FRONT312 presents: CEREMONY, an evening of new wave, synth pop, and alternative dance.

 

Ceremony is a new monthly, occurring on Thursdays at Liar's Club, beginning with Thursday, February 25th at 9pm.

For the first installment of Ceremony, members of Clique Talk will be premiering their new synth pop project, VALIS.  VALIS is different from Clique Talk, in that the emphasis is more on keyboards and synthesizers, with pop leanings reminiscent of early Human League or Cabaret Voltaire.

Through the rest of the night, DJs will be playing 80's new wave dance favorites, post-punk rarities, and an assortment of classic and new-school synth pop. As if that was not enough, the event is completely free, and specials range from the ultra-affordable $2 PBR to the dangerously enticing $6 Delirium Tremens drafts that will be on tap all night.

$2 PBR
$3 Jim Beam
$6 Delirium Tremens (awesome!)

No Cover! Free Live Music!
Djs:
Peter Propaganda
Eddie Riot
Black Automatic
Live performance by VALIS (members of Clique Talk)

Hosted by Le Sprite and Adolf Hipster

Located at the Liar's Club
1665 w Fullerton
Chicago, IL

RSVP on Facebook now

Angels and Kings' Disappear Here Night Features Black Automatic

So, Adam and I are playing for the Disappear Here crew at Angels and Kings next Thursday the 18th of February.  This event is always a good time.  As a special treat, we are premiering a new Yeah Yeah Yeahs remix that night, and you can download the exclusive leak of the track here at Front 312!  Angels and Kings is located on Clark St. just north of Rock and Roll McDonalds in Chicago's River North.  Come early, because it gets packed pretty quickly.  There is no cover, and several amazing drink specials are available.

Download the exclusive new remix from Mr. Automatic of Black Automatic now!
 
Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Skeletons (Mr. Automatic Remix)

Absolute Body Control: The EBM Blueprint

Before performing in "The Klinik", an influential second wave EBM act, Dirk Ivens was working on a project in the vein of Suicide and DAF called Absolute Body Control.

Pre-dating the move to synthesizers for inspiration, Dirk had been in a handful of new wave and punk bands. The project originally feature Mark De Jonghe (synths) and Veerle De Schepper (backing vocals), though Mark was replaced in 1981 by Eric Van Wonterghem.

The project released a number of cassettes, but only one 7" (Is There An Exit?) and no studio albums during its brief period of musical output. In retrospect, however, their music sounds very forward-thinking in its approach. Their cover of Brian Eno's "Baby's On Fire" both pays tribute to the original while breaking new ground in what would eventually become EBM. Even the name of their group, Absolute Body Control, indicates that they were aware of what was coming very soon around the musical bend.


Absolute Body Control-Baby's On Fire


Absolute Body Control-Figures

Zola Jesus

I normally don't post about music - I stick with sartorial musings, generally - but I've stumbled across a musician that is so spectacular that I must share her with you all. Her name is Zola Jesus, and she sounds like a cross between Diamanda Galas, Elizabeth Fraser, and Karin Dreijer - if their collective music was trudged through a pile of molasses.

Zola Jesus is the work of Nika Danilova. What's amazing is that she's only 19 and she's already come into her own. From what little I've been able to gather about her over the internet, I've learned that she's a classically trained musician and comes from Madison, Wisconsin. It's true... the cold, gray flatness of the Midwest brings out the spookiness in all of us. Her music is terrifying, arresting, lush, and beautiful all at the same time. She screams and wails and sings with passion and pain, really lovely stuff. I highly encourage you all to check out her 2009 LP The Spoils, released on Sacred Bones Records. Certainly one of my favorite albums that came out in 2009. I haven't seen in records stores, but I was able to purchase from the iTunes music store.

Zola Jesus will be performing at the Empty Bottle on February 13th, 2009, and will be an in-store at Permamant Records that same day. She will also be performing at Beat Kitchen on March 13th, 2009. Her myspace is here, where you can hear a few of her songs. "Sink the Dynasty" is my personal favorite.

Ann Demuelemeester Fall/Winter 2010 Men's Ready-to-Wear

What a fantastic men's collection from Ann Demuelemeester. This collection was shown at Men's Fashion Week in Paris recently, and has been critically acclaimed for her use of leather textures, soft drapes, subtle sheen and color pallete, and excellent use of hardware accessories.

The draped, architectual look is a good look - it's modern and flattering on men and women. I'm thrilled to see that fashion is stepping away from too-tight clothing in favor of looser fits and simple colors. Even her structured men's jacket aren't too sharply tailored. It's a look that I've been experimenting with myself recently. I must say, it's a nice change of pace to wear garments that don't hug the body too tight, and instead just follow natural human curves.

As the pictures above show, the best way to offset a loose, draped look is with a pair of more severe boots or accressories. Ann's signature combat boots provide a nice contrast to the flow of her garments. I'm sure your goth stomping boots can achieve a similar effect, we all have a pair in our closet somewhere!

Head over to The Fashionisto to view the full collection.