when I am with a group of friends and everyone starts playing songs for each other. The version I love is from a live concert Cale plays with Nick Cave, only piano and vocals. It’s a great concert but especially this song sticks out to me. I love the rhythm of the voice and the lyrics. It just makes me happy and a little sad and that’s the way I love it.

2. Luis Ake – ‘Liebe’
I must mention this amazing German contemporary artist. He writes beautiful lyrics and songs. Especially in the new song ‘Liebe’ it all comes beautifully together to me. This song is about falling out of love with someone but instead when you listen you just have to fall in love with the music. There is also a great music video made from Tereza Mundilova, it’s super and I definitely recommend watching and letting yourself be carried away by the beautiful tunes of Luis Ake.

3. Brutalismus 3000 – ‘Good Girl’
A new band from the Berlin underground scene. But I am sure soon they will be known internationally. You listen to the music and you wanna dance – this is what being in a club should sound like. Amazing beats by Theo Zeitner joined by the incredible vocalist Victoria Daldas. When I listen to their songs it makes me feel powerful and strong and on top of the world. This song is about how impossible it is to be a “good girl” and that as a woman you can not do anything right, you’re always blamed for the actions of others. It is simple but genius and I hope soon everyone will party to this gorgeous music.

4. Gina X Performance – ‘Be a Boy’
Such an icon. Gina Kikoin is such a wonderful queer figure from the German 80`s scene. The song gave me strength as a little girl, not having to be the classical girl that society wanted. Helping to break out of gender conformity. Now I feel more secure with my self and also my “femininity”, but Gina X Performance definitely helped me on the way to define myself on my own terms, not others. It was a little hard here to choose one song, because to be honest all her albums are great.

5. Grace Jones – ‘I’ve Seen That Face Before’
Every time this song comes on it gives me the goosebumps, it’s so mystical and elegant. My fantasy immediately goes wild and then Grace’s beautiful voice comes in and I am gone. I can connect with the feeling and the lyrics. I love Grace Jones and it would be crazy not to mention her here.

Thanks to Eddie for sharing her favourites with us!

Follow Das Beat on Spotify & Instagram for more updates.

Photo Credit: Peter Zeitner

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Five Favourites: Oh Baby

Having charmed our ears with the slick sounds of their last single ‘Cruel Intention’, London-Manchester duo Oh Baby are set to release their new album Hey Genius later this month.

Consisting of Jen Devereux and Rick Hornby, the duo have now shared another taster of the forthcoming album. ‘L.I.A.R‘ flows with a swirling, euphoric haze as Devereux’s rich, sultry vocals are accompanied by a majestic, ’80s-inspired glitchy drive. An utterly captivating, truly blissful, summer anthem leaving us eager to hear the album in full.

We think one of the best ways to get to know an artist is by asking what music inspired them to write in the first place. So, to mark the release of Hey Genius later this month, we caught up with Jen to ask about her “Five Favourites” – five songs that have shaped her as a musician. Check out her choices below and scroll down to listen to new single ‘L.I.A.R’.

Philip Oakley & Giorgio Moroder – ‘Together In Electric Dreams’
As far back as I can remember I have had a major thing for this song and it still has the same effect on me now when listening to it that it did the first time I heard its muffled tone playing through my bedroom wall from the next door room. It made my world stop for a second. It’s melancholic but euphoric and romantic all at once, a combination I still find fascinating. Right from the first notes of the intro, I swear my heart beats a little faster wherever I am. The rising chord progression is totally addictive. The other worldly “together in electric dreams” lyric captivated me, whilst the melody underneath was lifting, the sentiment was lost lovers and missed nights together – this juxtaposition turned something on in me which has never turned off. The classic fade out where the vocal continues makes you feel like you’re being dragged away from the party early, doing its job brilliantly. For me it’s been an unfaltering musical constant, showing that perfection can exist in its own way, and this for me, is it. I guess this was my first introduction to Phil Oakey, Giorgio Moroder and electronic music in general, little did I know how important the tiny markers this song would leave on me would be. 

Cole Porter – ‘You’re The Top’
I got taken to musicals in London when I was young and I found the excitement of being inside a theatre pretty intoxicating. I suppose that, coupled with seeing the cliched ‘big city lights’ in sharp contrast to the endless grey North I mostly experienced growing up, made it all the more attractive. The smell of it, the sounds, the stage, the orchestra pit, the hum of a settling audience, the lights through darkness, I loved it. It was three hours of escapism and like a shot of liquid gold. Granted, the music written for musicals is pretty far removed from the stuff Rick and I are writing now but Cole Porter especially has a mesmerising way with words and how he marries them together – it’s a pure joy to listen to. I’m not ashamed to say I still know every word from this musical Anything Goes, but this particular song stands out. It’s totally relentless; it illustrated to me rhythm, rhyme and humour, also the art of the call and answer, how the opposites, the dark and light, are all so important in good music. He’s a clever sod. 

