Chris Stracey and Jack Glass of Bag Raiders converse!
tks: Ok, so you guys have had some amazing exposure, yet solely on the back of a couple of EPs and a handful of remixes: what do you think it is that you do that’s allowed you this instant popularity?
cs: I guess we got a break when Kitsune picked up our Lost Valentinos remix for a compilation of theirs. Then we were lucky enough to get our tracks picked up by the JJJ Radio station in Australia, they were flogging that for a while which helped us out with gi-normous exposure. Also, our friends made a video clip for Fun Punch, which has had 729,404 you tube views to date, so that was massive for us as well!
[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZcmg4-Zm-8]
tks: Modular’s experienced some massive success over the last 12 months, releasing back to back number one albums in The Presets and Cut Copy – a marked difference from what we see here in NZ, with our top 10 sellers. Do you think the success of these Modular artists is due to a change in public tastes in Australia? Is NZ behind the times, or do we not support our own music enough? Its just so frustrating seeing that Cut Copy hit #1 there, and then looking at the hugely boring top sellers here.
cs: Australia seems to have a much more synth-pop-based-dance-music focus when it comes to winning the popularity contest. I think it’s all part of the wave that seems to be going on here at the moment. Kids here like to dance!
jg: Yeah it’s true, kids like to dance! Who doesn’t? I suppose as well bands like The Presets and Cut Copy have been around for a while now. I remember buying that first Presets EP what seems like ages ago. So they’ve been slowly building up momentum. It is kinda crazy though, the Presets especially are HUGE here!
tks: I’d argue that theres a definite short-lived aspect to the art of DJing and remixing – you’ve really got to keep forging ahead with your art constantly to stay relevant, particularly with the constant updating of music trends via blogs. Do you feel like modern music is a race, in this regard? Like, you have to keep on your toes or be forgotten?
cs: Haha, to some extent yes. Tracks always get leaked on blogs before their release, and the second that happens there are already 528 new remixes floating around the internet from every kid that has ableton on his/her computer…. So in that regard, if you’re not making the music, someone else is… but i like to think that if you stick at doing what you do, not necessarily following trends but making it the best you can, people will dig it. I hope they do, or else it’s back to cocktail waitressing for us! (“But you’re boys”…. shhh)
tks: OK OK is, obviously, Modular’s foray into the NZ party scene- how do you feel, being the flagship act for the first set of parties?
cs: I have never been to NZ (outside of the airport) so i’m really excited to do that, especially to be the torch-bearer for the Modular parties there.. It’s always interesting to see how kids party in different places, bring on NZ!
jg: Last time I was in New Zealand I was strip-searched at the airport. No joke! Plus I was with my Grandma who was pretty unimpressed with the whole situation!! So I’m coming with the fairly modest ambition that I don’t have to “turn around” and “lift up my package” for 2 guys with moustaches this time!
tks: Your video for Fun Punch recalls that goofy sense of 90s TV show nostalgia- are Power Rangers, etc a big thing for you, or you just thought it would be a cool idea for the video?
cs: Actually it was the brainchild of our good friend Quincy Beaufort. We didn’t really have anything to do with the concept for the clip. He came to us one day with some pencil drawings on a crumpled up piece of paper yelling something about stunt men, and pointed to the drawing where the flaming swords are shooting down to earth, and we were like “Hell yea boyeee! Do that!”
jg: Yeah that was all Beaufort. Please send all kudos/lawsuits his way.
tks: You seem to have really taken to releasing stuff on 12″- solely for DJing purposes, or do you consider yourselves vinyl enthusiasts too?
cs: Vinyl is really cool. It looks cool, you get giant-sized artwork, and you can blu-tack the covers to your wall etc, but it’s also heavy and i’d be lying if i said that i ever use it in the club..
jg: We both started out using vinyl but don’t play it anymore. I still buy it from time to time though.
tks: Anything in particular that audiences here can expect from your sets? Do you consider the live performance to be a massive thing for you guys? As it doesn’t really rest in the realm of the ‘band’, how do you feel about appropriating your music into a live context?
cs: The Live show for us is a big deal because we have so much equipment to worry about. We didn’t want to do a “live” show where two dudes just stand in front of a laptop for an hour,
so there’s a lot of moving around playing different instruments (Keyboards, guitars and percussion etc). As for translating our music to live, so far so good i think. Thankfully we’ve had a really positive response from our live shows, it’s been a lot of fun.
jg: Yeah live has been great for us, one of the best things we’ve done. We’ve got to do some amazing shows like Shore Thing and Field Day over here and the opening night of the Sydney Festival (which was one of the craziest parties I’ve ever seen!). But we still like djing too. In some ways it’s even funner because we mostly just hang out, get drunk and party and play whatever we feel like!
James Beavis
Bag Raiders play Good Luck, February 27th, 2009
