Song of the Day: 'Systemagic' by Goldfrapp

(Photo by jamieonenyc)

As I mentioned Friday, Damian ended up with some last-minute tickets to see Goldfrapp. The whole thing was a bit of a lark: he was going to be coming from visiting his family in Jersey and I was working till 8 -- plus we were going to Connecticut the following day -- and the show was being held at a new venue in East Williamsburg that we weren't sure was easy to get to. But as fate would have it, Brooklyn Steel was a mere three stops into Brooklyn on the L train, and we were both able to get to the subway with time to spare. But naturally, there was an "incident" on the L that the cops were investigating, so we wound up having to schlep upstairs to catch an Uber -- tensions were running high at this point -- yet we somehow managed to get through rush-hour traffic and arrive just in time for the opening number, "Utopia" from the "Felt Mountain" debut. From there, the band did a thrilling and eclectic set of 18 songs, stunning us both with how instantly accessible the new songs (from an album we hadn't gotten yet) were, like "Anymore" (single one), "Systemagic" (single two) and the dreamy "Everything Is Never Enough." We were also treated to the exhilarating "Dreaming" off the band's 2010 masterpiece, "Head First." (Sadly, no "Rocket.")  They steered clear of "Tales of Us" (2013) and "Seventh Tree" (2008) but gave the crowd what they wanted with older numbers like "Ride a White Horse," "Ooh La La," "You Never Know," "Slide In," and "Number 1" from 2005's "Supernature," and "Train," "Strict Machine" and the title track from "Black Cherry," as well as "Lovely Head" and the aforementioned "Utopia" from their debut. Despite a bit of a Terminal 5 vibe, the new venue's sound and sight lines were much better, and the bar was pretty accessible. (And something about the band and the locale meant the crowd was 80% gay boys with mustaches and beards!) But even if the place had been awful, Alison Goldfrapp is a star (and a doll), which guaranteed a memorable night for all in attendance -- and indeed it was.

Song of the Day: 'Anymore' by Goldfrapp

Damian scored some last-minute Goldfrapp tickets last night. I'll let you know how the show was when I wake up!

Song of the Day: 'Drew' by Goldfrapp

Chart Rigger reports that Goldfrapp's new album, "Tales of Us," will be released in the U.S. on Sept. 10. The video for the first single is spectacular -- like Bruce Weber had a threeway with Merchant and Ivory -- although I'm not sure "Drew" is the right kind of song to launch an album. (Pre-order HERE.)

 

Music Box: Goldfrapp Plans a 'Singles' Party

The underappreciated (even by me) electronic duo Goldfrapp have a new "Singles" collection coming out in February, and to get the buzz going early have just released a video for one of the collection's two new tracks, called "Yellow Halo." (It reminds me of Blondie's "Shayla" a bit at the beginning, no?) See the LP's full track listing HERE. Am hoping they are planning a "greatest hits" tour in 2012, too.

 

Music Box: Goldfrapp

While it's nice when your favorite artists try something new, it's even better when they give you exactly what you want (I'm looking at you, Ms. Adu). So it was awfully great to hear Goldfrapp's new single, "Rocket," and find myself singing along by the end. Let's hope the rest of the new album, "Head First," is as fun. It comes out March 23.

UPDATE: The second and third singles are also great!

Aural Sex

Check out the fun new video for "Happiness," my favorite track off Goldfrapp's latest album, "Seventh Tree." That's quite a workout the guy in the suit's got going on -- and he stole my old hairdo!

Going Underground, Toronto, circa 1985

UPDATE: The inspiration for the video, Bobby Van's "Small Town Girl":

Music Box: Madonna & Goldfrapp

In honor of Madonna's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (I know, it should be Rock 'n' Roll -- they're idiots), I just pre-ordered "Hard Candy" on Amazon (only $9.99!). Now I give you my all-time favorite Madonna song from her all-time best movie, "Into the Groove" from the equally groovy "Desperately Seeking Susan." If you knew how often my friend Greg and I recite lines from this in our everyday conversations you wouldn't like it! ("How do you use the birds?")

And in new music news, Greg turned me onto Goldfrapp recently. I'm just learning them (coincidentally a promo copy of their new album, "Seventh Tree," showed up at my house the day after he mentioned them to me) but so far I'm really loving it. Check out the video for "A&E" below: