Mad Bad and Dangerous To Know
By Aaron Proctor (grsapnuwaver@aol.com)
I had the pleasure of e-mailing back and forth with Liz, who gave me the opportunity to guest DJ for her Radiotron night in Hollywood back in December.
1. What's your name/DJ name, age, and location in the world?
Name: Elizabeth Ohanesian aka Liz O. or DJ Liz
Age: 26
Location: Los Angeles, California
2. How/when/where did you start DJ'ing?
Long story! I have been a *huge* music fan for as long as I can remember and, in high school, I would make the mixed tapes for everyone with lots of the new indie releases. When I got to college, I started playing at LMU's radio station, KXLU. One day, when I was 19, I was just going about my show and happened to play a Marc and the Mambas track ("Untitled") when a local promoter was listening. "Untitled" happened to be his favorite Marc Almond song ever, so he called in and got my home phone number from someone in the office and asked me to DJ his club, Coven 13. That night, I met another promoter who asked me to DJ at a club called Star 80. After that, I was getting gigs at least two times a month and I ended up with a residency at Coven 13. Now I'm playing at least twice a week.
3. When/Where do you normally spin and what types of music do you like to spin?
Saturday nights I play Britpop, Indie and some New Wave at Bang!
Wednesday night's I play Electro, Post Punk and Indie (more electronic indie stuff) at Transmission. I also do guest spots around town playing more along the lines of the Transmission mix.
4. What are your top 5 favorite New Wave groups at this moment?
I guess it depends on what you consider New Wave. New Order and The Smiths are my two favorite bands of all time. After that, I love Depeche Mode, The Cure and Soft Cell. I know that those are the basic New Wave groups, but that's what I listened to when I was ten and, for some reason, it stuck.
5. Do you see a resurgance in more obscure New Wave's popularity due to its continued use in car commercials, feature films, and other outlets of pop culture?
There has been an 80s revival for quite some time, which is both a blessing and a curse. It's a blessing because more people are interested in finding out about less mainstream artists like Gang of Four or Telex. It's a curse because, if I hear one more new band that sounds like Gang of Four, I might go crazy.
6. What do you think of the state of New Wave and it's current demographic and fan base?
Well, if you mean New Wave in the 1980s sense of the word, I think that there are more people into it now. However, the 1980s revival has become so popular that it's basically over.
The first New Wave revival club I went to was 1980s, which was held inside Amagi's Sushi over on Sunset and Gower in Hollywood. This was 1995 or 1996 and, at that time, no one was doing the retro new wave thing (I wasn't a DJ at this club, my friends and I were regulars). The club went from six people on opening night to six hundred when it got shut down by the fire marshall. The mix was great-- encompassing everything from Virgin Prunes to Duran Duran-- and the crowd was very eclectic and very peaceful.
I had a residency at another 80s club later on, which lasted about three years and I saw how that scene changed. We had to dumb down the music to the point where I was yelled at for playing "Quiet Life" by Japan and Kon Kan's "I Beg Your Pardon..." As the crowd grew, the quality of people went down. People basically spent the whole night asking for Guns'n'Roses and starting fights on the dancefloor when the aforementioned band was played. The New Wave part of the 80s club basically ended.
That said, I think the New Wave revival is over. I still work New Wave into my sets and probably always will, but I think the trend for all things 80s is finished. The true fans will still be around though.
7. Is "Electro" the New New Wave everyone is raving about, or is that just as wide an "umbrella term" as the phrase New Wave itself.
It's definitely an umbrella term. The Faint sounds nothing like Miss Kittin and the Hacker, who sound nothing like Soviet.
Basically I break it down as follows:
Electro-- Miss Kittin, Tiga, Felix da Housecat, etc. This is stuff that is influenced by both new wave and techno.
Electro Pop-- Ladytron, Soviet, Ganymede, Gary Flanagan. This is probably the closest to New Wave.
Electro Rock-- The Faint, Hot Hot Heat, The Rapture. These are bands that combine electro elements with rock.
I think that a lot of people have turned electro into more of a fashion moment than a music-based scene. This will be it's downfall as I am sure that a lot of people who are at electro clubs now, won't be in six months when they get sick of the fauxhawk.
I hope that the quality artists (and there are a lot) will push the scene to the next level-- where it may not get the press that it does now, but the music will continue to evolve and a strong cult following will be in place.
8. Is New Wave a genre or an era of music?
To me, it's an era. I think of New Wave and I think of Square Pegs ("not punk, new wave..."). Plus, New Wave encompasses a lot of different styles. The Smiths can fall into New Wave and they were a jangly-pop band, as were artists like The Chills. The early Goth stuff was all New Wave and so were the New Romantic bands. It's too broad to be a genre, but it is definitely tied to a certain era.
9. Who would win in a fight betwen Peter Burns and Boy George?
That's a tough call, but I have a feeling that there would be a pile of hair extensions in the middle of the street when it was done.
10. Have you discovered any groups that you'd like the masses to know about?
Romina Cohen. I think she only has one 12" out on International Deejay Gigolo, but it's amazing. Also, I like Volsoc, Legowelt, Metro Area, Solvent, Scissor Sisters, Dot Allison, 2raumwhonung and lots more. Check out a band called Flunk. They are from Norway and have a cover of "Blue Monday" that is amazing.
11: What are usually the songs people are requesting these days in Los Angeles?
I don't get a whole lot of requests but, when I do, it's usually Peaches, Miss Kittin, The Faint or Le Tigre.
12. Why do you think New Wave is more popular in Los Angeles than any other city in the United States?
Well, I think it's the same reason why The Cure, Morrissey and Depeche Mode always drew better crowds in LA than anywhere else. Nowadays, KROQ 106.7 is a terrible radio station that basically just regurgitates whatever is being played on MTV, but, in the 1980s KROQ was the best radio station in town (perhaps the world). DJs like Richard Blade and Rodney on the Roq really pushed New Wave, and it wasn't just Depeche Mode and Duran Duran. I remember hearing "Jackie Onassis" by Human Sexual Response "Nelly the Elephant" by Toy Dolls, lots of music that remains obscure. For that reason, New Wave is still really popular with the 25-35 demographic in Los Angeles.
I thank Liz for her time and recommend that you all check out her club if you're ever in the Los Angeles area. You can find out more about her and her club Transmission by joining the TransmissionLA yahoo group.
The group and song of today's issue is Combo Audio - "Romanticide". What a fabulous song. I discovered another song of theirs about a year or so ago called "Military English". Very catchy and I'd die if I ever heard it in a dance club.
New Wave link o' the day: New Wave Outpost - another plethora of New Wave information.
God Save New Wave.
Related Links for today's article:
DJ Liz's TransmissionLA yahoo group
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