Tag: Ladytron (Page 8 of 8)

LADYTRON Gravity The Seducer

28 August 2011 /

Warm, rich, evocative and quietly rebellious; ‘Gravity The Seducer’ could be the sound of Phil Spector in the 23rd Century and all this from a long player recorded in Chatham!

With more time to think musically about their next opus without the pressure of being out on the road, ‘Gravity The Seducer’ may well be LADYTRON’s most sedate album yet but it is also ambitious in its grandeur, described in Daniel Hunt’s own words as “baroque ‘n’ roll”.

Like the song from which they got their name, it could even be perceived as Eno-esque.

So LADYTRON have now entered their Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood phase, hardly surprising as the foursome used to walk on stage to the obscure magnificence of ‘Some Velvet Morning’. Daniel Hunt and Reuben Wu, both sporting their hippified facial fuzz, could easily be Lee while the vampish glamour that Helen Marnie and Mira Aroyo have been aspiring to, casts them obviously as Nancy.

This album could even be a synthetic take on LOVE’s ‘Forever Changes’; ‘Gravity The Seducer’ is both blissfully sun kissed and optimistic whereas much of their previous work possessed a haunting Cold War spectre that was distinctly more dystopian. With a deliciously cerebral flavour, this album is fantasy pop with the odd psychedelic overtone thrown in. Mira Aroyo said that the new material was “more atmospheric”.

Thus the opener ‘White Elephant’, so titled after the nickname for the vintage Moog Cordovox dual keyboard used on the album, is deeply melodic with some wonderfully shimmering strings, brass lines and harpsichord runs. A statement of intent, it is the complete antithesis of the bombastic attack of LADYTRON’s last album ‘Velocifero’.

The widescreen timbres of new single ‘Mirage’ complimented by woodwinds might confuse some fans of ‘Velocifero’, but this is a catchy tune in keeping with this album’s warmer outlook. And don’t forget, many of KRAFTWERK’s classic melodies were based around the aural structures of the flute.

With thoughtful dynamics and room to breathe, the quartet are given the chance to explore and they do that rather well. The mightily percussive ‘White Gold’ could be their own tribute to PROPAGANDA as thunderous drums enter a third of the way through over a simple drum box pattern to side chain alongside the gated rhythm pulses, muted guitar and ‘Ice Machine’ colours of deception.

‘Ace Of Hz’ isn’t that much different from the version that was released earlier this year on the ’00-10′ compilation, but it’s still dreamy and easy on the ear with Helen Marnie’s vibratoed vocals bathed in sophisticated electronics.

The fastest paced offering on the album, ‘Ritual’ is instrumental syncopated New Romantic disco in the manner of DURAN DURAN attempting ‘To Cut A Long Story Short’. It acts as a brash interlude before a bizarre mid-album lull; Mira Aroyo is strangely off-key trying to sing instead of snarling on the piano led ‘Moon Palace’ that follows.

A gentler monologue from Aroyo on ‘Altitude Blues’ however is much better with its hints of MOBY in the sweeping backing. But perhaps due to the less aggressive material that forms the majority of ‘Gravity The Seducer’, it is Aroyo’s two leads that are possibly the album’s disappointments. Whereas Aroyo was a dominant figure vocally on ‘Velocifero’. it is Helen Marnie’s sweeter tones that suit better the much less frantic template of ‘Gravity The Seducer’. If ‘Velocifero’ was Aroyo’s album, then ‘Gravity The Seducer’ is very much Marnie’s.

But it all snaps back with the beautiful masterpiece that is ‘Ambulances’. A fulsome epic drama that musically echoes SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES in their more orchestrated moments, Marnie’s voice takes on an unexpected angelic register over the delectable, spacious blend of acoustic and electronic instruments.

The magnificent crescendo is really something to be savoured. ‘Melting Ice’ is a fantastic James Bond theme in the making, full of tension and action packed cinematic energy; it is perhaps one of the more immediate tracks on the album. Sparkling with arpeggios and a range of squawky sounds, one can imagine the opening sequence for this movie with Marnie and Aroyo playing the role of highly seductive, ruthless assassins.

