It still amazes me when I read posts like this because it’s from the other side of the Globe. I love how music can bring cultures, countries and people together. I thought I would draw your attention to this post on www.phlow.es. (And yes this is using Google Translate)

Phlow

Energetic Pop from across the planet

Energetic Pop from across the planet | Hunz shared with Henrik Jose and Mosaik (of whom I talked in previous articles) his past in the demoscene, the subculture of audiovisual creation and source of the trackers netlabels cradle of a decade ago now. Since he started publishing his tracks in the late 90s in the select group Five Musicians was characterized by entering your voice in song, something unusual then, but he eventually led the band toured with Beanbag by the United States.

Later he returned to his native Australia to return to producing music and released his first album, When Victims Fight, which contained some old and some new themes. And last year, decided to participate in the RPM Challenge, which consists of recording an album in 28 days, and thus produced their second album, Thoughts That Move, which is available for free download at Bandcamp (although not licensed Creative Commons). This album mixes a more aggressive pop with a base provided electronically, although the voices are the stars and the common theme of all themes.

Another feature of Hunza is its commitment to the community and musical innovation. All his albums have been self-produced and sold / distributed directly between him and his audience, and from Thoughts That Move that is totally focused on the social media and crowdsourcing. Its website has a blog where he explains his news, has profiles on all major social networks and updated often with all sorts of experiments.

But the most interesting is that also publishes the source files of their songs, clearly influenced by the time of the modules of the demoscene, and no wonder then that the tracker are RENOISE format, which also has as an artist on staff . Thus authorized Hunz get remixes of his songs which he later republished in his site and fill up his own music.

A clear example that one need not be a “great” to offer good products at your fans and build you an entire community around you.

Read the whole thing here.
David Domingo

Fasterlouder Review @ Club Blink

. . . . Having recently shared his magic with the Big Sound showcase attendees, raved-about Brissie moodytronica maestro Hunz leads his powerhouse rhythm section (featuring drums prodigy Richie Young) into another riveting performance. A passionate frontman as well as a ridiculously talented singer, songwriter and sonic architect, the erstwhile Hans Van Vliet is a familiar welcome sight as he attacks both his mic and modified synth, every syllable, note and move soaked with emotion and sheer intensity. Several choice tracks from acclaimed albums When Victims Fight and this year’s marvellous Thoughts That Move get an airing, Long Road, Soon, Soon and You Said Hello all packing wistful keyboard arrangements and humungous hooks. During the second half of the show, a laptop glitch prompts the digi-soul man to skip a song from the setlist, apologise to the crowd and bow out with another spirited vocal/musical display. My post-gig recommendation to the uninitiated? If you haven’t seen Hunz yet, by all means do it – you’ll be blown away. . . .

Read the whole thing here
Denis Semchenko

Bigsound 2009 is over for the year and although I was very nervous about the performance it all went along with out any major hitches .. phew. Here is a line about me from someone who blogged the 3 day event. Enjoy.

The Vine

. . . . Finally, I drag myself to new venue X&Y to catch electronic pop act Hunz and leave glad I bothered. Hunz is something that’s borderline oxymoronic: an electronic musician with personality to burn. And burn it he does, during his set I think I smiled almost as much as he did . . .

Read the whole thing here
Dogwolf

Usually I post the whole story here but instead I am going to post a link. This is a local Brisbane, Australia blog spot that needs our support so this is possibly the best way we can give it. It is a fantastic review that makes me blush. Thank you!

Read the whole thing here

If you pick up this weeks copy of Rave Magazine in Australia you’ll get to read another neat review for the new album “Thoughts that move”. Thank you Rave Magazine and Andrea Lam.

Rave Magazine Review

A record put out in 28 days that far exceeds 10 years of output from 28 Days

Hunz’s Thoughts That Move was constructed in 28 days for the RPM challenge (a call-out to bands to partake in a sort-of Ready Steady Cook equivalent of record making – Ready Steady Rock!). Thoughts That Move comprises 10 songs showcasing sparkly synths, glitchy beats and Hunz’s melancholy multitracked voice. The opener, It’s So Light, slaps me onto the dancefl oor – denying expectations of an intimate exposure to Hunz’s inner sanctum, in favour for beats and bass. The driving beats continue with Soon, Soon – a pop song guaranteed to make the cool kids dance (and self-consciously interpretative dance in the breakdowns).

Hunz has produced an album which glitters like a subdued ecstasy high. While I found the synth ornamentation a little over-the-top, and savoured the restraint of Enough To Make You Smile, Hunz could not have chosen a better title for this album. Thoughts That Move feels like experiencing the heady rhythm and ecstasy of the dancefloor through a filter of someone else’s thoughts. It doesn’t quite meet the expectations of a full album but given the time frame, Hunz promises treasures in the future.

Read the whole thing here
ANDREA LAM

One of my favorite reviews . It makes me feel like I’ve just started growing and where I end up is part of the musical journey we are all on. I certainly can’t wait to get there. I love how the reviewer, Cam, found “Hyperballad – Bjork” to be an influence. One of my all time favorite tunes that in times of trouble my brain always managed to sing it back. Thank you Before Hollywood for the wonderfully uplifting review.

Please thank Before Hollywood for me and leave some comments on their blog to show the love. Thanks again.

Before Hollywood Review

Hunz’ latest record, Thoughts That Move, was created as part of the annual RPM Challenge, where artists are required to create an album within the month of February. Given that pretty heavy restriction and his chosen genre of music (vaguely atmospheric electro-pop), the resulting record is quite impressive. Thoughts That Move falls into a sonic space somewhere between Thom Yorke’s Eraser and Bjork’s Post; there are moments of intensity ala the former record (and Hunz seems to be quite fond of layered falsetto vocal arrangements much like Yorke), but with a poppier, more uplifting bent that brings it closer to ‘Hyperballad’ territory. The music is filled with skittering drums beats, thick synth bass and glitchy keyboards, all of which have been sonically polished and meticulously placed – the mix of density and clarity in the recording is pretty remarkable when you consider that the album was entirely conceived and created within four weeks.

The record somehow manages to be simultaneously upbeat, forceful and reflective, emotive. The tempos are uniformly high, the mix dense and the melodies up front, while little sounds darting around the edges and periods of stillness amongst the otherwise inertia-filled music give a much needed emotional ambiguity to proceedings. On initial listen the record might seem fairly uniform in mood and quality, however over subsequent listens some songs seem to stand out more – usually this occurs when the songs mix the two moods in fairly equal measure, such as in the opening combo of ‘It’s So Light’ and ‘Soon, Soon’. The former mixes its glossy sound with a bittersweet yet uplifting chord progression, while the latter juxtaposes a driving drumbeat against walls of vocals. Another highlight is closer ‘The Commotion’.

The album does drag a fraction by the second half, and not every song hits upon a memorable melody or arrangement, but those complaints feel like nitpicks when considering the circumstances under which the record was made. I certainly can’t point out any tracks as being poor as such, and there are definitely a couple that succeed in grabbing my attention. I’d really love to see Hunz get darker, grimier and more analog sounding on his next release, but I think that might just be my personal preferences talking. If he continues to mine this particular electronic pop vein then I imagine he’ll still produce some music well worth people’s time.

You can get a free digital version of Thoughts That Move from Hunz’ website, where you can also buy CD copies for $10.

You can read the whole thing here

Completely lost for words ver this review. Thank you Tian and FasterLouder.

Faster Louder Review

In a mere twenty-eight days, Hunz has managed to do what some bands take months or even years to accomplish, and which some only dream of. Created as part of the RPM Challenge, Thoughts That Move is a beautifully crafted collection of ten songs, which shows musicianship that far exceeds its short gestation period. The music is intricate and enigmatic, occupying that very small space where ambient, electronic, drum ‘n’ bass, and R&B overlap – a place where only a select superb few (Radiohead/Thom Yorke and Gotye spring to mind) have dared to venture.

The album opens with Hunz’s beautiful voice in It’s So Light, followed by Soon Soon, which employs one of the catchiest electronic drum beats since Radiohead’s Idioteque. Upbeat, R&B-infused songs, The Messenger and You Said Hello have such groovy beats and pop-tastic melodies that they are sure to make you want to bop along. These are contrasted with slower tracks like Car In The Meadow and Switch Off which have soaring vocals and Sigur-Ros-style ambience. Overall, the album is entirely cohesive (owing to its short production span) and takes the listener on a wonderful journey of catchy beats, sublime vocals and cascades of electronic noise and loops. God may have created the universe in seven days, but I think Hunz does a pretty good job with Thoughts That Move in twenty-eight.

You can read the whole review here : FasterLouder.com

Thank you 4zzz for the lovely review of my cd launch.  It’s really funny and hits me in all the right spots.  I will work hard on trying to start a rival fight with some ultra awesome band.  If you don’t know what I’m saying you must read it.  Thank you Josh.

4zzz Launch Review

The turn out is a little thin when Dot.AY takes the stage, but this doesn’t stop Alex from throwing himself around his collection of gameboys, samplers and particle accelerators. The Troub is far from the ideal venue for his electronic assault but he puts on a good show regardless.

The last time I saw Toy Balloon they were a two-piece, but there are four people on stage tonight. This means that somehow the toy balloons have doubled in number in just a year. If this rate of expansion continues then by the year 2020 Toy Balloon will have 4 069 members. The mind boggles at the implications of a Toy Balloon army filling the streets with a delicious blend of cowbell laced New Order style indie dance beats. I for one will welcome the dawn of this new vocoder and synth soaked utopian era.

Hunz takes the stage with his trademark humility that is strangely incongruent with the epic electronic wall of sound that he unleashes. Aided by an impressive rhythm section, the trio produce rich and luscious soundscapes that sound like the soundtrack to the greatest science fiction film never made. The setlist tonight is lifted from Hunz’s brand new album ‘Thoughts that Move’ which is all the more impressive for having been written and recorded in a mere 28 days, just enough time for most rock stars to go through rehab. Hunz has been causing more excitement in the local scene than Justin Timberlake in a high school girls locker room, and its no surprise that more than half the punters here tonight feature in some of Brisbane’s best bands.

The only real question here is why the troub isn’t packed to the rafters with the usual army of hipsters that swarm the gigs of local buzz bands. The only plausible explanation that this psuedomusojounro can come up with is that Hunz doesn’t wear enough ridiculous indie hipster outfits that seem to make the punters slaver. Perhaps Hunz should mimic the outfits from look at this fucking hipster.com. My other suggestion would be that he needs to start a rivalry with another local band to raise his profile. What about Yves Klein Blue? They’re pretty scrawny, and their jeans are tight enough to drastically restrict mobility in a street fight.

But I digress. Hunz delivers in spades tonight. Replicating the complex, layered compositions from ‘thoughts that move’ (available for free from his website) is no mean task. However, the trio translate the soundscapes surprisingly well into a live context, throbbing synth bass lines and precise but powerful drumming form a hypnotic background to Hunz’s impressive vocals and synth symphonies.

Nine thumbs up.

By Josh Donellan

You can read the full review here : 4zzz review

This week will see some reviews of the show hit around the place. Plus some cd reviews as well. It is always such a nervous time because you hope people understand how you communicate your emotions across. If this review is anything to go by then I think I am being understood. Thank you so much, very “wow”.

Faster Louder Review

. . . . Hunz are, quite simply, amazing. Not only did this band create a sublime album in the space of a month, but they also have the live show to back it up. From the moment Hans van Vliet sings his first note, the audience are completely enchanted. Tonight the band launches their new album, Thoughts That Move, which rivals Gotye’s Like Drawing Blood in my books. (A big claim, I know. You can download it for free from the band’s website and decide for yourself.) Vliet’s laptop combines with careful bass and drums to produce an ambient sonic landscape, over which his luscious vocals soar.

While the band plays a mix of songs from the old and new albums, it is new songs like Soon Soon, with its repetitive drum beat and You Said Hello with its catchy melody that really stand out. From the previous album, the groovy Beg is clearly a favourite, as is the heartbreakingly delicate Draw the Line. The band finishes with the haunting Switch Off, leaving the audience spellbound. I don’t think there is a single person in the room who isn’t in awe of Hunz by the end of the set and I feel privileged to have been one of the first to see these beautiful songs performed live.

You can read the whole review here : FasterLouder.com

Here are some post that happened around the same time I launch the cd and got lost in the noise T_T. Thank you so much to the reviewers and random fans that just write up about me. I continue to be humbled by everyone’s passion for the music. Thanks.
 

