Band Electronica feat. Midge Ure: Das Beat – DL [2021]
- Das Beat
Great Googly Moogly! It’s been a harried two weeks at PPM HQ but we’re back on track to discuss music once more. With all sorts of events happening during the time I’ve taken off. The most timely of which is the [gasp!] new single by Midge Ure released on October 8th, and coming recommended by ace commenter Echorich, so I didn’t waste any time in immediately grabbing a copy of “Das Beat” which is actually billed as by Band Electronica [feat. Midge Ure]. Leading me to think that it’s possibly made with the same band who played so well with Mr. Ure on this concert.
The background for this one is full of intrigue. In 2020 Midge Ure’s Band Electronica was playing a show in Dusseldorf, Germany where Herr Flür was in the audience. Afterward he asked Ure to contribute to his new project; leaving Ure to muse on the influence of the “Düsseldorf Sound” that Flür had been such a part of defining. The all important motorik beat crucial to much of the music we discuss here. With that in mind, he wrote a tribute to the beat itself and while Flür has recorded it for his upcoming album, Mr, Ure has also gifted us [see what I did there?] with his version of the song as recorded with his backing band. And you may ask what it’s like?
It opened with Midge Ure harmonizing with his own heavily vocoded voice reciting the song’s chorus; ironically bereft of any beats at all. Then the music got underway with a motorik beat of a stately BPM pace with yearning, chorused and tremoloed synth pads adding an almost bucolic dignity to it all.
Step by step as we walk together
One true voice, one voice forever
Beats through wires, beats through walls
Nation stand with nation when you move in syncopation
“Das Beat”
Watery synths vied with chugging white noise train percussion performing Doppler shifts across the horizon, but the overall vibe was definitely more an example of La Düsseldorf’s long standing influence on Ure instead of the much more stern mien of the Trans Europa Express. It all sounded utterly warm, pastoral, and inviting. With a music box clockwork demeanor.
Machines are smooth
To make the groove
To make you move
“Das Beat”
This single represents a side of Ure that has not gotten much sunlight in the last 35 years but was a bedrock of his fertile 1979-1983 period, and is highly recommended to fans of Visage’s first album, Phil Lynott’s “Yellow Pearl,” Kraftwerk before they became dance music, and especially La Düsseldorf.
Fans of Midge Ure in the US get the first post-Covid [even though it’s still a pandemic] tour by the peripatetic Scotsman. After long months of virtual shows only courtesy of Ure’s Backstage Lockdown Club will get the real thing in person in the “Unzoomed + Face To Face” US tour which started last night [before we were back to blogging] at Daryl’s House in Pawling, NY. The next three weeks sees Ure working his way westward with a nod to the refined City Winery chain of clubs, where we had a great Midge Ure event in 2017.
MIDGE URE: Unzoomed + Face-To-Face US Solo Tour 2021
- Oct. 27 – City Winery – Boston, MA
- Oct. 28 – The Music Room – W. Yarmouth, MA
- Oct. 31 – Barnum Ballroom – Island Park, NY
- Nov. 1 – City Winery – Philadelphia, PA
- Nov. 2 – City Winery – Washington, DC
- Nov. 4+5 – City Vinyard – New York City, NY
- Nov. 6 – Space Ballroom – Hamden, CT
- Nov. 7 – Randy Now’s Man Cave – Bordentown, NJ
- Nov. 9 – Iron Horse – Northampton, MA
- Nov. 12 – Romano’s – Riverside, CA
- Nov. 14 – Coach House – San Juan Capistrano, CA
- Nov. 15 – Belly Up – Solana Beach, CA
- Nov. 16 – Yoshi’s – Oakland, CA
- Nov. 17 – Harlow’s – Sacramento, CA
After seeing the tour title and poster I can only hope he remembered to perform the Ultravox B-side, “Face To Face” in the setlist! [checks] No, so that’s a missed opportunity. The setlist is the the usual well balanced swath of Ultravox and solo material with the goodie “No Regrets” being the surprise in the mix this time.
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Post-Punk Monk 
hi mr monk,
glad you’re back. great to see and read about this information.
will definitely check out the single. i know midge has been hard
at work all this time, so new music is always welcome.
i wish he would add some more central US locations, as this favors
only the east and west coast. i have not travelled in awhile, and
though this would be worth it, it would be hard for me to go to
one of those locations.
well, for the people that do go. please report back when the time
comes.
later
-1
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negative1ne – It’s been quite a long time since Midge has made technopop like “Das Beat” so it’s a pleasing treat of the kind that I can always afford. Yeah, the tour is the northeast and California only this time. After that streaming show this year, i could really go for that band over here but I think they only tour in the Uk and Europe with him. A pity as that band played hot.
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Sooo, head over to DuckDuckGo (the only unbiased search engine I know of) and search for `Band Electronica Das Beat` and savor the knowledge that after the PAID AD from Spotify, YOUR BLOG POST is the very first hit….
The power is now yours. Use it wisely!