As the second of the instrumental interludes, ‘Transparent Days’ is a spacey hypnotic collage rising to a crest of rolling toms, buzzing vintage synths and crystalline vibes accompanied by some lovely choir girl stylings. It sounds like somthing you’d expect to accompany one of those wiggly arthouse animations they used to show on BBC2. The organic ’90 Degrees’ takes the pace right down and bridges into a discordant chorus despite the fairly conventional verse topline. The piercing string machines add to the unsettlement but the end result is strangely uplifting.

To finish the album, there’s ‘Aces High’, an alternate wordless variation of ‘Ace Of Hz’ that is akin to a groove laden jam performed by The Mysterons following a pounds, shillings and pence windfall! Can you imagine Captain Black (any relation to Miss Black & Her Friends?) experimenting with mind expansion? Marvellous!

Yes, ‘Gravity The Seducer’ IS different from all previous LADYTRON albums. It may primary be mid-paced and possibly underwhelming to some on first listen. But then again, there are heaps of fulfilment for those who are prepared to look above the instant gratification of loud drums and accelerated tempos.

Worthy investment is required on the part of the listener. This is a carefully crafted, lovingly arranged body of work. And it is an artistic journey; you might want to get off at the start because you’re not used to the ethereal and otherworldly soundscapes flying by. But if you can get used to the ride, it could be the one of the best neo-psychotropic trips you have ever been on in this particular vehicle!

Daniel Hunt says: “I feel it’s the most perfect work we’ve done“. While it is not perfect, ‘Gravity The Seducer’ is among LADYTRON’s best and admirably, is without doubt their most adventurous.

‘Gravity The Seducer’ is released on 12th September 2011 by Nettwerk Productions

With grateful thanks to Sarah Richardson at Anorak London

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Text by Chi Ming Lai
28th August 2011

LADYTRON Live at HMV Forum

14 June 2011 /

Korg is a four letter word, but then so is love. According to BRIAN ENO who played on the original ROXY MUSIC track that gave them their name, LADYTRON are “the best of English pop music”.  

When LADYTRON first appeared towards the end of the 20th Century, the music scene was dominated by the post-Britpop hangover, TRAVIS and STEREOPHONICS were considered to be cutting edge by the music media and no-one would touch synthesizers with a bargepole!

But from Liverpool came Daniel Hunt and Reuben Wu who recorded their debut single ‘He Took Her To A Movie’ in 1998 under the name LADYTRON with vocalist Lisa Eriksson, who sang at their early gigs and later went on to form TECHNO SQUIRRELS. Released in its own right via Daniel Hunt’s own label Invicta Hi-Fi in 1999, it became an NME Single Of The Week.

Then that summer, the duo met Helen Marnie and Mira Aroyo who joined to form the mysterious multi-cultural electronic foursome that we all know today. Initially all clothed in stark terrorist chic meets the catwalk attire, much to the chagrin of the rock press, not only were LADYTRON using vintage synths like the Korg MS10, Sequential Pro-One and Jen SX1000,they also had two girls fronting the band. The synthpop sound was heard by a younger generation for the very first time while Helen and Mira became role models for many young women.

After four albums, the quartet recently celebrated their first decade together with a compilation entitled ’00-10′ spanning the many highlights from their catalogue. Maintaining an artistic integrity through sticking to their principles and avoiding being pigeonholed, LADYTRON have managed to pull off that rare feat of being an electronic based act that appeals to rockers, emos, indie kids and synthpopsters alike.

Starting with the catchy riff laden ‘Runaway’, the sound was immediately powerful and punchy, but not as bombastic as their shows in 2008. In a period where live performances have been on LED screen overload, LADYTRON opted instead for an awesome laser show pulling all manner of fluid shapes and sharp spiky beams. Launching then into two tracks of high amplitude, ‘High Rise’ attacked while surprisingly ‘Ghost’ cut more politely with less overtly rockist overtones.

In fact, there were several other clues to the move away from the loudness war of their previous album. Daniel Hunt eschewed the E-Bowed guitar he was practically glued to during the ‘Velocifero’ tour and returned to manning synths; in his case, an evergreen Korg MS10 and a rare Crumar Stratus. Gone too was the live bassist although a Flesh & Blood sticksman remained for percussive duties.

