If you thought the Northern Lights during the Adelaide Festival of Arts were cool, wait till you get a load of this!

It all began in 1990 at the age of 10 when I first discovered AC/DC while watching music videos on a Saturday morning. The video was ‘Thunderstruck‘ and that was exactly the effect their music had on me. AC/DC’s raw energy and straight-up rock’n'roll sound was unlike anything I’d heard before. From that point on, I was hooked.

The only problem was that there was a clear stigma attached to their music where anyone who listened to it was instantly branded a bogan or similar. Particularly in the schoolyard where Nirvana and Pearl Jam (for example) were considered cool, AC/DC was most definitely not.

This extended to mainstream media, where despite achieving more international success than any other Australian entertainer, the local press routinely ignored them with music critics dismissive of each new album.

In the past 2 years, however, there has been a real shift in how AC/DC are perceived. Especially in the last few weeks with the band on the Australian leg of the Black Ice Tour, it seems fans are coming out of the woodwork and every major media outlet can’t get enough of them.

What you see is what you get

It is almost a reaction to the collapse of the world economy and the excessive consumerism of the early 2000′s that consumers now are looking for authenticity and a sense of ‘realness’. In this regard, there is no better example (in musical terms) than AC/DC.

For 37 years they have recorded and performed different variations of the same few songs. But the fact that they come exactly as advertised and without pretense means that for their fans, they are a constant in otherwise turbulent times as we seek to inject our lives with something more meaningful than today’s homogenised, mass produced, faceless ‘music’ that is more style than substance.

Unlike other similarly massive bands who are constantly reinventing themselves and striving to remain relevant by preaching one cause after another (I’m looking at you, U2), AC/DC have never wavered from what they do best: playing blistering, wildly entertaining hard rock.

(Read what Brian Johnson has to say about Bono and Bob Geldof)

They have built a level of trust with their fans that few other bands have done and are now more successful than ever before. All by focusing on the things they do well and getting rid of the rest.

So next time, before start thinking about changing your logo/website/etc. ask yourself (a) why you’re really doing it, and (b) if your customers will even notice or care.

I finally got to see AC/DC live for the first time at Adelaide Oval on March 2nd. For a bunch of guys my dads age, they put on a hell of a performance that more than lived up to my expectations. Unlike some bands who I’ve seen live who could be sleepwalking through their set, you just know that these guys care about giving their fans a show and are leaving nothing on the table!

While the major record companies and big acts such as Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails have figured out new models to succeed in a radically changed consumer environment, new artists are still struggling to figure things out.

For the most part, they remain focused on the traditional method of putting out demos and gigging until they get ‘discovered’ by a label. But in the wake of dwindling record sales, labels slashing rosters and doubling down on acts that are expected to have hits, opportunities for new and truly original artists have become scarcer and scarcer.

Speaking at the Midem music conference, NERD frontman, Pharrell Williams offered some advice for new artists, that new artists don’t need to be as reliant on a label to make it big if they know how to market themselves.

“I would probably build a site, a home for my music, a destination where people could come and see me and what I do and what I’m thinking about.”

“I would want to establish myself and show the world that I have interesting music, but I would create that world. The more dimension that you give your music and your website, the more creative it becomes.”

For new acts, there couldn’t be a better time to start taking control of their own destiny. You need only look at Lady Gaga to know there are now endless opportunities to get heard and be seen, all without the support of a label. The challenge is in being savvy enough and brave enough to get onto those digital channels, publish your content and start building a following.

Just in time for the holidays, I thought I’d share with you the new mix from my boy Alex McKenzie.

Features tracks from Guy J, Adam K, Olivier Giacomotto, Atomitek, Dankmann & many more…. Enjoy!

Tracklisting

1. As You Fall [Guy J Remix] – Bent
2. Steppenwolf [Pig & Dan Remix] – True Identity
3. The Mask – Adam K & Gabe
4. Face Of Rejection – Alan Fitzpatrick
5. Discombobulated – Chris Liebing
6. Raw – David Amo & Julius Navas
7. TecH1N10 – Olivier Giacomotto
8. All By Pitching The Crowd [DJ Remy Remix] – Francesco Pico
9. More Pleasure [Spartaque Remix] – Lish & DJ Zombie
10. Rumblefish [Zoltan Kontes & Jerome Robbins Remix] – Tone Depth
11. Cross Road – Atomitek
12. Break – Carlos Mendes
13. Own Movement [Dankann Remix] – PTM

Download here — > http://soundcloud.com/alex-mckenzie/technical-difficulties-2009

Before The Presets, Klaxons, Galvatrons, Boys Noize, etc. there was Infusion.

