Long post, but I'm hoping that even those of you from overseas who've no idea the impact Hitz FM had on Melbourne & Australian radio will still read on and watch the attached YouTube clips. If it were not for this now defunct, monumental radio station, there is every chance in the world this website would not exist.
In November this year, it will be 6 years since former aspirant radio broadcaster Hitz FM last graced Melbourne's airwaves. If the Hitz were still around, 2007 would have marked their 15th birthday. Hitz FM single handedly changed the face of Melbourne--and in a lot of cases, Australian--radio during their time in our lives, which was cut short by only a few months shy of 10 years. For those of you who don't know, Hitz FM was the only station you could hear the latest dance & pop music from all over the world non stop, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Unlike the commercial networks, who placed their attention to new music on weekends for a 4 hour long Top 40 Countdown which--in most cases--was just exported from another country, Hitz FM was a non-profit community broadcaster being run FOR the youth of Melbourne BY the youth of Melbourne, providing them with the music they wanted to hear, but were simply unable to previously. It was also an excellent breeding ground for the nations best up and coming producers and artists who were not even looked at by stations like Fox FM or TT.
Hitz began broadcasting for a couple of weeks here and there, beaming their sounds from the halls of a couple of Melbourne high schools through the years of 1992 & 1993. But it wasn't until the now iconic Summer of '93/'94 three month broadcast between December and March that really placed Hitz FM on the map. Hitz wasn't just some radio station going out to a few suburbs in Melbourne. It was now widespread; from Melbourne's inner suburbs, to the Mount Dandenong's, all the way through Geelong and the Surf Coast. Hitz FM became the soundtrack to the summer of thousands of young people in Victoria during those three months. Songs like Tevin Campbell's "Can We Talk" rocketed up the Australian charts after being played on Hitz FM. The now momentus Quench track "Dreams" was played for the first time in the world on Hitz FM. Hitz played Delirium's remixed "Silence" a good 12 months before it would become a Top 10 hit across the globe. If it weren't for Hitz FM, that outstanding pop group the Rogue Traders would probably not exist; James Ash got his immediate introduction to the world of radio and dance music through Hitz FM, the station which would later help him in securing his first recording contract. Dance, pop & RNB artists who had otherwise been ignored by Australia's rock-focused commercial networks were finally getting the recognition and airplay they deserved. I, along with so many others, was obsessed with Hitz. I would spend hours sitting in my bedroom, putting up with the ridiculous heat, taping songs from 89.9 Hitz FM whilst all the other kids from my school were probably riding their bikes, swimming at the pool, playing cards or all that other shit kids apparently do during school holidays. Me, I was never one for outdoor adventure because MY choice for adventure was always through music, and Hitz was quenching that thirst of mine at full throttle.
Then the unthinkable happened. I was completely unaware that my new flame had an expiry date. The Australian Broadcasting Authority were taking Hitz FM off the airwaves after their 3 month test transmission. The ABA promised Hitz & its listeners that by 1994 a decision on full time, Melbourne wide community broadcasting licenses would be made official. Then in 1994, it was decided the outcome would unravel in 1996. Then in 1998. Then 1999. Then 2000. Then 2001. Nine years later, broadcasting for three months out of every twelve months of the year, Hitz FM, being the very first of the community broadcasters who had applied for licenses, easily being the most popular and generator of the most media buzz, was denied their request. Even though the facts and figures proved that a station like Hitz was necessary in Melbourne. That day in December 2001 was an emotional day for anyone who'd been affected by this radio station. I'd walked into that ugly lime green building countless amounts of times, had been greeted by the friendly staff there and shown the ropes; I was never intimidated because the people within those walls were just like me; young teenagers and very young adults who shared the same passion for music as I did. To hear the news that the station which helped refine my music tastes into adulthood was no more... it was incredibly sad. "Something touched me deep inside, the day the music died." A lot of conspiracy's surround Hitz's demise. They usually involve commercial networks like Austereo or DMG, and throw together words like 'blackmail' and 'Australian Broadcasting Authority' around in the same sentence. I'm not saying they're true, but even if they were there's really no point in dwelling on it 6 years later. But do take this into consideration: the nightly Hot 30 countdown you hear on the Austereo network would not exist if it weren't for Hitz FM. DMG - who run the Nova networks across Australia - would not have had such success if it weren't for them completely ripping off Hitz FM's radio format for the first 12 months of their run in Melbourne. Notice how the minute Hitz FM was out of the picture, the station which claimed to "sound different" began to sound like all the other stations? For the sake of their legal team, and for the sake of my own arse, I'm sure it was just a coincidence.