Meanwhile, a bequiffed Reuben Wu quietly played the moody synth wizard, fingering magnificent triple oscillator envelopes on his Moog Voyager. Mira and Helen took their usual roles out front and shared a Korg MS20 and Korg Delta between them, with more abstract squelch games coming via the former while the latter contributed more organic pads and solos.

The set was varied and drawn from all of their albums. ‘International Dateline’, one of the highlights from ‘Witching Hour’, was almost electro-goth Motown and very danceable despite the heavy backbone. ‘Soft Power’ added some subtlety to proceedings while a tremendous trio of numbers came with Mira’s distinctive Bulgarian over the mechanical buzz of ‘True Mathematics’, a fabulously frantic cover of DEATH IN JUNE’s ‘Little Black Angel’ and old favourite ‘Discotraxx’ with its hypnotic claptrap fill.

Throughout tonight, the tremendous fusion of backlighting, strobes and lasers gave the most perfect visual focus to the music. However ‘Season Of Illusions’ lost the audience temporarily although it was all grabbed back with the wonderful ‘Ace Of Hz’, the most recent single that will be reworked for the forthcoming album ‘Gravity The Seducer’.

The main act conclusion came with some more spy drama tension from Mira on ‘Fighting In Built Up Areas’ before ‘Seventeen’ which was as sinister and enjoyable as ever. Here, Helen provided a more cynical snarl in her live intonation than on the whispered girly tones of the studio incarnation while Mira sternly counterpointed in her sexy deadpan manner. Nearly ten years on, ‘Seventeen’ perfectly captures the current shallow obsession with reality TV and celebrity culture.

Mean, moody and restless, the encore of brilliant new single ‘White Elephant’ was LADYTRON at their most sedate yet. Richly melodic with wonderfully dreamy, almost psychedelic textures, it was the complete antithesis of the in-your-face approach of ‘Velocifero’.

Next though, it was back to the debut ‘604’ album as ‘Playgirl’ ripped with its octave shift bass but in a much looser fashion compared to its original recording thanks to the live drumming.

But to finish, there was the magnificent ‘Destroy Everything You Touch’. Totally glorious and sensational, the mind blowing synchronised laser display and strobes totally complimented what has always sounded like the backing to a Cold War rave. With some brief rock ‘n’ roll histrionics that even had Helen climbing the drum riser and punching the air to finish, it was all over!

Short but sweet, this series of dates are probably the end of a great era for LADYTRON. The next time they play live, it could all be very different. Daniel Hunt has said that “‘Gravity The Seducer’ is more of a jump than the last album was, more ethereal and melodic, a touch more abstract in places than we’ve gone before, baroque ‘n’ roll. It was a pleasure to make, took us right through last summer. It’s our best record in my opinion”.

‘Gravity The Seducer’ will be released by Nettwerk Productions in September 2011; ’00-10′ is available now.

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Text by Chi Ming Lai
Photos by Richard Price and Steve Gray
14th June 2011

JOHN FOXX & THE MATHS Interplay

7 March 2011 /

‘Interplay’, the new album from JOHN FOXX & THE MATHS, sees a return to his ‘Metamatic’ framework, and yet oozes contemporary electro aesthetics.

Containing tracks suitable for dancefloors and yet encouraging with the seductive warmth of Benge’s magnificent analogue studio the donning of headphones in repose, this album is a marked jump into digestible territory from his recent ‘D.N.A’ release. And yet, it is classically ‘Foxx’, whilst still referencing DAF and KRAFTWERK, his early ULTRAVOX work, and nodding to the electro legacy his early work brought forth.

For appreciators of a strong synth melody this album is utter heaven, as there is no finer pedigree than vintage analogue for producing warmth and depth, and yet soaring euphoria: this album’s sonic breadth leaves weedy 21st century plug ins in the shade, and listening on a good stereo or through quality headphones is very much encouraged for the ultimate reward.

Lyrically John Foxx is in an intriguing mood: gone is his contemplation of the car crash, the urban isolationist, the failed connection, replaced throughout the album with contemplations of a more philosophical, dare one say spiritual nature. References seem to abound to mythical, mystical places, worlds beyond worlds, shadow lands, dream scapes.

