Tim Bergling, better known by the stage name of Avicii, is a Swedish house music record producer, DJ, songwriter and remixer, that achieved worldwide notoriety in the beginning of the decade of 2010’s. One of the most recognizable faces of contemporaneous electronic music, he is a household name easily spotted in electronic music festivals worldwide.

Exceedingly involved in major musical collaborations with a lot of artists, Avicii is certainly one of the most prominent talents of house music and progressive house today, in a worldwide basis, although he also works in another electronic music genres. With a very recognizable musical style, Avicii, still young, being only 27 years old, has the world ahead of him. With his amazing talent, a great capacity for creating uplifting beats and very exhilarating rhythms, with an arduous fan base that loves everything he does, and waits anxiously for his next releases and projects, Avicii has the world at his feet. Really, there is someone, in the electronic music sphere, that does not like what he does?

A worldwide celebrity, with his work as a remixer being heavily commissioned by the likes of several famous artists and musicians, as well as several successful partnerships – that occur also outside the electronic music scene – with acts and artists like Coldplay, Madonna and Wyclef Jean, Avicii has proved himself to be gracious, eclectic and limitless. What can we expect of him? Everything that is marvelous, wonderful and out of the ordinary. He’s a very well established influence and a remarkable reference everywhere in the mainstream musical arena.  

For someone who’s still very young, and has such a recent career, his immense success is formidable, but proved the greatness of his musical abilities, given the enormous acceptance by the public. Now you can say that an electronic music festival without Avicii is no electronic music festival at all. 

Only the future can say certainly what the days to come keep for this amazingly talented Swedish DJ, composer and songwriter. Nevertheless, his worldwide fan base sees only his talent spreading more of his light, in songs, endeavors and collaborations that will be better and better. Unfortunately, in what concerns touring and live concerts, Avicii shocked the electronic music scene this year, by announcing that he would retire, because of poor health concerns. Having being hospitalized before in one occasion, Avicii apparently played his last concert in Ibiza in August 28. With health problems, the several additional difficulties that came out with touring take a toll on the artist. Nonetheless, at least he will not stop making music. No matter what his decisions turn out to be, he certainly deserves support from his audience. And we will always be here, waiting for his wonderful songs to be released.   


​Wagner

The world of dance music has been stealing (or 'borrowing') from the pop and rock scene for ages. Just think about some of those horrible, soulless dance versions of songs like 'Sweet Child O'Mine' (by Milk Inc), 'Billy Jean' (by Crew 7) or Britney's mind numbing adaptation of 'I Love Rock 'n Roll' which was already a cover to begin with. Well, rockers and metalheads sure know a thing or two about remaking old songs as well, often with quite interesting results. Here are fifteen electronic songs, turned into rock and metal anthems. 

We kick things off with a band that has dedicated two entire albums covering eighties new wave and electro songs. Out of these 'Werk 80' albums, we picked Visage's 'Fade To Grey', initially a dreamy electronic pop song, now turned into an absolute dark dancefloor filler. Once starting out as a death metal band, Atrocity has been going to a lot of changes throughout the years, this cover project being just one of the many incarnations, but a damn good one if you ask me.

Suicide, the duo of Alan Vega and Martin Rev recorded this song way back in 1977 with primitive electronics and drum machines. This, and other songs, made them responsible for an entire wave of industrial and noise music. Enter industrial metal horde Bloodstar, who recorded a harsh cover version for their album 'Anytime Anywhere' on a compilation by Roadrunner Records. It's actually this song, that started my fascination for metal covers.

Good ol' Rammstein and their shenanigans. The first song I heard them cover was one by the Ramones, and I remember thinking "I hope they never do that again". But, Rammstein never listens to me so they went on covering other stuff, including this awesome version of Kraftwerk's 'Das Modell'. Speaking about dancefloor fillers... By the way, don't mind the video, it's not the official one. In fact, YouTube muted the music on the official video. Weird asses...

