The duo known as Kool Thing, made up of Julie Chance and Jon Dark, met at one of Dark’s DJ events in Paris in 2010. Quickly noticing a kindred musical taste, the pair began to share records and discuss musical ideas. Julie, (from Dublin, Ireland) and Jon (from Sydney, Australia) soon started organizing a move to Berlin, where they sat down to put their vision to reality. Kool Thing brings to life the jewel-toned hours of night that hang just before dawn. They have described their sound as being recommended if you like: “mood rings, lunar eclipses, ghost stories, cave paintings, and good music.” I could not put it better myself.
Reconciling disparate influences such as grunge and new wave, prog-rock and pop, there is no sense of retro-fetishism in sight. There is an inherent connection to the past, carrying on a full-throttle inheritence in the present. Dark, but not dismall, pop but with a post-punk ethos, Kool Thing have discovered the common thread running through a diverse range of artistic sensibilities. With one foot in the past and one in the future, the duo meet the present eye-to-eye. With the use of layered, highly texturized vocals, as well as deep, dark beats, the pair create a twilit world, merging high production values with a handmade, DIY sensibility.
With almost primeval percussives signalling the intro to “The Sign”, exquisite crinkly guitars break the negative space with an ancient-sounding Teutonic pagan ritualist precision. It is nearly impossible to merge primativist with organic, yet rigid, chants into something that has elements of some of the best beats to come from Factory Records at their heyday, yet everything ties together utterly siccintly. It is the best elements of dance with substance.
There is an immediacy and frustration found at the heart of this simply elegant charmer of a track. One listen alone will have you jumping over to their Soundcloud to check out the duo’s definitive (in my opinion) remix of Austra‘s “Beat And The Pulse.” All other Slim Shadies best not stand up. “Plan.Life.Go” begins with a nice, raw guitar solo, haunting and sparse. As the solo begins to merge with sparse vocals, a harrowing build-up is generated, keeping the listener poised for the inevitable crescendo. Fans of Electrelane and Ladytron should take note. I would venture that some lovers of the mighty John Maus might find something to love as well.
2010 saw Kool Thing touring all over Europe as the support act for an excellent array of fantastic artists such as: Light Asylum, MEN, Aerea Negrot, Maria Minerva and LCMDF. In 2011, they were handpicked by Austra as the support act for both of their European tours. Coming up in 2012, all those lucky people down under will be able to look forward to catching them opening for Austra during the 2012 leg of their Australian tour.
Julie and Jon regularly DJ throughout the dynamic electro-indie community of Berlin, the duo’s home base. They have recently recruited a drummer and continue to evolve their sound. Currently putting the final touches on their debut full-length album, they have been spending most of their time in the studio working with Berlin-based production team Kaiku (Handsome Furs, K-X-P) with an intended release for 2012.
You can watch their excellent teaser below, as well as stream a couple of highlights.
Connect with Kool Thing – Facebook | Twitter | Tumblr | Soundcloud