Foxx is taking his imagination beyond his Plazas and grey streets, away from technology and communication, towards something more unknowable: one might almost consider he spent a summer reading Tolkien before getting to work on this album, but that’s not something we should be frightened of. In the hands of Foxx and Benge aka Ben Edwards, the unknowable idea is supported by liquid-like synthetic context, leading us into warm dream, melancholy introversion, and not always, but definitely sometimes to the dancefloor to shake out the cobwebs of stranger places.

“Songs were most often generated in response to Ben’s beautiful, rich arpeggios and patterns” recalled Foxx, “Themes basically concern a man, a woman and a city. Tried to make most of the vocals sound like a crackling phonecall from a lost city, or some sudden electrical ghost too close to your ear”. And in the ultimate compliment: “Intelligent, knowledgeable, technically blinding. He does remind me of Conny Plank. Same generosity and ability, same civilized manner – even looks similar”

Photo by Ed Fielding

‘Shatterproof’ is uncharacteristically dark and body music influenced, as though Foxx has been sitting with DAF concocting ideas in a dark club corner. Snarling vocals announce our vulnerability: we are not shatterproof.

And Foxx’s vocals are delayed, stretched, distorted. It has a menace beyond the usual clinicism… like a mad scientist, an egotistical maniac announcing his awareness of a victim’s weak points. Cowbells and claps nod to electro in a classic manner, but this could easily sit alongside recent the recent CHRIS & COSEY release on Optimo, in that it explores a darker, more uneasy sonic territory.

The vocal treatment and synth fizz and phase all sit uneasily over a dark brooding synth stab and a NITZER EBB-like arpeggio. An album standout and no better way to introduce John Foxx’s current aesthetic – the vintage / ultra-contemporary electro nexus.

Meanwhile ‘Catwalk’ seems like a more muscular version of ‘Metamatic’, of cities, of observing from a distance, a semi-critical assessment of lives lived in a big city. Specifically, this track speaks of the high-money world of a catwalk model, the fiction, the cheaply sold dreams sold on YouTube, or Fashion TV. It’s almost MISS KITTIN-esque in quality, with the repeated bassy progressions holding this track in place, with sparse drums and a relatively simple tale to tell.

It’s catchy, nods towards a dancefloor, and perhaps is as destined for the catwalk it describes, due to its almost ambivalently presented critique of glamour life. The analogue is very contemporised here, no vintage feel, and if any, this track seems to me the odd one out on the album, although ‘Shatterproof’ has also been nodded at as a-typical by some critics. But for me this seems like a far frothier souffle – not that being light hearted is a problem, it just lies far outside the metaphysical contemplation which pervades ‘Interplay’.

The very melodic ‘Evergreen’ is almost jaunty, calling to mind Foxx’s ‘In Mysterious Ways’ period with heavy vocoder, light synth wash, and tales of mythical trees. Vince Clarke can almost be perceived in the melodic counterpoint, certainly this recalled early DEPECHE MODE instrumentals more than anything.

Sentiments speak of a park, trees, a mythical forest… a physical place, almost like the Viking Valhalla or Tolkien’s Lothlorien. It’s certainly not urban, not city bound, not isolationist. “I’ll look for you and perhaps you’ll look for me”. A You… a dream place… very human. Almost looking at organic, humanist issues.

With the presence of Mira from LADYTRON, ‘Watching a Building On Fire’ could perhaps be the most anticipated track on the entire album. It opens with almost a YELLO like cabaret swagger and an odd latinesque Roland 727 style drum pattern, and then reveals itself as almost the ultimate duet. Foxx said: “I’ve wanted to do a song with her for some time. These particular circumstances seemed right – London analogue studio. We invited her to the studio. She was tough, friendly, gentle, critical and contributing. She brought in some great monosynth parts. You couldn’t fail to get something good out of them.”

We’ve heard HEAVEN 17 and LA ROUX, GARY NUMAN and LITTLE BOOTS, but both pale in comparison to these two luminaries combining. The track oozes a synthetic smokiness and more than a little camp with their duet, and then courtesy of the wonders of vocoding, Foxx almost self duets. The metaphor of a “building on fire” alludes to entropy… smoky danger, lovers. There’s almost an amusing camp to this track, and one can hear more than a touch of Boris Blank in the shadows, a digital – or should I say analogue – noir torch song in there somewhere… Mira’s role is restrained, but also a something of a kittenish burlesque turn.