Hah, you were expecting fifteen metal songs, weren't you? But I never said that, and besides, I can't go through this list without paying my respects to "the man in black".  His greatest cover of all time was probably Nine Inch Nails' 'Hurt' but since that's not really an electronic song, I decided to go with 'Personal Jesus' from Depeche Mode. To be honest, I think Cash made an absolute classic of this one, one I like more than the original.

Of course, we have to include this ugly dude in this article. Although Marilyn Manson has never been very high on my favorites list, this song is a smasher. Originally recorded and performed by Eurythmics, 'Sweet Dreams' has been getting a lot of people on their feet, regardless of the genre they usually listen to. Well, perhaps some people still prefer the original version over Manson's creepy, somewhat over-the-top performance.

A friend sent me this one, a metalcore version of The Prodigy's 'Omen'. Although I prefer the original, it isn't hard to see why a metal band would cover this hit. After all, it is already a pretty damn heavy tune, perfectly suited to throw in some distorted guitars . A little research brought me to Polish band Messa, who play "rock 'n core". All fine by me since this is quite a nice cover version.

Nadja's cover album is an amazing piece of work which includes some of the greatest covers I've ever heard. My favorite one on that album is Slayer's (Dead Skin Mask' but for this list I have to go with the megahit by Norwegian synthpop act A-Ha. Aidan Baker  and Leah Buckareff surely turned this song into an immersive whirlpool of drones, much like we're used to form Nadja.

Another one of my favorite covers comes from American "dead pop" band Orgy who added their industrial metal over New Order's megahit 'Blue Monday'. This cover version too had been a constant at parties, at least the parties I went to and dj'ed at over the years. It's actually still one of my all time favorite covers.

English extremists Cradle Of Filth have been no strangers to covers, but when this appeared on their 'Thornography' album, I looked at my speakers in sheer disbelief. Not only because the original is a simple synthpop song, but mostly because Dani and co turned it into something filthy, nasty and quite sexy. I never liked the original and I'm not going to say that this is my favorite Cradle Of Filth track but still worth mentioning here.

Of course, the punk rock scene has been barking out cover versions ever since pop songs became silly enough to make punk rock covers of them. Hell, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes thrive on that sort of things but this blasting gem by punk heroes Offspring shouldn't go unnoticed in this list. Not that is a prime example of musical ingenuity but hey, I prefer an Offspring moshpit over an Aqua dancefloor anytime.

Belgian metal act Manic Movement recorded this blasting version of Anne Clark's 'Our Darkness' for their 2001 album 'Future Dreaming Self'. I didn't know that before I saw them at Graspop a year later but I did know and love the original. So when it started slamming through the speakers, I was ecstatic and it kept going heavier and heavier. Maybe you can even see me in the audience on this video. I had long hair and wore a black t-shirt, shouldn't be that hard to spot me, right?

This English band seems to promote themselves as a "wedding-band" but they also play parties and festivals. On their YouTube channel, they published all kinds of cover songs, mostly with a tongue-in-cheek folk rock atmosphere or, in this case, tuning the whole thing in a joyful reggae tune. If Mister Kanish proves anything, it's the fact that cover bands can be original and entertaining enough to become something that people want to see. If they're touring and coming over to Belgium, there's a big chance I go see them. It'll be fun.

"Death in Rome is a Neofolk Group covering pop songs", that's pretty much all there is to say about these guys. Mind you, Neofolk usually isn't really overloaded with humor so this one is a bit of a surprise. In my research for this article, I've searched far and wide to find somewhat decent versions of old techno tunes. Apart from a bunch of metal, punk and grindcore songs, there wasn't that much original to find, except for Death In Rome. The bandname is a composition of the bands Death In June and Rome, and why not claim that the 'In' stands for Sol Invictus? Anyway, this is a brilliant cover and they have many more if you're willing to listen.

Several years ago, at a festival in Belgium, I was strolling around the terrain which brought me near the stage where The Dillinger Escape Plan were performing. I didn't really care about the band as I've never really been a fan of math core or whatever it is that these guys play(ed). However, suddenly they kicked of this bloody intense Aphex Twin cover. I was amazed, since I thought it was physically impossible to drum this thing. But look, here it is.