I could go on for paragraphs and paragraphs about the Hitz and the injustice of their outcome but I wont. I plan on commemorating the final ever test broadcast in November by doing a feature on all of the compilation CDs they released over their 9 year history, which were as iconic to Melbourners as the station itself, so it's not the last you'll hear on this topic. I do really want you to watch these two 5 minute videos on YouTube though; they're a 2 part documentary on Hitz FM made in 2000 (just a year before they would find out their hard work had been for virtually nothing.) You'll get to hear the people who were such an integral part in Hitz's success discuss their thoughts on the ABA's handling of the license application fiasco, and you'll also see Paul Dowsley, a man who - along with the likes of Cameron Adams, Peter Robinson - inspired me to become a journalist. Paul, along with pretty much everyone at Hitz, (notables such as James Ash, Lisa Foley, Adele Cookson, Rod "The Talking Man,"Julie Doyle, The Pete Repete's et al) are also responsible for my violent interest in radio. Not sure if that's something any of them are aware of, but there you go.
This weekend three of my very best friends & I embarked on a road trip, visiting a dear High School friend of ours who has stupidly moved to the other side of Victoria all in the name of love. Naturally, when it comes to a road trip, I take music selection very seriously and have been known to spend up to 2 weeks molding, crafting and reshaping the final playlist. It's something I am not ashamed to admit being incredibly gifted at.
Anyway, on the drive BACK home from our time amongst trees and an abundance of bread & breakfasts, 30 minutes away from being on the correct side of Victoria, Lil' Chris' "Gettin' Enough??" came on the stereo. Everyone got very excited and we began to discuss the tracks brilliance, much to my delight. Ben asked me about the artist, having heard the song before on a compilation I'd meticulously crafted for him late last year, but possibly failed to provide a comprehensive tracklisting for. After explaining it was a (then) 16 year old boy, the population within my car began to spin out. Ben had been convinced it was a girl, but was not disappointed to hear it was a boy. Excitedly, I turfed the remaining 30 minutes (!) of my golden road trip tracklisting in order to play my automobile of friends Chris' exceptional album. How exciting it was for me that everyone TOTALLY lapped it up and proclaimed their undying love for Lil' Chris and his phenomenal debut album.
The funny thing is, about 2 weeks ago I began watching (for the first time) Rock School 2, the reality show which Lil' Chris had been 'propelled' to fame via. The weekly installments have prompted me to listen to the album again at least once a day for most of July. So as you can imagine, sharing the love around has thrown some genuine joy into my life, something I have been seriously lacking with exams and assignments these last few weeks. Then there's the news Chris is recording songs for a new album this week. Throw this intel together with a clip of his next single, an ace cover of the Jermaine Stewart track "Clothes Off," which you may remember Cleamurdering this time last year, and you have a delirious Adem indeed (because he TOLD ME to "Get Delerious!" Do you see?) You can hear a clip of Chris' superior version over at his MySpazz.
Whilst you're here, why not download "I Never Noticed" from Chris' debut album, which is not only one of the best electro-pop ballads of last year, but also OF ALL TIME. Download ZShare | 4mb.
And now you can buy the album. Seriously, it's all killer, no filler, and worth every penny you'll spend on it.
Well last week 2005 Big Brother contestant Vesna and I sat down and recorded our very first video Snatchcast. In comparison to the audio Snatchcast's it's short, but there is visual delight AND an exclusive with Vesna's new hair colour; so whatever we lack in time, we make up for in aesthetics. And--double bonus--the only part of me which is visible are my eyes and nose towards the very end! You can download the video in reasonably high quality from Vesna's MySpazz page, or you can just view it via the craptacular ways of YouTube.