The title track is downtempo, also quite theatrical, atmospheric, contemplative but almost cabaret… JAPAN or Sylvian influences abound in the space and the bass noises, where analogue sounds like rain. Foxx sings this time without the vocoder, but vocally in croon mode. This track is not far stretched from a short interlude, which given its beauty is quite a shame, lamenting that the relationship between things can often not be calculated… there is chaos, and all things that can be calculated and predicted can become uncontrolled when in ‘Interplay’. Synthesis? Human relationships? Science? Whichever it is, the Meta(matic)physics continue to dominate this albums themes.

A shuffling beat gives ‘Summerland’ contemporary references with GOLDFRAPP, LADYTRON and even some melodic German techno. The arpeggios fall without obvious force, keeping the swing soft yet insistent, ‘Summerland’ – another reference to Viking mythology, dreams: “wake me up when we arrive”.

He speaks of coincidence, leading to the sea. Is it a real place? A dream land? ‘Summerland’ for the Norse was Valhalla, the Fortunate Island. Sonically it soars, but not overbearingly. By tracks end I am, in fact, in ‘Summerland’, facing the sea.

The Running Man with its upfront instrumentation is very contemporary future pop-ish, but with a very early ULTRAVOX feel on the vocals, pacing and the feel, ‘The Running Man’ sounds push forward, seem urgent. And yet, it remains very dancefloor friendly. There’s a ‘Metamatic’ style melodic soaring, and the track’s lyric thematic link politics, science fiction, the idea of energy and intent, a metaphor for information? One of the tracks on the album that is begging a remix for clubland. The breakdown is decisively dancefloor, with shades of the very early days. It wouldn’t be out of place next to COVENANT and yet displays a classic cold-war techno-paranoia reminiscent of the classic days of ULTRAVOX and early Foxx.

An almost Bowie-esque vocal delivery, over a very quiet and contemplative classic electro background, ‘A Falling Star’ is sbout a mythic person – larger than life, linked to the elements, never changing. Another line about “no one could find you” – this album is full of references to attempting to find someone, or something. The unknown, but always here. Mysterious but present. The sonic fabric for this is soft, subtle, dreamlike but with an insistent subtle beat, like blood or heart, machine imitating the body’s mechanics.

Our ‘Destination’ is unknown… Foxx in un-vocodered full throttle, almost an Elvis like quality to his hearty singing voice, the accompanying melodics are super sci-fi, a sense of flying through space, a journey… “we leave no traces here, just pass on by”… we begin to wonder whether JOHN FOXX is considering the span of life itself, its journey, destination, meaning, and what is beyond.

Is this album possibly spiritual contemplation from Foxx? Certainly the lyrics and the sound indicate an expansive rumination, rather than the withdrawal from life, the tentative and jaundiced peer around mean cold streets – this is larger than life, both literally and metaphorically. Benge’s analogue arsenal in epic mode,

The album finishes with ‘The Good Shadow’… KRAFTWERK sounding tendrils caress the ears as this track opens with a superb arpeggio which carries this track through its small shimmers, the vocals on this one are heavily treated, to intimate an ethereal feel, as Foxx speaks of himself in the shadows… A contemplative closer, as we watch The Quiet Man close the studio door and disappear into the greying twilight, ready to appear again in another guise.

Worthy of a remix set, and with at least a couple of dancefloor gems in ‘Catwalk’ and ‘The Running Man’, and even a more boisterous EBM nuance in Shatterproof, the album is by one means singular in dimension. Foxx often finds his most effective framework in pop music, managing to make it a grander ideal than mere fodder, and ‘Interplay’ certainly manages that. This album is worthy of a permanent place in your playlist in 2011.

