4. IAMX
How did you come across him?
A friend of mine in college was obsessed with him and sent me a couple of songs to listen to. I enjoyed them but they didn’t really change my life. Then he released another album, and I was addicted.
So, who is he?
IAMX is the lovechild of Chris Corner, formerly of the band The Sneaker Pimps. It was created in London but since moved to Berlin to take a more independent route. His music ranges from electro-rock to burlesque musicals to downtempo balladry.
What makes him so great?
IAMX takes the best influences from avant-garde artists such as David Bowie and Prince and weaves them into his own innovative form of electronic magic. Corner is completely immersed by his own introspective outlook on the world and is not stifled by the pressures of the music industry. His work is entirely his own and each song is an electrifying and emotional journey. His genre-defying and soaring operatic vocals work for the throbbing starry-eyed uptempo stylings of ‘The Great Shipwreck Of Life‘ as they do for the terrifyingly beautiful ‘Running‘.
What is he up to now?
He released ‘The Unified Field‘ last year and is currently touring around Europe.
What album would you recommend?
His 2009 collection, ‘The Kingdom Of Welcome Addiction‘. One of the best albums I’ve heard of the noughties.
5. Freezepop
How did you come across them?
Once again from the forum UKMIX. A friend of mine sent me a link to a song called ‘Brainpower‘, and I was obsessed.
So, who are they?
Freezepop are a four-piece electronic band from Boston. Computer game nerds may recognise them from Guitar Hero, Rock Band and Dance Dance Revolution, where their music is frequently featured.
What makes them so great?
These guys are a band completely without pretension. Their music is fun, fun, and a bit more fun. They rarely cover anything particularly thought-provoking – most of their songs are short stories of visits to underground concerts or the imaginary forming of bands – but that is what makes them as awesome as they are. Plus, their instruments are their laptops. You can’t really get any cooler than that. And lastly, anyone who makes a song called ‘Pop Music Is Not A Crime‘ gets my automatic stamp of approval.
What are they up to now?
Their last album ‘Imaginary Friends’ was released in 2010 and there’s no news of another album as of yet. However, they are contributing to the new Harmonix game on Playstation 4, so fingers crossed there’ll be an announcement soon.
What album would you recommend?
‘Imaginary Friends‘ is glorious, but ‘Future Future Future Perfect‘ is also well worth a listen, if only for the genius that is ‘Brainpower‘.
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