Underworld Articles 2010

[TheBang]

A headline article in an Aussie mag, 3D World:

http://streetpress.com.au/online_mags/3D/3D_1013/

The article's on Page 14. Some interesting bits including how they felt about OwB, a confirmation of a return to big dance tunes, and talking about collaborations.

[Dirty0900]

Nice one, make it a sticky thread so we can add to it etc?

[Dunwho]

Cool! Yea sticky this!

[holden]

Nice find and cool article!

Phrases such as "purpose built to smash dancefloors" and "rumored album drop in September" make me smile big time.:)

[Bargo]

Part 1 of an interview (http://www.inthemix.com.au/features/47074/Underworld_It_only_gets_better_Part_1) with Karl from a few days ago.

[ThingInABook]

the article bargo posted mentions a 5-track sampler of Barking. want.

[34958hq439-qjw9v5jq298v5j]

The buzz is largely down to the eighth Underworld album due in September.

Are they counting Underneath the Radar and Change the Weather? Damn...

Good interview though. Can't wait to hear this now...feeling it'll be massive

[unwound floors]

http://www.novafm.com.au/Video_Underworld-is-resilient_103545

Video interview with Karl. Very brief, but pretty decent.

[Dirty0900]

Interesting to see any new tour set up if its being chucked out.

[darktrain]

http://www.novafm.com.au/Video_Underworld-is-resilient_103545

Video interview with Karl. Very brief, but pretty decent.

More, too:
http://www.novafm.com.au/Video_Karl-Hyde-from-Underworld-on-musical-actions-and-reactions_103649

[TheBang]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/music/news/article.cfm?c_id=264&objectid=10646551&pnum=0

Karl talks about "being best mates with Rick" (aww), and "'We've recorded hours and hours of material together,' says Hyde of their collaborations with Eno."

[Bargo]

Part two (http://www.inthemix.com.au/features/47073/Underworld_It_only_gets_better_Part_2) of the inthemix interview from earlier. "Not since Second Toughest in the Infants have I felt this buzzed about taking a record out." says Karl on playing Barking live.

[TheBang]

Karl Hyde tour diary from Italy:

http://www.spin.com/gallery/tour-gallery-underworld-italy?utm_source=spintwitter&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=spintwitter

Also, interesting bit from the last page:

Hyde says American shows will happen "before the end of the year," but can't reveal exact dates just yet. In the meantime, before Barking hits Sept. 14, Underworld will play throughout Europe, and a new exhibition of Hyde's paintings will go on exhibit in Japan in late August.

[Troy McClure]

Real nice read with Karl, and great bit of news about the US. Hopefully somewhere that I can make.

Can you feel it....
Jason

[Dirty0900]

Lovely article, must be thousands of photos stashed away in the vaults.

[TheBang]

http://www.aloha.com/~tabanger/underworld/articles/2010dubliner.jpg

[unwound floors]

And the next question: why is there no MDMA in Australia right now? PLAYER-HATERS!

[ndrwrld]

because Toronto has it all !

[unwound floors]

because Toronto has it all !

RUDE. Didn't your parents ever teach you to share? :D

[razorpilot]

There is an article in today's Times newspaper, titled 'The Veterans of Techno return'. It is subscriber only content, so I have copy and pasted:

THE VETERANS OF TECHNO RETURN

With Underworld and Leftfield deep into middle age, can they still cut it for young, hedonistic clubbers? Plus, download our Nineties Dance iMix
How old is too old? According to Karl Hyde, frontman of the techno pioneers Underworld, “Too old equals dead. When there’s no more hope is when you’re not alive any more.” The subject of age in rock music is no longer taboo, so familiar are the images of Mick Jagger and co strutting their stuff at a pensionable age. But when it comes to dance music, we are entering uncharted waters. Hyde, 53, and his musical partner in Underworld, Rick Smith, 52, are part of the first generation of dance music producers who were active when the scene exploded in the early Nineties to enter middle-age. Many of their distinguished contemporaries are also still going strong — the Hartnoll brothers of Orbital (Paul is 42, Phil, 45) re-formed in 2009 and played a triumphant set at Glastonbury this year, and at 49, Neil Barnes is taking Leftfield back on the road again for the first time in a decade. And that’s without getting started on the extensive list of superstar DJs — Paul Oakenfold, Fatboy Slim and Andrew Weatherall are all 47 — who are still making a mint from playing records, despite being at an age usually associated with M&S jumpers and embarrassing dad dancing. However, not everybody is happy: the team that compiles the Radio 1 playlist (the coveted list that guarantees daytime plays) recently denied a slot to Underworld’s new single Always Loved a Film. The reason: they were “too old”.
Not that Hyde looks it; the impish twinkle and boundless onstage energy make him a walking advert for prolonged involvement in dance music as a way to stay young. Underworld are about to release their eighth studio album, the stunning Barking, which should result in a return to the limelight for the band who became etched in the collective consciousness when Born Slippy NUXX was featured on the soundtrack to Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting in 1996. Prior to that, it was with their 1994 album, Dubnobasswithmyheadman, that they found favour with the ravers; a collection of after-hours epics that juxtaposed the alienation of urban life with the hedonistic rush of late-night excess — a state of euphoric melancholy revisited on Barking.
Hyde and Smith’s musical relationship dates back to 1979, so with Barking it was important for the duo to maintain the creative spark and they achieved this by working with younger artists. “Collaborations throw up really interesting possibilities,” Hyde explains. “It’s a great way to take on board fresh ideas and move forwards.” The producers the duo chose to work with included the drum’n’bass DJ High Contrast, the dubstep producer Appleblim and house stalwarts Mark Knight and D. Ramirez. All the collaborators have enhanced the distinctive Underworld sound with a flavour of their respective genres, resulting in Hyde and Smith’s most accessible (and commercial) album.
The recording process was the continuation of a long-held Underworld philosophy. “We come from that Miles Davis school of reinvention. Listen to what’s going on around you and grow,” Hyde explains. “As one gets older you become more refined in your thinking and there’s a disconnection with your youthful exuberance, devil-may-care excitement about everything — and that becomes tedious. It’s the kiss of death. Miles wasn’t afraid to bring in younger people and learn from them.”
This willingness to innovate is bringing in a host of new admirers. “Our audiences are getting younger,” Hyde chuckles. “We played the iTunes festival at the Roundhouse in June, and there was almost a brand new audience at the front who were having it, singing along to the new stuff like Scribble and Always Loved a Film.”
Leftfield’s Neil Barnes, fresh from a tour that took in European festivals, agrees. “We’re playing to mixed crowds, from old Leftfield fans to really young audiences who also seem to know about our music. Maybe people are more broad-minded now ... when we started making music we were so opinionated. If it was old you weren’t into it. Young people now don’t seem to be closed off.”
A wide age range is the norm for a rock gig, but the older clubber can look like a sad case. So what do the latest generation of clubbers make of dancing to music being played by people perhaps older than their dads? “It doesn’t bother me,” says 19-year-old Luke Roberts. “I’ve been listening to their mixes since I was a kid. I’m just glad they’re still playing. Sasha, Weatherall — they’re legendary figures to my generation.”
Even the current crop of dance producers are hankering for the past. The dubstep producer Skream is moist of eye for the pre-internet era when DJ mixtapes were passed around by hand. His underground smash Burning Up was an inspired homage to his older brother’s collection of old-school hardcore records.
All of which reinforces Hyde’s theory that the pertinent issue is simply: “Is it any good? Is the music turning people on?” He adds: “When we first came into dance music at the end of the Eighties, what surprised me was that there was no age discrimination — it was about the music. We’d go to Soundshaft, Heaven and the Drum Club and there’d be young people dancing to music played by DJs who were considerably older than them. Nobody gave a damn how old you were. The beauty of dance music is that it’s about dancing — why should anyone discriminate?”
Why indeed? Radio 1’s decision not to playlist Underworld is curious, given that they weren’t deemed too old to headline the Radio 1 Essential Mix (the slot overseen by Pete Tong, who turned 50 this year) in Ibiza in August. And not too old for plays from the übercool specialist DJs. “Zane Lowe, Annie Mac and Huw Stephens are playing our tunes,” Hyde says. “They wouldn’t be playing them if it was going to make them look bad.” For Underworld’s manager Mike Gillespie a bigger concern is where the electronic/dance acts can go once deemed “too old” for Radio 1? “There’s no Radio 2 for us rave fellows,” he says, ruefully.
But Hyde and Smith aren’t reaching for the pipe and slippers just yet. Underworld are off on another gruelling world trek, taking in Australia, the US, Japan and Europe. How will they cope with the demands of a world tour? “I stopped drinking 12 years ago,” Hyde explains, the result of a period of alcoholic oblivion in the mid-Nineties when he wasn’t just shouting “lager lager lager”. “That really helps. I felt a lot worse 12 years ago I can assure you! I’m just tired now.” Tired maybe, but definitely not past it.
Barking is out on September 13. Underworld play the Forum, London NW5 (020-7428 4080) on Sept 16

[big screen satellite]

yep i have the Times paper and its a great two page spread in the arts / culture section - any uk dirts should get a copy if they can - its worth a read although its the same as whats pasted :)

i'm a bit appauled by the fact that uw were denied a spot on the R1 playlist because they are too old - they're not fucking Status Quo!!!

status quo play to old fans - uw play to younger fans... thats the difference....

its not like Alexandra Burke (X factor winner) isn't representing a 50 year old Simon Cowell front - its hypocracy !! I don't listen to Radio 1 - then again maybe i'm too old....