‘Interplay’ uses the following equipment: ARP Odyssey, ARP Omni, ARP Sequencer, Crumar Bit 01, Crumar Multiman, Crumar Roadrunner, DBX 119 compressor, EMT plate 140, Fairlight CMI, Formant Modular, Hohner Pianet T, Ibanez AD80, Korg Monopoly, Korg MS20, Korg PS3100, Lexicon 224, Linn LM1, MCI 416b console, Minimoog, Moog Modular, Polymoog, MXR flanger/doubler, Oberheim Xpander, PAiA Phlanger, Roland 100M, Roland CR78, Roland RS202, Roland SH101, Roland Space Echo 201, Roland TR808, Roland VP330, Sequential T8, Sequential VS, Serge Modular, Simmons SDS5, Studer 900 series console, Ursa Major delay, Yamaha CS30, Yamaha CS80, Yamaha Rev1.

‘Interplay’ is released by Metamatic Records on 21st March 2011

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Text by Nix Lowrey
7th March 2011

LADYTRON Interview

4 March 2011 /

 

In this new age of electro, there is much for synth fans to celebrate. 

However, at the end of the 90s, the music scene was very different. The UK was suffering the hangover from Britpop and guitar-based indie was still ubiquitous.

Thankfully in 1999, four musicians hailing from Liverpool, Glasgow and Bulgaria came together with a passion for vintage synths and a collective desire to buck the musical trend, and LADYTRON was born.

Four albums later, the quartet comprising Helen Marnie, Mira Aroyo, Daniel Hunt and Reuben Wu are celebrating their first decade together with the release of ’00-10′, a compilation spanning their career to date. The album is available in two formats. The standard one-disc version covers most of the singles up to and including the recent ‘Ace Of Hz’ plus brand new track ‘Little Black Angel’, whilst the deluxe two-disc edition also offers a selection of album tracks and rarities, including the B-side and live favourite ‘USA vs White Noise’.

’00-10′ showcases a diverse and remarkable body of work, and traces a clear evolution of sound across LADYTRON’s four albums. Their debut album, ‘604’, was completely electronic, quirky and pulled off the clever trick of sounding both retro and ahead of its time. Early singles ‘Playgirl’ and ‘Discotraxx’, both included here, exude an old-school charm with their syndrums and handclaps, whilst simultaneously heralding the return of the synthesizer to the mainstream.

Second album ‘Light & Magic’ saw the band’s songwriting take a collective step forward, with highlights including the seminal track ‘Seventeen’. The lyric “They only want you when you’re Seventeen. When you’re twenty-one, you’re no fun” has been the subject of much speculation over the years. Is it a satire on the modelling industry, an attack on the vacuous ‘Pop Idol’ culture or simply about old men chasing inappropriately young girls?

Also included here is the psychedelic-tinged single ‘Blue Jeans’, the dancefloor-friendly ‘Evil’ and the album’s magnificent title track, ‘Light & Magic’. on which Helen Marnie’s vocodered tones have an alluring glacial edge.

Perhaps the biggest shift in LADYTRON’s sound came with 2005’s ‘Witching Hour’, which was notable for the introduction of guitars and live drums, resulting in a more organic sound inspired by their live set-up. The album gave rise to the band’s biggest anthem to date, ‘Destroy Everything You Touch’.Several of the album’s finest tracks are included on the two-disc compilation, including the haunting ‘International Dateline’ and the dreamy opus ‘Beauty*2’. For their most recent album, 2008’s ‘Velocifero’, LADYTRON called in Alessandro Cortini for co-production duties. Cortini, who is best known for his work with NINE INCH NAILS, sought to ‘butch up’ the LADYTRON sound.

The result was an enjoyably bombastic affair, with big synth riffs and distorted drums, and a string of the band’s strongest songs to date. ‘Black Cat’, with Mira Aroyo’s vocal in her native Bulgarian over a dystopian soundscape, set the dark tone for ‘Velocifero’. Other highlights include the glam-rock influenced ‘Ghosts’ and infectious single ‘Runaway’. By way of contrast, the wistful and rather lovely ‘Versus’ features a rare vocal duet between Daniel Hunt and Helen Marnie.

Over the last decade, LADYTRON have built a devoted fanbase thanks to their consistently innovative output and compelling live shows. The band have defied all media attempts to label them, whether as electroclash in their early days, or as part of the shoegazing scene circa ‘Witching Hour’. They also pre-empted the wave of female-fronted synthpop by several years, and even today, when the likes of LITTLE BOOTS and LA ROUX have made girls on synths more commonplace, LADYTRON remain in a class of their own.