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the RAHB! – Astonishing! That was record time but you should see my Wikipedia portfolio. I’d swear some of the regulars here were editors there as well!
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Although it is released under the Band Electronica name , Midge has said he played it all himself
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DL – Aha! So he was just using the branding, not the band? Thanks for the clarity. I’d not run across that fact, but it makes sense if it’s intended as a demo for Flür’s perusal. I’m just glad he released it for our ears instead of making us wait for Flür’s version [which I still want to get].
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There is a remix just released – Difficult to hear any remnants of the original though !
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I have heard the remixes, and they are very kraftwerkish, and definitely harder electro, bascially filtering midges vocals. Good, if you like that genre.
later
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negative1ne – I must sample when I find the time. As unlikely as that is for me right now. I remember seeing evidence of these earlier on when I bought the single DL somewhere but no details were forthcoming at the time.
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I was at Midge’s show here in Boston at the Winery last night. Quick report – it was Midge plus acoustic guitar playing about 95 minutes of solo and Ultravox stuff (plus Fade to Grey), most songs introduced by a chatty story or anecdote. Having never seen Midge live before I was happy to hear that the voice is pretty much intact. Just wish it was backed by an electronic plugged in band, but oh well. After 20+ months away from live music, I was thrilled to attend any show!
The setlist was not identical to the night before’s show at Daryl’s House Club – we lost a solo song or two and gained The Voice and All Fall Down (intro-d with a tribute to the recently deceased leader of the Chieftains). Both were highlights, as were Reap The Wild Wind, I Remember (Death In the Afternoon), and New Europeans. The show was severely under-attended, altho Midge re-characterized it as intimate, and thanked everyone for venturing out so early in this sort-of but not really post-pandemic world.
All and all it was a very enjoyable (and classy) show.
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Taffy – Good to hear one of our agents in the field was there! I also prefer Electric Midge (that streaming show last spring was aces) but the man is definitely classy no matter how you see him. Good for you attending. There were two dates at the end of October that I did not list because Midge left them off of his poster because they were sold out! So hopefully he’ll get an audience as it averages out across the tour. And as I recall, City Winery rooms already approach social distancing norms, so that’s reassuring.
One thing for Acoustic Midge: You’ll never have the discomfort of bass fracking at such a show. We attended the Comeback Festival in Raleigh last week and all the acts [Terminator X/Big Daddy Kane/Lee Fields & The Expressions] sounded just fine… then Khruangbin came on! Their dreamy shoe gaze funk was hitting us in the chest with the EQ they had so we left after three numbers. We vote with our feet.
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hi mr monk.
john from the hustle has interviewed midge for his podcast:
https://thehustle.podbean.com/e/episode-339-midge-ure/
check it out.
later
-1
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negative1ne – No time for podcasts now, but don’t let that stop anyone else! Thanks!
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Hi Monk. I don’t know if you are aware. Midge and the Electronica band are doing a UK and European tour next spring. It’s called Voices And Visions. They are playing a selection of tracks from Rage In Eden, Quartet and some of Midge’s solo material. Could be a tie in to the Rage In Eden box set which apparently is in the works. I got tickets for the Liverpool gig as I enjoyed Midge and Electronica’s 1980 show from 2019 so much. It’s a shame they can’t take the tour over to the states.
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I’m going to try to see him just down the road in San Juan, where I saw him last in 2020, solo and just before things locked down. It was my second time seeing him, the first time being with Paul Young. I recorded video of him playing his favorite song, Lady Stardust, among others. Solid night of memories.
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SC – Then you saw the Midge + Paul Young tour then? So both of those shows were Electric Midge. This one will be different, but the Coach House seems to be on par with the City Winery venues as being great clubs for old timers like me [your mileage may vary]. Have fun!
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Hi Mr. Monk,
New photo book from Midge Ure :
https://midgeure.tmstor.es/?affcode=superdelux
Available on website, in several bundles.
Midge Ure will release In A Picture Frame, later this month, a new photo book that documents his life with Ultravox in the early 1980s.
Between 1980 and 1985, the Scottish musician travelled with his trusty Canon A-1 camera while on tour, in the studio or undertaking promotional duties with the band. Healso documented holidays and far flung road trips.
Ure’s photographic archive has now been scanned and retouched from the original negatives to showcase these images and produce this 240-page travelogue (which has dimensions of 90mm x 220mm x 32mm and weighs in at 2kg).
The book is released on 18 November 2021 and can be pre-ordered exclusively from the official shop. It can be bought with a set of signed postcards or on its own (not signed).
I’m getting in on this one. Should be great.
later
-1
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negative1ne – Yeah, I saw that just a few days after getting news of the new single and tour. I was trying to avoid posting back to back on Midge and was going to mention it closer to publication. Annoyingly, there wasn’t mention of this on midgeure.com, but that’s almost abandonware now. It seems to be FaceBoot or nothing these days, and I opt for nothing.
