I’m in Brooklyn baby, with a premonition

Dance-rock, a genre made popular by The Rapture and Radio 4, was one of the movements that exploded in the 9/11 aftermath. Both bands have in common the fact that their early works were produced by James Murphy and Tim Goldsworthy, co-founders of DFA records. At the time, besides running DFA, James Murphy was busy throwing parties in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, and working on “Losing My Edge”, which would be the first single released by LCD Soundsystem, his own musical project.

The first time I saw LCD playing live was at a DFA records showcase at a summer festival. To the best of my knowledge, this was the sickest thing ever organized in Portugal. The LCD concert was a total blast, but not least memorable were the performances by other acts signed by DFA, like The Juan Maclean and Hot Chip. Discovering their music and listening to it had a familiar feeling: it was like getting to know someone and suddenly realizing how much you can relate to that person. Their music wasn’t a summer affair; it wasn’t a seasonal trend like new-rave or blog-house. LCD, and more generally DFA, is about music with longevity.

Later I was fortunate enough to see them playing live many times. The build-ups, the repetitions, the effortlessly chill vocals, the tense guitars, the over-layered synths, everything done with such a slick production. James Murphy’s dj sets are never to be missed and offer true inroads towards the influences behind his music. Particularly memorable were the Special Disco Version parties, where he often dj’d, and a warm up party at P.S. 1 where he graced a beautiful afternoon with out of this world disco, finishing his set with the track “Comanchero”. “Damn, this redefines icing on the cake”, I remember thinking to myself.

“This is Happening” is out and the word on the street is that this might be LCD’s last album. Sad. But their legacy is of that kind that stays indifferent to time and forgetfulness. “Losing my edge” set the tone for the last decade. Let’s just hope it sets the tone for this one. And for the next. Because “with someone new I couldn’t start it. Too late for beginnings.”

By Banjee