'Der Mussolini' by German electro act DAF is one of the best electronic songs to turn into a pounding metal song, as also proved by Atrocity. Yet, Swiss thrash metallers Coroner beat them to it and released this moshpit inducing piece of music in 1995 on their penultimate album 'Coroner'.  It still is one of my favorite cover versions, although I prefer Coroner's own songs. Still, I secretly hope I get to watch them doing this song live.

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I live in a region in Belgium, named Flanders. Here, we speak Dutch and a lot of artists also sing in that language. Unfortunately, the majority of Flemish sung music is quite infantile, suited only for carnival and nurseries, yes, even when the artist is trying to be serious. Many alternative music lovers frown upon the mind-numbingly dull qualities of the Flemish music scene, often collected in a program like 'Tien Om Te Zien'. However, there are some artists who manage to make delightful, beautiful and stunning songs in their native language. Here is a little overview...

Everyone in Flanders knows this song, since it is the most iconic piece of music to be found in this region. Luc De Vos, who sadly passed away in 2014, was an absolute genius with a mysterious charisma and a nag for writing strange, emotional lyrics. His oeuvre is impressive, and so were his stage performances. Sometimes it was a heavy rocking gig where even this 'Mia' sounded heavy and intense, sometimes he was alone on stage, armed with his acoustic guitar, singing as much songs as he received Duvels. Today, in the 52nd minute of each home match of football team AA Gent, the entire stadium sings this song in honor of Luc. He is severely missed.

This cover version of a Bette Midler song ('The Rose' - written by Amanda McBroom) is widely regarded as one of the biggest Flemish hits ever. Rivers of tears have been cried since 1980, when the song was released, and still at this very moment, somewhere in Flanders, someone is weeping to this tearjerker. Personally, I'm not always a big fan over cover versions, but this one gets me all the time.

My good friend and Merchants Of Air colleague Wouter told me about this band and showed me this video. I was intrigued pretty quickly because of what I heard. While, musically, these youngsters from Ghent and Antwerp would fit in perfectly with today's electronic pop scene, their use of Dutch is a bold and daring choice. Yet, as we've seen before, it's exactly because of their language that these guys are doing so well. Perhaps, in English this band would drown in the massive amount of acts in their genre, but in Dutch, they definitely excel. To be honest, I'm not a fan of all their songs, but this one certainly is a stand out.

Long before Dutch band De Heideroosjes would climb on stages allover the world, these guys from Keerbergen had already become legends. They've had massive hits with songs like 'Morregen', 'Het Is Gedaan' and this epic piece of work about an aging punk fan and his adventures in the retirement home. Blending hardcore punk with (mostly) Dutch lyrics, Belgian Asociality has been a headliner in this country for almost thirty years.

Another icon we Flemish people miss, is "kleinkunst" singer Zjef Vanuytsel. This song is just as iconic as 'Mia' by Gorki and 'De Roos' by Ann Christy. It still is extremely relevant today, as the world is getting crazier and more hectic each an every day. The title translates as 'the crazy morning' and it's simply a beautiful testament of Belgian music, tout-court.

The title of this song translates as 'Ace Of Spades', and yes, it does remind me a bit of a fairly recently passed away deity in the world of hard rock and heavy metal. Amörtisseur basically translates Motorhead songs into "Antwaarps", one of the most well-known dialects in our country. This surely is a hilarious tribute to Lemmy. 

Also hailing from Antwerp, and usually also funny as hell, this band has been a constant in the Flemish music industry since 1977. With songs about beer, women, the catholic church and politicians, Katastroof has gained a loyal following in and around Antwerp. However, my personal favorites have always been the emotional songs, beautifully collected on 'Efkes Serieus'. They show a different, bittersweet, side of these drunken bards.