[vacant]

Christ alive! Karl is older than my Dad!
Can't believe Wetherall is only 47 too, thought he was older than that.

[bazwint]

the team that compiles the Radio 1 playlist (the coveted list that guarantees daytime plays) recently denied a slot to Underworld’s new single Always Loved a Film. The reason: they were “too old”.

WTF? :mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

[Andrea]

sounds like a joke
but if Karl is tired that´s ok

[Flywaver]

The latest ALAF video is old boys skateboarding and having a laugh. Behaving like there 40 years younger.*
Yet radio 1 can't let Rick and Karl the same freedom.... I'm sure U2 don't get treated the same... This deserves a lawsuit!

[TheBang]

30 minute video interview with Karl, broken up into several parts:

http://www.faceculture.nl/artist.php?id=931

Choice quote from the first video: "we're talking about making the next album pretty soon"

[Andrea]

Oh God, I wish I could help him through the sleepless nights :D
Life is so unfair sometimes....

[TheBang]

Tomato article on their artwork for Underworld

http://madebyhk.com/19/08/2010/underworld-by-tomato/

[razorpilot]

This one is from a couple of weeks ago:

http://www.metro.co.uk/music/838428-underworld-practising-the-art-of-noise

[TheBang]

http://thequietus.com/articles/04985-your-window-shattering-underworld-and-the-secret-history-of-the-city

[TheBang]

Drowned in Sound.

http://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4141161-dis-meets-karl-hyde-of-underworld

Quite a good interview:

DiS: [...] there was a very early version of ‘Scribble’ on some of the live tracks you released in 2005. But here it’s a lot more ‘direct’ and short, alongside a few other tracks such as ‘Always Loved a Film’ and ‘Diamond Jigsaw’?

K: The sound is more stripped back and less dense too. It was all very deliberate, yet equally due to a series of coincidences.

K: [...] we have for many years talked about taking over a theatre and playing all our songs that are not about that. We’ve talked about it for 6 or 7 years now and thought wouldn’t it be great to go out and perform these more intimate tunes in a seated auditorium.

K: I think some fans think we favour the [Japanese market], but the reason we do the special editions is because they get swamped with imports cheaper than their own, so if we don’t then the local record companies wouldn’t sell anything. Which is also why it’s out there already, to give them a chance. Plus records are pretty expensive out there.

But right now I’m quite happy to do another record because we’re not trapped anymore. I’m sure somewhere down the line we’ll do something else like a Riverrun. It would be really nice to do a series of evenings that aren’t the anthems.

K: [...] With this particular tour for the first time we used a setlist. More recently we were letting the crew put the set together just before we were going on stage just so they could know what we were going to be doing; how the lights go or how to improvise the video, as they were having to come up with something to whatever tune Rick would drop. With this tour it’s been fantastic as we can think about something else now. If we’d had setlists 20 years ago we’d have been bored rigid but because they’re like a new invention to us we can work harder on other things.

K: We’d put out some club tunes that had done well and [Rick had] got to a point where he’d gone into the studio and couldn’t write anything. . . . [Rick's] missus said ‘get back in that studio and don’t come out until you’ve written a great tune’ and he wrote ‘Rez’. Which spawned ‘Cowgirl’. We have a lot to thank those Essex girls for…

[potatobroth]

K: [...] With this particular tour for the first time we used a setlist. More recently we were letting the crew put the set together just before we were going on stage just so they could know what we were going to be doing; how the lights go or how to improvise the video, as they were having to come up with something to whatever tune Rick would drop. With this tour it’s been fantastic as we can think about something else now.

Well crap. Great for them, terrible for us. I find nothing worse with regards to seeing a live act than knowing exactly what to expect next. Boo.

[whatmakesustick]

Well crap. Great for them, terrible for us. I find nothing worse with regards to seeing a live act than knowing exactly what to expect next. Boo.

Yeah, thats quite worrying! I have been hoping that the current set list was just a temporary thing while promoting the new album. I must say I am massively surprised to hear this and its not really inline with the improvisation that is often talked about. The other day I was talking to someone who knows that I have seen Underworld upteen times and I explained to them that I could see them so many times because each time I see them its different. Having already been to the Roundhouse and Forum gigs, it does not make me overly excited about Brixton.

