It’s not like trying to figure out a complex mathematical equation when wondering what Das Pop purvey musically. And they pull no surprises- the Belgium quartet are the foremost pop pushers of their nation with the likes of Justice and Soulwax already surfacing from the thriving Ghent music scene and now lauding it amongst the big-wigs. Das Pop, are very adept themselves at the art of carving out infectious pop for the purists. A collage of catchy hooks and rousing chorus’, Das Pop could become a mainstream stallion waiting to parade its fortitude. So, we thought we’d talk POP! with the guys…
Das Pop’s sound in four words?
Heartache wrapped in tin foil.
What makes you get out of bed in the morning?
The sound of the city.
How was Ghent’s music scene while you were growing up?
It’s quite easy being a band in Ghent. There are tons of great bars and clubs where you can play, a lot of other bands that actually help one another. Living is cheap, beer is cheaper.
Sounds like paradise…
Your influences outside of music?
Are just as important as the musical ones. We can get inspired by watching films (last night, The Breakfast club on DVD), books (just finished the wonderful Downtown Owl by Chuck Klosterrman, Salinger’s Franny and Zooey very hard to beat), or even a nice shirt.
The first vinyl you bought?
‘Raw Like Sushi’ by Neneh Cherry.
If you could capture one musician past or present and force him/her to be in
Das Pop, who would it be?
We once played a show as Daniel Johnston’s backing band. That was amazing and would be great to repeat.
The best discovery musically you’ve found from either an independent store
or a car boot/market stall?
A 7 inch Jane Birkin recorded as a promotional item for a whiskey brand called Black and White. Intoxicating!
The greatest pop song ever?
Probably ‘My Girl’ by the Temptations.
The musician that changed the way you dressed?
The Style Council.
What should we expect from Das Pop in 2010?
Lots of shows and who knows, a new album? We are well on the way!
Portland, Oregon really is a creative cauldron of musical talent right now. And next off their conveyor belt is a band that have ditched their previous moniker- dance pop quartet Pyramiddd were once called the oddly titled Starfucker, hence why the mainstream didn’t really see a great deal of their Justice-like infectious, euphoric beats.
Justice is the Gallic dance duo who are a discordant proposition. Fluttering provocatively with the mainstream -yet slightly jagged from dingy self containment- they are still very much evolving. A certainty is their distinct ability to manufacture grandeur dance epochs. With likenesses to Simian Mobile Disco and a more commercial Daft Punk, they are a hybrid dance act with Gallic gargantuan testicles the size of disco balls.