So on Friday night I trotted off to the cinemas to see Harry Potter V for the second time. The only difference this time around was that it was at Imax, and it was in 3D. Well, the last 20 minutes were in 3D anyway. We were celebrating my best friend Ben's birthday, but it may as well have been mine how excited I was. First of all, I've never experienced cinema 3D. I've watched a couple of videos with those pesky red & blue 3D glasses, and unsuccesfully saw absolutely NOTHING life-like during that stupid supposed 3D episode of Medium, but never on the big screen. Let alone Imax. So I wasn't sure what to expect; I definitely wasn't expecting the enormous screen (I later found out that Imax are quite proud of their claim to housing the worlds biggest cinema screens), but certainly wasn't complaining.
Anyway, the seats were shit, it was very cramped and my knees were virtually up to my neck, but I barely complained which is highly unusual for me. And whilst the sight of Rupert Grint on a larger than life screen may not have added any comfort to my sore back, legs, knees and neck, it certainly made Mr. Penis quite comfortable and very happy indeed. Which is a shining explanation as to why I barely mumbled about my pain.
The whole 3-Dimensional experience was as good as I had hoped. It all looked about as real as a movie could look, and seeing Ron in the virtual flesh was actually too much for me to handle, something everyone in the cinema was probably aware of when I accidentally let out a giant sigh the first time he popped up in 3D. Then a further four more times.
Got a couple of plans for this week/fortnight, I'll finally get around to telling you what my favourite dance albums of 2007 are so far, chat a little about UK & OZ Big Brother, and maybe even commit to a long overdue blogerati compilation. Also, the whole My Favourite Pop Record project is not dead, I am merely being a cunt by not getting started on the editing and what not until this crazy period of university is out of the way. But I do promise it's coming; D'luv - you have permission to smack me over the head with a sledge hammer if it's not online by the end of August.
Am also thinking about--here and there--posting a couple of the album reviews I churn out for work; not all of them as I think some of them are shocking, but a couple when they seem coherent to me, wha'dya think?
Well it's here! The brand spankin' new Girls Aloud single "Sexy! No, No, No..." has leaked in radio rip form on the Internut and it is--as expected--very good.
It's incredibly danceable and a complete stomper, giving "Something Kinda Ooooh" a serious run for its money in the foot-shuffling department. Aside from absolutely raising the bloody roof with its electricity through the main chunk of the song, there's also a vocoder used through Cheryl's dramatic almost-talky-bit intro which makes this all the more an enjoyable experience.
The "Sexy!..." video clip was filmed this week, so hopefully they've; A) spent more than 20 pound on it, and B) planned on premiering it sometime next week.
For those who aren't aware, "Sexy! No, No, No..." is released in the UK from September 3rd, with Girls Aloud's long awaited fourth studio album to follow in November. Veeeeeee-Exciting stuff.
* Had an exam this week for Uni which will explain why I've been absent since last week.
* Still, I'm sure it's been an absolute thrill to load this page and still see a collection of Ron Weasley photography.
* Speaking of Ron, how's about that Potter book leaking? I'll admit, I totally looked it up and sought out the spoilers. I haven't read any of the books and simply couldn't wait till 2010 to find out what happens, so yes, I cheated. But there are so many people who don't want to cheat and may feel the burn of cruelty this Saturday when they pick up their copy of "Deathly Hollows." Turns out there is a group of nasty people who've printed up pamphlets to give out to children in line at random bookstore launches, containing all the important spoilers disguised as a pamphlet of guidelines before purchasing the book. Fucking ridiculous.
* I was lucky enough to receive the long awaited Midnight Juggernauts album in the mail today, which is released through Inertia next month. Will review it sometime this week.
* Frustratingly, I am still waiting for news on the Van She album. Popjustice have made small mention of the boys once again thanks to their remix of Feist's "1234," which is good, but has nothing on any of the original stuff they churn out.
* I'm going to the Arctic Monkeys Melbourne gig on August 7th much to my excitement. Unfortunately I am going alone, so if anyone is keen on tagging along, email me. You'll have to source out your ticket on ebay though (there's heaps of them on there, ps), I don't have a spare.