LADYTRON’s Mira Aroyo took time out answer a few questions put to her by ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about their glorious career which has successfully been maintained through sticking to their principles and avoiding being pigeonholed.

LADYTRON is now 13 years old, how has the journey been for you?

Well it’s actually only about 11-12, but still quite a while. Feels like a life time really, pretty much our whole grown lives. It has been an amazing trip in every sense of the world. I never imagined we would still be here talking about LADYTRON 11 years ago. We have seen a lot of weird and wonderful places, and met and played to a lot of weird and wonderful people. We have developed a lot as people and as musicians as you would probably expect. The world has moved on too. When we started out the term ‘Social Media’ didn’t exist and downloading music was impossible.

The debut ‘604’ was very much a square peg in a round hole on its release as you embraced the synthesizer in an era of indie rock. What was your motivation to take up an electronic based sound, especially when at the time Liverpool’s idea of a great band was THE CORAL or CAST?

We had amassed a collection of synths from flea markets and also studios. They were not anywhere near as expensive as nowadays and we loved the sounds they produced, the way they looked and how tactile they were.

Also at the time, three of us were DJ-ing and we wanted to play a certain type of music and there wasn’t much of it around so we started making it. We were never concerned with what people did around us, but we realised we stuck out at the time and that journalists had problems classifying us.

Was it a conscious decision to have female lead vocals, because it was unusual at that time within electronic music?

We all like girl-fronted pop such as Nancy Sinatra, Francoise Hardy, Bobbie Gentry, Stevie Nicks and many many more like BLONDIE and ABBA. But also we got together; Helen and I were obviously girls and had very distinct and different vocals that worked well together so we used them.

You must have been sick of being labelled ’80s’ during this period just because you used synths? ’80s’ is a most horrible tag isn’t it?

We kind of got a bit tired of it as we were not particularly into ’80s’ music. We liked and were influenced by all sorts of music, but mainly we wanted to make our own music and find our own sound. We were never interested in recreating and fetishising anything. At the same time, people heard synths used in pop and since that rarely happened at that time, people assumed it was ’80s’. Nowadays, synths are all over the mainstream and people see that sound as ‘current’ as opposed to ’80s’.

And you outlived electroclash too?

We felt filed under that label strange too, seeing as we didn’t actually know any of the other musicians who were lumped in together. In a way, it was kind of a fashion cult movement I guess and people expected it to go mainstream but it didn’t at the time. It didn’t die either thoughƒit just mutated into New Rave etc and then it got a bit more successful. We never really fitted into that as the music we made was not really aimed at the dancefloor and we were a band making albums as opposed to DJ/singer combos who made more club orientated tracks. By the time ‘electroclash’ hit the news, we were sitting by the pool in LA working on our second album. Now we are about to release our fifth.

‘604’ appeared to have been recorded in bits over a period of several years. Why was this and when was it that the four of you could actually concentrate on being a band full-time?

We didn’t really know how things were going to go and had no plans. The first few singles and EPs we released were recorded sporadically and were self funded. We were surprised with the praise they received from the media, all 4 of the singles of ‘604’ were ‘Single Of The Week’ in NME.

We then got some money from a Japanese indie label to make a mini LP. Steve Pross, the A&R of Emperor Norton heard it and gave us some more money to record a few more songs and make our first LP. We all had full time jobs at the time too and were doing all of this in our down time. We went full time after we recorded out second album, ‘Light & Magic’, and saw that we would need to start touring if we wanted to promote it.

How did your parents feel about you taking up a music career?

Naturally they were a bit scared and sceptical at first, but they knew it made me happy and that we were taking it seriously so they ended up being supportive.

You took a great bleep forward with ‘Light & Magic’ sounding much grittier…

I’d say we took an even greater leap with ‘Witching Hour’. The reason for that was that after ‘Light & Magic’, we started playing live a lot more and actually became quite good at it and enjoyed it. Before, we were a studio band who reluctantly appeared every now and again. Playing live taught us a lot about the kind of sounds and dynamics we enjoy and that seeped through on subsequent albums. I’d say that has been one of the most important influences on our sound.