The Quiet Revolution – Mmd

Yet another little trip up to Brisbane over the weekend saw us catch Hunz at The Globe on Friday night. A little tired from traveling all day we found sitting through the support bands a little bit of a challenge – the PA was just way too loud for my fragile ears and the bands were performing music that wasn’t really my sort of thing. It must have been late, possibly quarter to midnight that Hunz with his lappy, mics and keys, plus his bandmates Phil Evans on bass & Richie Young on drums, delivered a shortish set for over 30 minutes.

Playing only songs from the album When Victims Fight the band delivered enhanced versions of the songs with live intensity and genuine emotion, all which came across most enjoyable and beyond expectation. Going off my limited knowledge of their YouTube posted performances, it seems that the band is quite tight and Hunz has embellished the songs with live keyboard, extra melodies and effective ‘tape loop’ style self-sampling of his vocals to perform lovely weaving auto-choruses and builds. There were many moments when I though ‘this is all better than the CD, especially the strength in Hunz’s voice’. It was a slight shame there were only 50+ odd people there to see all this – but I’m reminded of a time I saw Augie March playing beautiful music to a small and totally unresponsive Bistro Audience up at UNE in 2000 before they got very big on Triple J. Somehow, and I know it’s a cliche, I feel it’s the same for Hunz: that wide and appropriately deserving attention will befall this music one way or another. Good gigs leave you with this feeling. There are all too many acts out there that suffer from having too much style and not enough substance – but if you ever catch these guys play live you’ll see that there’s no such issue here. The music left us feeling both entertained as well as inspired.

What a motivator to keep on with my own music.

We met up with him after the set to have a quick chinwag. He told me that the Renoise XRNS files for the new album Thoughts That Move have been released, which you can read more about here. Oh yeah, and of course that means the album has gone fully public and the band will be performing the new songs at future gig dates (lucky for Brisbanites). As stated before, I’m excited for him and think that it’s a good sign of what is yet to emerge.

Read the whole thing here http://m.thequietrevolution.net/mmd/2009/05/25/hunzspirational/

Frodo’s Ghost

When I found that the electronic music at the end of Guttersnipe and Freesignal was done by their vocalist I endeavored to find out more. It took a while, but eventually I stumble across a web page that Hunz had set up with a bunch of songs : Broken Wings, Kemical, The Flame, Your Still Here, Face I Paint and a few more. That was all I had until, I don’t know how but I found out he had a webpage for a current project.

Further investigation and a few free downloads and I was hooked. So I waited a little because I wanted to get it digitally, but after holding out as long as I could, I figured I’d enjoy a real copy. (side: you can now purchase it online here).

Work was boring when I arrived, but finding the CD meant I took a break and changed the scenery. Down stairs to the lounge, put the CD into an impressive speaker system, then sit back and enjoy the first listen.

I love this part of music. Everything is foreign. Things change expectantly. Vocals appear through broken shards as the beats and bass push air from speakers. I hum, like I know where everything is heading, and stop because it is nothing like I thought. Its surprising and entertaining, and the music is fresh, like a cool breeze on a summers day.

When Victims Fight is like that, a fresh breeze – but more-so in the I’m in a dark room and I need some fresh air, kind of way. The melodys wind around the grubby beats intertwining in an elaborate and endearing way. The album has a way to set a mood and follow it through, the dissonance of the music never seems to resolve

The electronic sounds flare and click while the drums set an uneven beat in the verses. They seem to falter and stumble and it creates an upsetting mood. But when it falls into the chorus it all falls into place, driving beats combine with the atmospheric vocals to really capture the mind.

And on the vocals, I do specifically like the way Hunz uses his voice like an instrument – like the start of the track ‘Hearts On Fire’ – eerie and beautiful – it adds wonderful dimension to the overall sound, and it is something that I really enjoy too.

One reason why I was happy to buy the album is the artwork. Fantastic. I do love the real world objects like CD covers, for some reason getting the album online doesn’t cover that aspect of a purchase. Although it was just a cover, no slip, so it was limited, and a digital purchase would have done. But hey, I have a real copy, which is great.

Overall, I found When Victims Fight to be a CD that fits right when I need music to be right now. It is fresh, and creative. It is moving and captivating. I enjoy this CD and am looking forward to what is to come.

You can read the whole thing at http://frodosghost.com/2009/05/22/hunz-when-victims-fight/