Although it’s been out for a few months now, I really wanted to post something about All Night Sun Light simply because it’s brilliant. In the last 2 months or so, it has been on constant rotation both on my iPhone and in my car.

I first came across Infusion back in 2000 back when I was slinging vinyl at a record store. Their sound captivated me and has continued to compel me to spread their gospel to anyone who will listen. Now 5 long years after their groundbreaking second album Six Feet Above Yesterday, the boys are back with what is in my mind their most accomplished album to date.

From the opening chords of Two Player Game, I knew I was listening to something really special. Built around their trademark melodic hooks and synth-pop, All Night Sun Light is an evolution of the Infusion sound and covers a lot of ground from quiet introspection (So Soon, Horizons) to radio-friendly pop (Memory Cheats, Gotta Leave Now) to straight-up dancefloor mayhem (Dogtown, All That’s In Your Head). The highlight for me, however, is the hauntingly beautiful Try It On that represents Infusion at their lyrical and musical best.

While All Night Sun Light may not have the same electronic sensibilities that defined their sound throughout the early 2000′s, it is still unmistakeably Infusion. Their new sound is more evolution than revolution and displays a maturity and confidence of a group that are at the top of their game with a quality of songwriting and production that eludes much of the instantly disposable eletro-pop currently doing the rounds.

Infusion’s shiny new website

iTunes album link

Full disclosure: When I discovered Infusion, I was also heavily involved in the electronic music scene and brought Infusion to Adelaide on a number of occasions. I am also fortunate to consider Manny, Jamie and Frank as friends. But don’t let that cloud your judgment of my words above as you’d only be doing yourself a disservice by not checking out the album.

Something is amiss in the dance music world.

While innovation and invention have been crucial to civilisation as we know it (without it, the combustion engine, microprocessors or house music would never have been conceived and you wouldnt be reading this column), the creativity and imagination that were once its foundations has been usurped by anathema.

In Adelaide, the Superclub Wars of the 90s had allowed smaller venues to thrive and breed a subculture of avid clubbers, men and women who were just as enthusiastic about the music as they were about having a good night out.

Somewhere along the way, all this changed. With the era of the superclub practically extinct, the remaining clubs and bars fought over the displaced masses and in the process lost what made them unique in the first place. Imitation replaced imagination with rampant drink specials and mind-numbingly tacky gimmicks that are the telltale signs of desperation. But the worst part was the music. What was once club cultures defining quality was now virtually identical to that played in countless gyms and fashion retailers. Though size and positioning no doubt play their part, it is simply inexcusable when a professional club DJ plays the same set as your cardio hi-lo instructor.

A conversation I had with a mobile DJ over the weekend was the catalyst for this mini-rant. The role of the club DJ has become not entirely dissimilar to that of the mobile DJ, playing only the familiar to instantly appease the dancefloor. The blame falls primarily to venues who set this agenda in order to chase the quick buck at the expense of long term viability, micromanaging their DJs and killing any hope of individual creativity (although it could be argued some never had any to begin with). So instead of something unique and different that they may enjoy given half a chance, they give their customers exactly what they want and as a result, lose their hand. As important as it is to be receptive to the consumer, when a venue acquiesces completely any trace of power in this relationship is lost and with it the chance of building an independent lasting identity for themselves. Clubs that say the customer is always right or we give them what they want, would suggest to me that they are always wrong or perhaps more accurately, they dont have a clue.

Begging is pathetic. And dont think we dont realise that either.

For a city of just over 1 million, the turnover of clubs and bars is quite astounding with the closure of well over a dozen venues in the CBD in the past 18 months. Why? Because very little loyalty still exists between venues and their patrons. Practically identical save for the cup size of the person pouring your drink and layout, what is stopping the crowds from leaving when the next hot new joint throws open their doors offering even cheaper drinks and even bustier bar staff with the promise of being a revolutionary clubbing adventure after more than likely poaching the same DJ line-up?

Thank god then for Sugar, Electric Circus and their ilk who make a conscious decision to challenge their regulars everytime they walk through the doors with music and an experience that is fresh and exciting. Their regulars are exactly that because they genuinely anticipate what mischief the next weekend has in store and never knowing what to expect. By providing something that has substance rather than the typical smoke and mirrors, they have managed to build a unique, credible identity that sets them apart from the multitude of struggling venues rehashing the same tired formula.

Clubs and pubs were once considered entirely different entities. Now the experience is largely interchangeable except for the dancefloor. This is a situation being played out not just in Adelaide but in cities all around the world where our culture struggles for acceptability. This is why I sincerely hope that DJs and club owners may find some resonance with this column and that clubbing may again be as exciting for the public as it once and still is for us. The transition may not be an easy one, but it would certainly be preferable to this slippery slope toward irrelevance.