* Victoria Beckham's TV special was fun, regardless of what 98% of the television viewing public would have you believe.
* Sorry for the half-arsed post. I'll try and concoct something a little more adequate later on today.
Welcome to Ultimate Redknob 101, our first class; a history lesson.
The above collection of snap photography is a glimpse into the evolution of impeccable hair. Much like the art-form that is the various stylings of Dougie Poynter's locks, over the years Rupert Grint's ginga-mane has improved in quality at a progressive rate.
Whilst the evidence--naturally--speaks for itself, some of you may need a smidge of guidance. So. Let us take a closer look into each of these historical hair cuts.
A. HARRY POTTER I (2001) Not an obvious glimpse into a future of styled brilliance. It alarms me that parents all over the world feel the need to revive the bowl cut upon their innocent children who are not old enough to object to such debauchery.
B. HARRY POTTER II (2002) A little more floppier, and a slight bit shorter. A less offensive take on the bowl cut.
C. HARRY POTTER III (2004) Now we are getting somewhere. The rebellious 'flick' atop of Rupert's head is the first real indication of god-like hair. Whilst the styling is not entirely right, the length is almost perfect, leaving a very positive impact on the retinas.
D. HARRY POTTER IV (2005) Bitch, it is ON. Whilst the hair situation was somewhat lacking through out the fourth installment of the Potter films, the promotional period for the film--which this shot comes from--is the first enormous leap for Grint into legendhairy status. A little too long, but practically there.
E. DRIVING LESSONS (2006) After a small trim, a scruff here and there and a bit of wax to keep it all together, you wouldn't be the first to feel it was the hair on Rupert's heads finest hour. It also helps that puberty had well and truly treated Grint very kindly by his 18th birthday.
F. HARRY POTTER V (2007) Miraculous. This is the kind of beauty that could provide sight to the blind, sound to the deaf, and the sprout of a fresh leg to the Mills-McCartney. A truly breathtaking example of follicle perfection.
In conclusion, not since the importance of Rob Lowe's locks (and--in its own right--accompanying saxophone) in the mid 80's has there been a more influencial set of stylised tresses as those found upon the equally as admirable head of Rupert Grint. He truly is the Ultimate Redknob.
Another photo then.
(BTW: Harry Potter V was ace. Not enough Ron but, as I said, his hair was so divine that his screen time didn't matter too much. I was totally fizzing-at-the-slit over the definition of his arms too; is it wrong that his obvious visits to the gym of late excite me?)
The 6 month mark has come and gone, but because I have been incredibly lazy of late, it's only finding a home on the interweb now.
Without further ado, here are the top songs of the so-far year. This isn't a list of singles, but a list of the songs that have made an impact on me for the first half-and-a-month of 2007. Currently, there are songs listed from number 1 to 247 for my end of year chart.
Instead of sharing such a monstrous list, here are the first 40 (Where available, click on the song title to view a YouTube clip.)
-- 1. MADONNA ft. GOGOL BORDELLOLa Isla Bonita (Live Earth) Seeing as I only just spoke about its brilliance a couple of days ago, in place of repeating myself, I'll just redirect you to the blog post in question.
2. ARCTIC MONKEYSDo Me A Favour Ahh Alex Turner. The more I listen to this song, the more I am convinced Turner is the greatest lyricist of the 21st Century. Parting with the one you love is hard, and "Do Me A Favour" deals with the situation in a painfully realistic manner. This desperately needs to be the third single from Favourite Worst Nightmare.
3. RIHANNAUmbrella An absolute thunderstorm (BOOM TISH) of a pop song. As is the case with the previous Rihanna lead single off an album ("S.O.S,") this was offered to about 6 different people before it finally landed on the desk of Rihanna HQ. I seriously could not imagine anyone else doing it as much justice as she has. Her nasal, 'I can't be bothered' vocal approach is stellar and fits so comfortably with this songs groove. And that album, well, who knew it was going to turn out so good?
4. SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTORCan't Have It All So tragic, so beautiful... so Sophie. I cannot help but be drawn to this song, surprisingly not one of the tracks that stood out to me when listening to this album for the first time. Such a pity it's a UK Bonus Track, this has winter-single written all over it. In fact, don't you think that the video clip for new single "Today The Sun's On Us" would have fit better with this? I do too.
