Electronic rockers to play debut Istanbul show

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

The London-based duo The Big Pink will be playing on May 10 at Istabul’s Babylon.

Second records are always the toughest in music careers, and The Big Pink is happy to have successfully overcome this barrier.

The London-based electronic rock duo are now enjoying the coming of a summer in which they will be sharing songs from their second record “Future This” with audiences all around the world. The band will be playing in Istanbul on May 10 at Babylon.

“We are very excited,” Robbie Furze of the band tells Hürriyet Daily News in a telephone interview. “Finishing the record, sharing the new material with people, and creating amazing atmospheres [in shows], making people happy … That is amazing.”

Furze says audience reactions to the new songs are very good and “people are dancing [to The Big Pink music] for the first time.”

The people are right to do so, since “Future This” is a more up-tempo and a heavier record than its predecessor, 2009’s highly-acclaimed “A Brief History of Love.”

“I suppose it is a much more uplifting record, more of a celebration album,” Furze explained.

When asked whether the mood of the record was planned beforehand, the lead vocalist said it came from a desire to “express who we are as people” in the new record.

“We are actually very positive people,” he says, much to the surprise of a listener, who would have thought the band was formed by two gloomy men. “Yeah, there is a dark side to our music. Sometimes songs help us channel our inner demons to somewhere good. I don’t know if I am making sense.”

Use of sonic effects

A distinctive part of The Big Pink’s music is the use of sonic effects: heavily distorted tunes, loud guitars and electronic sounds. But at the very core of it, there are always strong and catchy melodies, as anyone hearing the band’s hits “Dominos,” “Hit the Ground (Superman),” “Rubbernecking” or “Velvet,” would testify.

“I have always been fascinated by noise,” Furze says. “We never talk about and say ‘Let’s make it less pop.’ It is just something we do. We are interested in noises, distortion, feedback and making them heard in a melodic way.”

The band is also excited about playing in Istanbul for the first time.

“I have never been to Istanbul and I am sure that it will be great,” Furze explains. “It is always more exciting when you play to a crowd for the first time, and we are so excited. And songs are always bigger on stage than on the album.”

The Big Pink’s first Istanbul concert is at Babylon on May 10, starting at 9:30 p.m.