Of course there is nothing in the interview that states that setlist will be used throughout the tour. And, maybe they can devise a setlist the night before each gig and that will be different to the previous night.....fingers crossed anyway :)

[razorpilot]

Hmmm..
I'm seeing them at Brixton then making a special trip up for the Manchester show, so am hoping for some sort of difference between the two.. a Dirty Epic here.. a Juanita there, and maybe a Banstyle thrown in for good measure! :rolleyes:

[potatobroth]

Of course there is nothing in the interview that states that setlist will be used throughout the tour. And, maybe they can devise a setlist the night before each gig and that will be different to the previous night.....fingers crossed anyway :)

That's precisely what he's not saying. There was always a setlist prior to the start of the show. We know this because we've seen countless photos with funny little doodles of light formations, videos, etc.

What Karl is saying is that this tour is pre-determined with maybe a few open spots for an odd track here or there. But it looks like we're getting a very consistent setlist.

I flew over to England to see a show a few years back (that was canceled but that's a different story :P) but there's no way I would do that for a canned setlist.

[jose m]

That's precisely what he's not saying. There was always a setlist prior to the start of the show. We know this because we've seen countless photos with funny little doodles of light formations, videos, etc.

What Karl is saying is that this tour is pre-determined with maybe a few open spots for an odd track here or there. But it looks like we're getting a very consistent setlist.

I flew over to England to see a show a few years back (that was canceled but that's a different story :P) but there's no way I would do that for a canned setlist.


i wouldn't worry.
there's songs from the new album that they aren't doing and they won't be able to resist dropping some classic's.
i think the "festival" shows are another matter.

[potatobroth]

i wouldn't worry.
there's songs from the new album that they aren't doing and they won't be able to resist dropping some classic's.
i think the "festival" shows are another matter.

Well we just have to look at the recent UK gig to know what to expect, don't we? Its pretty spot on to the festival set list. No real surprises there.

Now if they play 4 nights in Japan with the same setlist, I'll be quite concerned. :)

[Dirty0900]

My stolen setlists from Newcastle/Roundhouse 4 don't match up, things are moved around and even things added in. The iTunes setlist I have is identical to what was played on the night.

Hopefully it will be a random setlist with the new dates and not 20+ gigs of the same stuff.

[King of Snake]

yeah it's worrying. I wonder what K means when hey says they can "work harder on other things" or "focus on something else now".
I mean, what else is there to work on and focus on than delivering a great improvised set? Isn't that what UWlive has always been about? I'd say that if you're gonna do a preset show, then at least use that to come up with some really cool mashups and transitions, but as far as I can hear it's still mostly the same "start-stop" as they've been doing for a long time now (except for Downpipe-ALAF), and all the tracks are pretty much album versions. At least Daft Punk do a total mashup of their music (not to mention a top-of-the-line visual show) even though the setlist is the same every night. Same with the Chems. Same setlist but at least the tracks don't sound like straight album versions (at least last time I saw them which was admittedly quite a few years ago already).
Anyway, still psyched to see them in Amsterdam in November but there doesn't seem to be any reason to go see them at STrP the next as well day this time around.

[cdave2]

Don't remember seeing this one here yet (thanks to the sharp-eyed folk/fellow obsessives over on the Radiohead forums):

http://dcist.com/2010/10/dcist_interview_karl_hyde_of_underw.php

[TheBang]

Don't remember seeing this one here yet (thanks to the sharp-eyed folk/fellow obsessives over on the Radiohead forums):

http://dcist.com/2010/10/dcist_interview_karl_hyde_of_underw.php
Ahem.

http://www.borndirty.org/2010/10/dcist-interview-with-karl-hyde/

;)

[cdave2]

Whoopsie. New dirtyroute then: check news, then go to the forums. :D

Thanks, Bang!

[King of Snake]

interview in Dutch here:
http://www.livexs.nl/Joomla/201011187682/Interview-voor-Underworld-is-muziek-maken-net-puzzelen

If I get some free time this weekend I might do a quick translation :)

[ThingInABook]

Don't remember seeing this one here yet (thanks to the sharp-eyed folk/fellow obsessives over on the Radiohead forums):

http://dcist.com/2010/10/dcist_interview_karl_hyde_of_underw.php

i believe i posted that in atease (i'm between stars haha)

and that came from miss gingerorb, via twitter, via borndirty.

[cdave2]

i believe i posted that in atease (i'm between stars haha)

and that came from miss gingerorb, via twitter, via borndirty.

Hello there! I've been taking a break from atease lately (someone else forwarded the news over to RD2, thanks to your post) but if I remember correctly, there's also someone called "rez" over there. Good to hear from fellow travelers. :)

[ThingInABook]

Hello there! I've been taking a break from atease lately (someone else forwarded the news over to RD2, thanks to your post) but if I remember correctly, there's also someone called "rez" over there. Good to hear from fellow travelers. :)

haha, fun times... i also used to be in revolving doors... guess who iam! (hint:you mentioned it on your post) stopped going cos i had so many problems at my old job, it got harder to be in many communities at once (i was administrating a large site, then posting in 4-5 sites, also had that ning thing, then started with twitter...)