This band hailed from Limburg, just like me. Basically, Noordkaap was initially called 'Limburg's answer to Gorki, De Mens and De Kreuners' and eventually many of their songs have become instant classics. After the split, vocalist Stijn Meuris would go on to form Monza, which was quite similar and now he performs solo as Meuris, singing these massive Noordkaap hits (like 'Wat Is Kunst', 'Satelliet Suzy' and the Will Tura cover 'Arme Joe') again, much to the delight of the audience.

Now, don't try to translate this song, because you'll end up confused and slightly insane. Urbanus is an absolute cult figure in Belgium, starting out in a cabaret-ensemble called 'Anus' in the seventies and eventually evolving into a highly respected comedian. This particular song, initially from a performance in 1982, saw a massive outcome years later. While announcing this song, Urbanus joked "I wrote this song for the punk rockers De Heideroosjes'. Seven years later, internationally acclaimed Dutch punk rockers De Heideroosjes were born, crediting Urbanus for their band name. In 2004, Urbanus and De Heideroosjes performed this rocker together at the stage of Rock Werchter.

An environmental activist song from 1970, still immensely relative today. Perhaps that's what timelessness is all about. Kleinkunst singer Louis Neefs had a deep, kind voice and a nag for quality music that has delivered several classic songs, including 'Margrietje', 'Ik Heb Zorgen' and this epic tune. Neefs passed away in 1980, leaving a beautiful legacy of Flemish chansons.

Clement Peeters, the heavy rocking alter ego of musician/comedian.radio personality Hugo Matthijsen was initially a character in a radio show he did with Bart Peeters (Het Leugenpaleis). Soon after, the trio of Clement Peerens (Matthijsen), Vettige Swa (Peeters - later replaced by Dave 'Beast From Hell' de Peuter (Aram Van Ballaert)) and Sylvain Aertbeliën (Ronny Mosuse) scored massive hits with 'Dikke Lu', 'Vindegij Mijn Gat' and 'Foorwijf'. My favorite is 'Boecht Van Dunaldi', a song about disgusting wine in a carton box.

Maybe this is cheating a bit, since Stef Bos is actually born and raised in The Netherlands. Still, he moved to Belgium in 1988, started writing songs for Clouseau and Ingeborg and appearing in 'De Samson & Gert Show'. In 1990, he released an album with the title 'Is Dit Nu Later', featuring the hit 'Papa' and this tearjerker that gets me every single time. The song describes a highly emotional comparison between his life as a kid and as an adult, wondering 'Is This The Future'?

Earlier this year, the Flemish metal scene teamed up with a number of hip-hop artists to record a tribute to both 'Walk This Way' from Run DMC and the 'Judgement Night' tribute. Personally, I've never really been a fan of Dutch rap, but this thing is yummie. A few gigs followed before they put the project to rest, but rest assured, some tremendously blasting tunes came out of this cooperation.

Marcel Van Tilt is no stranger to absurdities and conflicts. According to a story I read somewhere, someone claimed he stole the band name from a brainstorming session to find a band name for the group that would eventually be known as De Kreuners. Furthermore, this song pissed off schlager singer John Terra who just released a song with the exact same title, which translates as 'The Day The Sun Didn't Shine Anymore'. In the end, Arbeid Adelt probably became most popular with the P.I.L. cover 'Death Disco'. Yet, for Belgian new wavers, this song still is a classic.

Another favorite of the Flemish black denim and leather wearing music lovers, is Aroma Di Amore, a band around Elvis Peeters and guitarist Fred Angst. Formed in 1982, Aroma Di Amore has been known for their socio-critical lyrics and gloomy new wave sound. This song was released as a single in 1983, and appeared on the album 'Radikal' ten years later. 