You’ve had your fair share of record label upheavals. Telstar went under and Island appeared to be unsure about what to do with you. It seemed to be virtually impossible to buy the special edition of Witching Hour either in a shop or on-line at the time of release. It should have been the major label breakthrough with a potentially huge hit single in ‘Destroy Everything You Touch’, but it didn’t happen. Any thoughts?

‘Destroy…’ is still a song that sounds like a hit and a lot of people heard it and got introduced to our music through it. So in that way, the record upheavals didn’t matter. Also we had a fan base at the time and didn’t let logistics mess with our plans. We just carried on touring and playing to more and more people. We would have sold more records and probably got bigger advances had the records been released properly when they were planned to, but it didn’t stop people from hearing them on line. That enabled us to go and play to large audiences all over the world, from Columbia, through Russia to China.

So was it straightforward despite the different labels to get the tracklisting on the compilation as you wanted it?

Yes reasonably, as we own a lot of our back catalogue.

How did you choose the songs and were there any difficult decisions as to what to leave out?

We wanted to strike a balance between singles and fan favourites from the albums. It was really hard actually and we went through many variations. I think we ended up with something very representative so that if people bought it and had not heard of us before, they would get a good idea of the kind of music we make.

The release of the singles compilation has enabled you time to take stock of your career. Which period do you feel most proud of?

I know which period was most exciting for me. It was when we started doing these sell out tours around North America. It is an amazing place to cover by road and doing it in a tour bus. Playing to all these different people who knew our songs and could sing along was quite mind blowing.

Live, LADYTRON have a comparatively conventional band set up with guitars, bass and drums alongside the vintage synths. Do you think that ever surprises people who come to see you for the first time?

I think people are still more surprised by the amount of synths we have on stage. On the other hand, our records are probably a bit more clinical and cleaner than when we play them live. We don’t try to completely recreate them as that would be impossible because we cannot reproduce all the sounds that we recorded. Instead we go for capturing the essence and the vibe of them and making them work on stage. It’s a different approach.

You worked on two songs ‘Little Dreamer ‘and ‘Birds of Prey’ for Christina Aguilera’s album ‘Bionic ‘which ended up as bonus tracks on the final release. Have you had time to reflect on whether you found the experience worthwhile and are you pleased with the end result?

Yes we are. We also seem to have gained more fans because of it and are very happy that she chose to work with us because she was a fan of our music, rather than someone from her label deciding they liked our sound and getting a more commercial songwriter to write her song in that vein.

What is the collaborative process between the four of you now and has it differed from when you first started?

It is more collaborative than when we first started. With ‘604’, Danny was the main writer and albums have become more collaborative as time went on. There is no process though. Each song is different. Some are written by one person and then other people add different lines and layers.

In other songs the music is written by one person, the vocal by another. Some are even more collaborative and songs are developed and built up between a few people.

Are the two new recordings ‘Ace Of Hz’ and ‘Little Black Angel’ that you’ve recorded for the compilation reflective of LADYTRON’s future direction?

Not really. They are more like closure. They fit in more with our old material. They were done a while ago. One of the songs is however on our new record too along with a more current alternate version of it. It is like a bridge. With the compilation we are closing a chapter.

‘Velocifero’ was quite a noisy album. What can we expect from LADYTRON’s next album proper?

I think I know what you mean. It was quite uptempo and in your face. The new album is less so. It is more atmospheric, I think.

And what next for you as a band? Will you do any shows in support of the compilation?

We are going to be doing a lot of DJ shows and then closer to the summer and the release of the new record, we shall do some live shows too. In the mean time we are hoping to be working on more soundtracks for video games and hopefully films and we are interested in writing and producing other artists too.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to Mira Aroyo

Special thanks to Sarah Richardson at Anorak London and Tim Husom at Red Bird Management

’00-10′ will be released on March 28th 2011 through Nettwerk Records. The 2CD deluxe version features 33 tracks and an 80-page photo booklet while the single CD version has 17 tracks.

http://www.ladytron.com/

https://www.facebook.com/ladytron/

https://twitter.com/LadytronMusic

Interview by Chi Ming Lai
Additional Text by Steve Gray
4th March 2011, updated 3rd February 2019

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