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Pingback: Want List: Midge Ure Delivers Mystic + Soulful Photos “In A Picture Frame” | Post-Punk Monk
hi mr monk,
i am very happy to see all the tour dates for midges 2022 tour, with howard jones,
who i have seen twice in the last few years. the best part is he will be in my hometown.
which i think is a first. so if he makes it, it will be great, barring any health situations,
or restrictions.
later
-1
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negative1ne – So will this be your first Midge Ure show?! Have fun. He is great in concert, and this will be a plugged, synth-filled set [naturally]. I see Tony Solis is also backing him up on bass and we saw him twice with Midge on 2016/2017. He’s a good guy who has fun on stage with Midge. When I saw Mr. Ure the last time, his merch was stranded somewhere in New Jersey, so I couldn’t get the T-shirt I wanted. Hopefully you will have better luck. And let’s see if he works “Das Beat” into his set.
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[repost, if a duplicate, please delete]
Midge Ure – Tour 2022
———————-
Its taken me 40+ years to finally see midge ure,
and hear some ultravox tunes live. So I had tempered
expectations.
He was the opening for Howard Jones, which is fine.
He’s not that well known here, so being an opener still works on
a limited setting.
Also, he had one other keyboard player to support him, while
he sang and played guitar for the tracks.
Setlist:
——–
1 Dear God
2 I Remember (Death in the Afternoon)
(Ultravox song)
3 Reap the Wild Wind
(Ultravox song)
4 Fade to Grey
(Visage song)
5 The Man Who Sold the World
(David Bowie cover)
6 Vienna
(Ultravox song)
7 The Voice
(Ultravox song)
8 All Stood Still
(Ultravox song)
9 Hymn
(Ultravox song)
10 Dancing With Tears in My Eyes
(Ultravox song)
With Howard jones:
1 Band Aid – Do they know its Christmas
So, we got a good sampling of songs through his career,
in a tight 10 set concert. He covered Ultravox, some solo songs,
and side projects, covers.
All in all, a good sampling. NO it was nowhere near what an
Ultravox show would have been like. But they did a good job
of sampling the drum tracks, and playing the main keyboard leads.
Midges VOICE was SUPERB. It has really held up, the high notes
were good enough, the timbre and pitch sounded great too. Sure
he’s aged. But there was enough variety, and in fact, the guitar
work, added a more rock like sound to all of them. In fact, Hymn
was much more rock oriented. Lots of solos throughout each song.
So – 2 from Vienna, 2 from Rage in Eden, 2 from Quartet, 1 from Lament
1 solo, 1 cover, 1 side project.
Actually, it was cool hearing Do they know its christmas
with mostly Midge singing, I actually prefer that, as I’ve never liked that song.
I have to say, hearing Vienna live was a high point for me.
Very good rendition, and faithful to the original.
The only downsides was the hassle of getting a virtual ticket
(without a smartphone), and getting into the venue. But I had
a balcony seat, and the view was great.
Very memorable night, and although it might be a long time
before I see him again, I am glad I had this opportunity.
Howard Jones was decent, but I’ve seen him a few times before.
later
-1
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negativeine – Lucky you! You might be aware that he had to cancel some dates recently due to him getting Covid-19. That is a fantastic set list and hard to imagine anything better, especially for an opener set. Yes, Midge sure has more vocal power than he had almost 40 years ago. Listening to live material from then compared to now is dramatic in the difference that decades of touring has given him. Yes, the absolute top end is affected, but I’m enthusiastic about what he delivers live. And the tight 2-man combo means that he leans heavily on his guitar, which is a plus for me. If Billy Currie isn’t there, then please, compensate on guitar! I think that approach serves the music well, and on songs like “If I Was,” it improves them greatly with the added toughness. I’m so pleased that he loves “I Remember [Death In The Afternoon]” as much as I do. There can be no greater deep cut in his modern sets and I was thrilled to hear it on the two occasions where we had seen him.
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He’s also extremely gracious about nattering after the show with his fans — particularly for a one-time “mega-star”. Those are so often still stuck in their self-important pasts, and Midge strikes a very pleasant contrast :)
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The RAHB! – No doubt about that! A very grounded gent.
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hi mr monk.
i guess this is the catch-all thread for things. the latest issues of electronic sound, comes with a 7 inch white vinyl from wolfgang flur, with 2 mixes of electric sheep on it. his album ‘magazine 1’ will come out later this year. lots of collaborations on there:
Magazine 1 album tracklist
1. Magazine [ft. Ramón Amezcua]
2. Zukunftsmusik [ft. U96]
3. Best Buy [ft. U96]
4. Das Beat [ft. Midge Ure]
5. Birmingham [ft. Claudia Brücken & Peter Hook]
6. Night Drive [ft. Anushka]
7. Electric Sheep [ft. Carl Cox & U96]
8. Billionaire (Symphony Of Might) [ft. Juan Atkins]
9. Say No! (ft. MAPS)
later
-1
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negative1ne – I need that Flur album! I also got the Electronic Sound email.
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