5. SHAKIRAPure Intuition I cannot decide whether I prefer the English or Spanish versions of this track. The Spanish version is the one with a clip (and a fantastically simple yet effective one at that), but the English version is something I not only understand completely, but can sort of relate to. Gorgeous melody, beautiful chorus ("We've been wanting each other since before we were born/and I will want you even after I am gone") and a stunning final 30 seconds (which is--without a doubt--an exquisite homage to the intro of Kim Wilde's "Keep Me Hangin' On" cover.) Now let's have an English clip and Western release please.
* Much better clip than the one GA & Mutya have provided us. ** MP3 for your downloading pleasure. *** EXCELLENT live performance from Sessions @ AOL.
Take into consideration that list will most definitely have a few changes by the end of the year, especially with predicted new releases from Girls Aloud, Madonna, Kylie, Britney, etcetera.
COMING UP: I'm off to see Harry Potter V in about 90 minutes, so expect some full blown, fizzing-at-the-slit style appreciation of Ron Weasley Thursday evening. Bitch it is on.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007 Giveth with one hand, taketh with the other.
God (pictured, left, candidly straddling a boombox over the weekend) works in mysterious ways. She delivers joy, but whilst you are celebrating, she quite rudely rips something away from you. Unfortunately because of her general greatness, you just cannot question her madness--as they say, there is obviously a method to it and who am I to judge a decision God Almighty herself has made. It still saddens me though.
Let's start with the bad news. It seems that the totally amazing Samuel, who runs the totally amazing Hotstufffiles (it's all one bloody word!) has closed down his gorgeous labour of love for good. THIS UPSETS ME GREATLY. Over the past year it has been an absolute pleasure chatting to the lovely Samuel about nonsensical garbage like Jay-Z's role in Rihanna's "Umbrella," Girls Aloud flunking it down under, and other fabulous tomfoolery. He even allowed me to scribble my own series of shit for a couple of weeks in an accidentally ill-fated weekly column. So thank you Samuel, your site has provided me with much entertainment and laughs over the last 12 months plus, and it is incredibly sad to see you go.
NOW for the hand that giveth! You may remember how mortified I was when Popalastic closed its doors earlier in the year. Thankfully, they have come to their senses and taken note that the interweb's median land price's have sunk to an all time low since their self-imposed eviction from the world of pop and--in order to save us all--are returning with a totally jazzed up new look. Huzzah! You can read the exciting message of hope for yourself (complete with peacock-friendly photography) here.
Thank you for the music, Goodbye my friend, bye bye Miss American Pie; we'll miss you Hotstufffiles. Welcome back Popalastic.
Monday, July 09, 2007 Take some time to enjoy the mug.
My best friend Ben is celebrating his birthday in a couple of weeks, so about 2 weeks ago I began brainstorming what my gift for the occasion would be. After much consideration, I decided there was only one gift to give this year.
Ben & I are absolutely obsessed with US chat show The View. We are so obsessed with RosieO and Joy Behar that it is probably not very healthy. We often discuss at great length for hours the madness which has been covered earlier that day on The View. Once a day for an hour, we live, breathe and shit The View.
So I thought it to be completely fitting that I purchase Ben (and, of course, one for myself) a certain product which was seen daily on the show during Rosie's reign, shipped from New York all the way to Australia...
Ignore the mess, the hair, the headband and the sliver of Elizabitch's face on the drinking material. But isn't that the BEST. CUP. EVER. ???!!
The fiery European inside of me has not been this satisfied in years.
As someone who has never actually visited the country both his parents called home for the early years of their childhood (Bosnia), my emotional pull to it and, in general, European music, has grown over the years. As I've gotten older I've found myself appreciating the 'narodne' and 'zabavne' songs my parents would force upon me as a child. A lot of the European sounds borrow quite heavily from the musical stylings of Gypsies, a sound which I associate with my childhood almost as much as the sounds of Madonna or The Doors resonating from my Auntie's bedroom.