Ernest Greene “Washed Out” – Musician, songwriter and record producer

Ernest Greene “Washed Out” is a 33 year-old electronic musician, singer and producer from Georgia, who debuted in 2011, with his first album, the hugely successful Within and Without, and followed in 2013, with his second album, Paracosm. A graduated librarian, Greene started making music in his bedroom, while completely out-of-luck when trying to find a regular job for himself. Things did an unexpected turn when, all of a sudden, his songs gained momentum, and a successful following in his Myspace page soon attracted great reviews, as well as the attention of renowned musicians and producers in the electronic music scene, and very soon the fortunes of the down-on-his-luck aspiring musician forever changed. Now being able to do what he loves the most in life – to write and to record music – electronic music fans and enthusiasts can be grateful to the lack of luck of Ernest Greene in trying to establish an ordinary life for himself, since all of us are winners, being able to listen to his magnificent music, that honors the new wave of the 21st century electronica genre, in his very personal and beautiful compositions. 

Released in July 2011, Washed Out’s first album, Within and Without, attracted great reviews from all corners of the electronic music scene, being scored at three and a half to four and half stars, in the majority of reviews. After two years of its release, it has sold almost 90.000 copies in the United States alone, establishing Greene as one of the most fresh and solid new promises of electronica in the present day. Although only forty minutes long, the album really don’t disappoint: if you are looking for calm and transcendent melodies, melancholically balanced, proficient and pop-infused, Washed Out really delivers a great masterpiece that proves itself to be really worthwhile listening.         

In 2013, Greene followed, with his second full length, Paracosm, released in August 2013, which also received very positive and enthusiastic reviews, by music critics and fans alike. Although a little more transcendent than its predecessor, it continues Greene’s calm and peaceful musical atmosphere, consolidating a style that can be seen as a peculiar result of his very personal and ambitious compositions. Although being mostly associated with the Chillwave movement – by the nature of the transcendent and very serene atmospheres of his music –, Washed Out’s songs are very infused with a lot of pop subgenres, like synth pop, dream pop and indie pop, and flirts a little with other genres as well, like soft rock and trip hop, making his style a very interesting mixture for the underground scene, especially when related to the electronic music. 

Well, it’s impossible to know precisely what’s going to be his next move, but all of his fans and admirers are waiting to see. Of course, we expect in 2016 to see a new album, maybe, although Ernest Greene didn’t spoke about this possibility yet. With more than 310.000 likes on his Facebook page, certainly, the popularity of Washed Out’s beautiful music will continue to grow, as the electronic music scene is anxious to hear new material, and listen to news, related to Washed Out. Well, I certainly wish Ernest Greene a very long and prolific career, as I want to keep listening to his wonderful and melodic music, ever! 

Wagner

Trying to redeem one of the most neglected albums in history 

A-ha, like most people know, is the top best-selling Norwegian musical act ever, having sold in excess of 80 million albums worldwide. Although being mostly well known for catchy singles like Touchy, melody-driven songs like The Blood that Moves the Body, happy spicy sugar flicks like Take on me or romantic-nostalgia hits like Stay on these roads, Memorial Beach, their fifth album, released in 1993, despite little commercial success, deserves its place in history.  

Memorial Beach is unique in a wide variety of ways, but – most of all – have the distinction of revealing the darkest side of an otherwise happy, flavored and colorful band. With extremely dramatic songs, filled with gloom, melancholy and sadness, wrapped up in an intense darkness, surrounded by depressing atmospheres, Memorial Beach does reveal a side of A-ha that you will never see in anyone of the band’s other albums. 

Considered a commercial failure – having sold at the time of its release only 40.000 units in the United States –, maybe because their usual fan-base was incapable of understanding the low mood of the album, and, unlike their other albums, didn’t produced any single, this is a great album not only for its amazing, downward and abysmal descending songs, but for being completely distinct from anything the band has released, before and after it. The cold reception the album had upon its release is frequently cited as one of the reasons A-ha disbanded, soon afterwards. 

I had the opportunity of seeing A-ha live, back in 2002, when they were touring to promote their most recent album, Lifelines. At the concert, however, they haven’t played any songs from Memorial Beach. Considered by music critics and fans alike – and apparently, by the band itself – the black sheep of A-ha discography, nevertheless this is a great album, and once you had the chance to listen to it, probably you will never stop listening. The greatest songs, undoubtedly, Move to Memphis, Cold as Stone, Locust, Lie Down in Darkness and Lamb to the Slaughter, are certainly, each one of them, a unique masterpiece in its own right. Memorial Beach is A-ha at their best – and darkest – shape, being for the first time in their careers, black, pessimistic to the bones, and blatantly non-commercial. 

