hercules and love affair
java soulnation
29.09.2012

It was the first time I watched their performance, and they were..

ab-so-lute-ly

I stood right in front of Gustaph, one of their singers, and I was melting like a lava cake.

I will make a confession now: That was the first time I heard of them, and shame, shame, shame of me for not noticing this band before.

Their music was superb — a mix of 1970s soul, disco, and new wave. They even covered Pet Shop Boys’ “It’s Alright” (one of my most favourite lyrics) and remixed Yazoo’s “Situation”. OMG Oxalis, where have you been?

If only I had known them earlier, I would’ve been able to sing-along, as an addition to me getting hysterical and danced along throughout their performance.

So after the gig, I gathered as many information about them and listened to their Blue Album. I noticed that they had played “My House“, “Painted Eyes”, “You Belong”, and “Visitor”.

About the band now, well not really a band actually, it was a musical project of DJ Andy Butler. He teamed up with Mark Pistel on the deck, and singers that have been changing throughout the years. Their current line-up (as stated on their Facebook page) consists of Andy, Mark, Whitney (also a DJ, but in Hercules and Love Affair she sings), Beth, and Stef Gustaph.

In this gig, the Los Angeles DJ Whitney Fierce was replaced by Redhouane Braik (Rouge Mary), whom that evening dressed like the early version of Dead or Alive‘s Pete Burns. But with the beauty of Boy George.

Unfortunately, I missed their performance the night before. It was another thing that I would regret the rest of my entire life – unless they would come to Indonesia again. So would you, guys? 😉

anyway, here are some more photos of gustaph..

and rouge mary