I spent a large portion of this weekend with the TV on, waiting for Madonna and her set at this weekends Live Earth, which I had worked out would start about 6:30am my time. At about 2:30am I couldn't handle it anymore and went to sleep, purposely leaving the TV on (what would Al Gore say?) and setting my alarm for 6:25am. You can probably guess that when 6:25am came round, I did not. I cannot recall switching the alarm off but I must have, and ended up awaking at about 10:30am.
I was pretty upset, annoyed that I'd have to download her set and watch it on my computer... I wanted to see it on my television, not on my monitor. Anyways, I began to rub my eyes and, out of the corner of my eye I see Madonna's name scrawled across the bottom of my television screen (I have this alarming, er, talent, to spot Madonna's name or a picture of her face from miles away. Honestly, it's a gift.) Fox8 began showing Madonna's set all over again. It was almost as if it had been set up to coincide with me waking up. I totally spun out.
So I sat there, at the edge of my bed, watching her sing "Hey You" and "Ray Of Light." Not checking the net for any spoilers, I was not expecting any sort of surprises, especially not in the form of a remodeled "La Isla Bonita." When the Gogol Bordello guys came out, I initially thought they'd just be there for backing vocals. But when that gypsy madness kicked in, well, fuck me. I was instantly zapped out of sleep mode, completely alert and focussed. Was this really happening? Was my favourite Madonna song of all time actually being fused together with sounds of the Balkans? As it all kicked in, my emotions totally took over. And when Mo started singing in Romani, I, very quietly, totally lost my shit. The goosebump factor was intense.
I've always thought that Madonna's performance of "La Isla Bonita" at the Drowned World Tour was the definitive version, but now I'm really not sure. This Live Earth remodel is simply another spin on the Confessions Tour version, which took a while for me to appreciate. But the whole Gogol Bordello touch... it was like she had figured out there was something missing from the CT version, and knew exactly what ingredients to add in order to make the finished product better than any previous version of the song. If that's what went through her head, then she was right on the money.
I am totally overwhelmed at how beautiful it all was. The dancing, the music, it not only connected me to Madonna (you're all well aware of the effect she has on me), but connected me to the Balkans, to Europe, to the music my grandparents and their parents would listen to at gatherings around a lamb on the spit, playing cards in the backyard of a small Bosnian cottage. It was pretty ace.
I'm sure this is just a bunch of nonsensical rambling, but I just had to share how I've been feeling all day. I swear to god, there is nothing better than when music makes you feel like this. I'm seriously on top of the world.
This will most likely turn out to be my favourite live Madonna performance of all time I'd say.
Watch and love.
COMING THIS WEEK:The release of Harry Potter V this Wednesday will see some seriousRedknob appreciation. And some of that other shit I promised you all two weeks ago.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007 GENIUS ADVERTISING ALERT!
How was I completely unaware of this? One month into the campaign and I only just found out about it 10 minutes ago... and all my thanks must go to the divine Will from Fop, everyone's favourite, most loved and most missed Aussie-cum-Londoner. Sophie Monk, she of Bardot fame, she of Benji Madden love and, more importantly, she of "Come My Way" brilliance (DOWNLOAD IT), has covered Salt 'N Pepa's "Push It." FOR A BRAND NEW PUSH-UP BRA RANGE THROUGH MYER DEPARTMENT STORES!!
WATCH!
I can, quite literally, barely hear myself think.
"Sale starts Friday."
It's totally fabulous without actually being any good. I have been listening to this absolute gem for a good 35 solid minutes on repeat so far. Why not do the same?
At the moment, this isn't available for purchase, though there is talk it may be getting an official release due to in-store demand. CAN YOU BELIEVE OUR LUCK?!
MORE YOUTUBE SOPHIE APPRECIATION:
Sophie's first debut single, "Inside Outside," quite possibly the worlds most adorable video clip ever.
Sophie's shining moment in Date Movie is the Kill Bill/Paris Hilton homage to cheeseburgers.
Sophie and the girls from Bardot covering "Go West" at the 2001 Goodwill Games. I KNOW.
Sophie in some Blink 182 video clip.
Bardot's video clip for the OUTSTANDING "I Need Somebody." Watch out for Soph's motorbike inspired dance.