This is a major album for all the great reasons. When a band, deliberately or not, decides to do something out of their comfort zone, the result will be either an astonishing masterpiece, or an irreversible failure. Seen as a failure from a commercial point of view, from the artistic one, this album is starting to be seen as a turning point in the band’s career, that accidentally produced one of the best – and most ingloriously dark – masterpieces of the pop/ soft rock genre in music history, that remains somewhat neglected and under-appreciated to this day. A masterpiece not only close to perfection, but a very intriguing work of art, that they would hardly be able to duplicate, even if they try.  


Wagner       

Music is a universal language, but like every language some people don't really understand it.  The musical universe we at Merchants Of Air live in, is very complex and immensely variated.  One moment we're blasted away by furious drums, the next moment we dwell in a beautiful ambient landscape, created by a highly talented artist.  This continuously alternating world is definitely not suited for everyone.  Some people just can't handle the pressure of having to listen to tempo shifts, instrumental music or death growls.  People who can handle those, should really be glad that the music industry also creates unimaginative line work and have it sung by Justin Bieber, One Direction or Stromae.

I'm not saying we should like these 'artists', after all, I don't 'like' my baker for making the exact same types of bread as any other baker does.  What I am saying is that we should be thankful for these miscreations.  Why? Well, they keep the lackbrains away from the shows we want to go to.  Most of their fans are teenage girls or boys with cellphones, selfie-sticks and little hearts painted on their cheeks.  These fans, who are still too young to have a voice worth listening to, screech and cry during the entire concert.  Some of them faint, are being carried to the first-aid tent and start to whine when they wake up because they missed a part of the gig.

If a metalhead faints, it's because he got either to drunk or recevied a firm boot in the face in the moshpit.  Do we really want to cast out the stale pop-artists and have their fans infiltrate our world?  I don't think so.  Drop some of them in the front at a Conan show and they will immediately irritate the shit out of the entire audience.  That is, if they survive.  I really don't think a 13 year old girl could survive the brutality at a metal festival.  She will implode, melt or suffer a heart attack.

Years ago, I went to a Backstreet Boys concert, not because I like them (God, no) but a friend of mine wanted to go and her mom didn't want her to go alone.  So I went along with her.  Don't judge me, there was a slight chance the evening could end in sex.  She was 19 at the moment so nothing illegal.  The concert actually was pretty good (for a theatre show).  Sound and light were perfect and there were a lot of women that could give this night a happy end for me (most of them were jailbait, I know).  After the show I had a horrible headache, caused by these high pitched teenage shrieks and I vomited a bit in my mind when I saw the Backstreet Moms.  My god, what a bunch of get-me-out-of-here.

Selfie-sticks are already one of the world's most idiotic inventions and taking them to a concert really proves the owner is an absolute selfish cunt.  The only suited place for a selfie stick is right in the anus of the owner, preferably with the biggest part first.  Furthermore, I think people should have a volume meter and when it's too loud or too high pitched, they should insert a sock in their mouth and put some duct-tape over it.

By they way, these fans aren't just irritating us.  They irritate the organisers as well. They don't drink, they don't eat, they don't spend any extra money because all of it goes to agenda's, bags, drinking cups, placemats, stressballs and other useless crap which will end up at a flea market the next summer.  They don't even buy CD's.  They 'Spotify' their favourite artists.  No wonder those concerts are incredibly expensive but hey, mom and dad will pay.  

So leave them there, at those huge events.  Some of them will come crawling back to real music when puberty is over and finally discover the immense variety of music made with blood, sweat, tears, heart and soul.  Then, and only then, will they be welcomed into our elitist little club because let's face it, 'true' music fans are elitist sons of bitches, right?  However, we don't seem to grow up to become dull adults with nothing else to do but to complain about they youth of today...


...well, maybe sometimes




Serge