Madonna – ‘Borderline’
So this track evokes the smell of hot tarmac pavements and roadworks, petrol fumes, long hot summers when the back door seemed to be constantly open – carefree hanging around, freshly mown grass, back to back houses on endless streets, but most importantly being in love with a particular older girl on the street who just so happened to be obsessed with Madonna. ‘Borderline’ naturally became my soundtrack to all of the above. Her young American voice sounded so exotic, cutting into my life like a bolt of lightning. It woke me up to what I wanted on many levels; back then I had no way of knowing how I could get it, but knowing you actually do want something is a bloody good start. The sound of that bass line coupled with her high vocal riding over was so alluring and so sexy. I had no clue what it was all about but as a result of that feeling it gave me, I was and still remain totally hooked. 

Kate Bush – ‘Running Up That Hill’  
A huge amount of what intrigues me and makes me feel something, also scares me. Strong women, whilst being totally inspiring, also scared me half to death, and Kate Bush was no exception. Watching her red lips and masses of dark hair and her untouchable womanly persona – the strangeness of this music video too – I found it wonderfully terrifying. I liken it to sitting through a horror film with your eyes closed and fingers in your ears, you don’t want to see or hear it but you can’t switch it off as there’s a part of the whole experience that is totally thrilling. This track is the one that is just too damn good. I’m not a massive fan of the over used label ‘genius’, but I think this track certainly warrants the word to be close by. As soon as I hear the first beat it’s slightly overwhelming to be honest. The drums, that lyric, those sounds she’s recorded using a bloody Fairlight. Oh bugger it, it’s genius. Now, she really is a clever sod. 

The Police – ‘Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic’
My older brother had a house party – I’m seven years younger, so this for me was brilliant. For a lot of his friends it was their first proper party they’d have been to with girls and boys and music and stolen alcohol, so that electric young teenage excitement was palpable. I felt and heard it all through the floorboards of my bedroom and I totally soaked it up. They played The Police Greatest Hits – loud. I didn’t sleep, I just listened – I can’t have been more than 7 or 8 years old. I asked some of the older kids about the music they’d been playing the next morning and that was my introduction to one of the greatest bands I know. This particular song is just wonderful. Only three people, making that sound, the way he sings over that fade out outro with yet another melody – “it’s a big enough umbrella but it’s always me that ends up getting wet” – what can I say. The way Copeland smacks the living daylights out of that snare, the weird piano, I mean come on. Let’s hope even a tiny amount of greatness from this possibly seeps into what we do as Oh Baby, ‘cos put this on and I. Will. Dance.

Massive thanks to Jen from Oh Baby for sharing her Five Favourites! Upcoming album Hey Genius is set for release on 23rd July via Burning Witches Records. Pre-order here and listen to new single ‘L.I.A.R’ below:

You can also catch Oh Baby live at The Lexington to celebrate their album release on 23rd July. Tickets here.

Photo Credit: Karen Hornby

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PREMIERE: Arnie Wrong – ‘Not My Job’

Having been recommended to us by LGBTQIA+ electro-pop duo CRISP&CLASSY earlier this year, London based Baltic songwriter and producer Arnie Wrong has now announced the release of her upcoming second EP, Strange Love, and shared a brand new single.

Taken from the EP, ‘Not My Job’ offers a sweeping, ethereal soundscape, with poignant lyricism reflecting on a toxic relationship. As twinkling hooks flow alongside driving glitchy beats and Arnie’s luscious, crystalline vocals, a shimmering, heartfelt slice of electro-pop is created. With shades of the empowering, effervescent allure of La Roux, ‘Not My Job’ builds with a sparkling energy and swirling musicality, resulting in a truly euphoric sonic delight; a glistening ode to self love and moving on. Of the track, Arnie explains:

“It’s about realising, from a perspective of time, that a relationship was toxic and one sided… It’s about realising it’s not your responsibility to stand by people who refuse to get their shit together, and moving swiftly on. It’s about unsubscribing from an old mindset of self-abandonment in relationships… realising that it was harmful and graduating to a higher level of self-love and self-interest.”

Listen to ‘Not My Job’, for the first time, here:

‘Not My Job’ is out tomorrow, 9th July via Bad Life.

Mari Lane
@marimindles

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GIHE Behind The Scenes: Mercury KX

Founded in 2017 to support artists in the alternative classical and electronic music spheres, Mercury KX celebrated its 4th anniversary earlier this year. Sitting under the Universal Music Group/Decca Records banner, label Co-managers Cerys Weetch and Hildur Maral have helped to build an eclectic, boundary-pushing roster that includes international talents such as Ólafur Arnalds, Anoushka Shankar, Sophie Hutchings, Isobel Waller-Bridge, Luke Howard, Keaton Henson, Josin and more.

Our ‘Behind The Scenes’ series focuses on the women who work off-stage to help bring our favourite music to our ears. We caught up with Cerys and Hildur to talk about how they first met, the foundations for Mercury KX and their experiences of working within the music industry so far.

Hello Cerys & Hildur! Talk us through where the inspiration for Mercury KX came from and what it’s like working under the Decca Records banner.

Cerys: I met Hildur two years ago when she interviewed for the marketing role at Mercury KX. Immediately after the interview we went to Decca Records’ 90th birthday party and had an amazing time getting to know each other, learning about the rich history of the label and the passion we both have for all types of music.

Prior to the launch of the label, I was an A&R manager for global classics & jazz division. We needed to launch the label and it came about very organically, as we saw first hand that there wasn’t a space within a major that reflected and resonated with the artists we wanted to sign. We were already representing Ólafur Arnalds and already part of helping the modern classical culture grow as well as having a deep knowledge and affinity with the fanbase. The label sits within Decca, the perfect home, and it was important to us that we created a label that represented an area of music that is not pop or core classical – that this music was more closely aligned with alternative and electronic music and had the freedom to go in those directions. So we took a long time ensuring the branding and messaging was just right for the artists and the fans.

Hildur: I initially heard about an open position at Mercury KX from Ólafur, actually. We’ve been friends for years and always wanted to collaborate. I was finishing my Master’s degree at Berklee in Spain at the time so hadn’t really planned on relocating to London, but when I looked into the opportunity I quickly realized it was a perfect fit and just had to apply. Not only because I really love the music and the roster, but part of my background has been running avant-garde indie labels such as Bedroom Community and figureight records, so it felt like the perfect next step for me.

Cerys: I studied music (Jazz, Pop & Classical) at University of Southampton and as soon as I graduated, I got through several rounds of interviews and got an A&R Internship at Decca Classics (2013). I got the call whilst I was at Bestival and the news I had got the job made for an amazing night of celebrating. I’ve been in this area of the company ever since, moving between all angles of how a label works from marketing, production to organising large scale orchestral recordings and then eventually into A&R and setting up Mercury KX.

Who was the first act you signed to your label?

Cerys: We started with Ólafur Arnalds! We then signed Luke Howard, whose beautiful music I’ve been a fan of for a while as well as a few other colleagues who urged us to sign him.

Mercury KX releases music from an eclectic range of artists. How do you decide who to support and work with? You must receive lots of submissions and requests from artists.

Cerys: We do get a lot of submissions and I wish I had the time to go through all of them. With instrumental/alternative music, it’s incredibly important for those artists to go beyond just “great music” and have a unique sound world that belongs to them. They must have a message that resonates, a world class creative vision and control over the world they create around them. Many of our artists are multi-disciplinary either in music or other artforms – graphic designers, photographers, film makers.

Hildur: It’s an incredible feeling seeing the people you work with get the recognition they deserve. We obviously believe in our artists and their art, so there’s nothing better than seeing it resonate with others too. My favourite feeling is seeing this manifest in live settings, surrounded by likeminded people experiencing the beauty of music together. Can’t be topped.

What are the challenges and rewards that come with running a boutique label like Mercury KX?

Cerys: We work in quite a niche genre, so it will always be a challenge to get attention on a more pop scale but we LOVE that challenge. When you see and artist really gaining commercial and critical success. The rewards are being reminded hat there is a place for music left of centre and there is an audience eating it up! Olafur Arnalds’ album some kind of peace, got 5 star reviews, album of the year nods and had chart placements in the UK, USA and Australia. You dream of all that and work for it, but when it actually happens it shows we’re doing something right!

Do you have any advice for people who are considering starting up their own label?

Cerys: It’s a tough landscape and we’re lucky to be within UMG & Decca. Before starting, I’d say set out 3 clear goals and 3 core values to understand WHY you are launching a label, and what about the model makes it a compelling proposition for amazing artists.

Hildur: I have so much respect for people who take on the project of launching a label. It’s incredibly hard work to run an indie label as it touches on so many things within the industry, and you’ll need to be extremely passionate about every act on the roster. Build a good team around you – get mentors to advise you and interns to help you create something great. Start small and reasonable and grow steadily over time. Make sure your book-keeping is on point, flex those organizational skills!

Covid-19 has had an enormous impact on the music industry. How have you been coping and working through it?

Hildur: It’s definitely not been easy working from home for over the last year, but I do feel fortunate that we’ve been able to keep going and have not been impacted as heavily as some of ours friends in the music industry. I mostly miss the personal connection with my colleagues and our artists, but our artists have truly been amazing, producing some of their most incredible work to date under these extraordinary circumstances and I feel very lucky to be able to play a part in sharing that music with the world. For me, what’s helped is regular walks and making time for stretching and mindfulness, in whatever form.

Finally, are there any artists on your roster, or on other labels that you recommend we check out? Or other labels who you admire?

Cerys: I’ve recently been introduced to Vinylmeplease who are an online label-come-retailer that focus on high end physical product. They always have some amazing gems and it’s great for discovering music you wouldn’t usually come across.

Hildur: For a quick sonic journey into our roster check out the Birthday Playlist we created this year. My newest label discovery is Luaka Bop, founded by David Byrne in 1988. What brought them to my attention was the masterpiece that is 2021’s album Promises by Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders & The London Symphony Orchestra, which quickly got added to my all time favourite albums.

Thank you to Cerys & Hildur for sharing their experiences with us.

Follow Mercury KX on Twitter, Instagram & Facebook for more updates.

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