“Get What You Want” By Operator Please

You may well think, when listening to the increasingly irrelevant singles chart, that you can actually hear the death rattle in the hoarse wheezing throat of popular music. This view would be further enhanced, if you were to chance across “Pop Idol” on TV and subjected your ears to Simon Cowell’s favourite brand of overwrought, cruise ship, cabaret, balladeering, yes, it would appear that popular music as an art form, is dead. You would be forgiven if you considered that this style of “talent” show may have brainwashed the public into the belief that this was actually representative of what Pop music should be and reflective of what’s really happening in music at present. Indeed if you were to go into any office in the land it’s highly likely you would overhear a conversation with regard to last weeks” Pop Idol”, possibly about how Leona has grown, not only as a performer, but also as a person, or how Geoff the singing hod carrier from Bury has really embraced “Unchained Melody”, indeed Geoff actually “owned ” that song..…Yes we need help, “Hello ? Hello ? Operator Please ? “….

A browse on t’internt however should quickly remedy the perception that the only viable musical talent out there is discovered by The High Waisted Overlord, his gibbering Leprechaun friend and the pallid, surgically enhanced, self appointed “Best Mum In The World-Like, Ever” Because the truth is there are many new bands producing innovative, joyous music, music that moves people and is making a connection with fans around the world on a level Cowell could only dream about……… Australia’s Operator Please are one such band, their punk pop thrash is a joy to behold, they may only be youngsters but they produce a sound that would have you believe they’ve been playing together for years. From the punk pop novelty of “Just A Song About Ping Pong” to the adrenaline fueled romp of “Get What You Want”, and what can I say about Amandah’s voice ? it’s truly amazing ! These little monkeys have proved that age should never be a barrier to producing wonderful music, and their debut album “Yes Yes Vindictive” is one of the most eagerly anticipated releases within the walls of VP Towers. After high profile support spots with the likes of The Arctic Monkeys, Modest Mouse,We Are Scientists And The Go! Team , and a tour of Oz , OP are currently back playing dates in the UK. Surely this is  a band who will take 2008 by the seat of the pants, give it a darn good kicking and put some energy and life back into the charts in the UK …… Mr VP was helped onto his pimped up mobility scooter and met up with Tim from Operator Please to discuss their meteoric rise from school band mates to riotous snarling rock n roll machine! (and the possibility of them recording his song, “Just A Ballad About Salad” ?)

VP: So the story goes you met at High school and got together to win a battle of the bands competition…and a buzz started to grow…how did you get from that point to where you are now?

Tim : We entered lots of competitions and ended up on a compilation CD for mess + noise. We had people contact us after hearing us and seeing us in the magazine.Fast forward half a year and we had managers, an agent and a record label. Since then, we have been working our asses off touring and doing promo so that people know who we are. Everything has been leading up to this first album which has just been released, so I guess we will see if all of our hard work has paid off.

VP: Operator Please? Who came up with the name and what’s it all about?

Tim : It was a joint thing, we all sat down and brainstormed words that we liked, wrote them down on a piece of paper and Operator + Please happened to end up next to each other. There is absolutely no meaning behind it, like the ping pong song, there is no hidden message or story behind the name!

VP :Your debut album’s to be released in Oz in November, is there a different release date for UK/Europe?

Tim : The album is being released on the 10/11/07 in Australia, so its already out. I believe we are releasing the album in the UK in January which will be exciting!It was cool releasing it in Australia and seeing the reaction and I think we are looking forward to seeing how the UK reacts to it because it is a totally different market over there.

VP: You’ve secured your selves some really high profile support slots have you met any heroes?

Tim : Yeah, we supported Arctic Monkeys which was a pretty amazing experience. They were personally one of my favourite bands at the time, and being able to see them 5 times was the biggest thrill! We’d Go out into the crowd (when we were aloud) and watch, it was so much fun. Otherwise some of us would stand side stage and just go crazy!!

VP: How’s the current tour going? Do you get nervous before going on stage?

Tim : We just completed our first national Australian tour after touring in the UK for almost 3 months. It was such a shock to come back after such a long time and see the reaction that we got, because when we left, Just a song about ping pong hadn’t been released, and when we came back everyone knew it, and other songs too! It was soooo much fun playing to an audience who knew our songs. It helps take away nerves, if we have any. For smaller shows, we don’t tend to get nervous, unless there is a family member or a good friend there sometimes some of us will get a light stomach, but its usually gone by the 2nd song anyway.

VP: Do you all like similar music or do each of you have different influences?

Tim :We all have different influences, i think that helps in bringing a different sound to the band. I grew up on alot of jazz stuff, but have grown to love more indie stuff now like Arctic Monkeys, Good Shoes etc. Some of my favourite song writers are John Mayer and Jamie Cullum.

VP: How do you spend your time when travelling on tour? Do you write songs/ read books/watch DVDs play PSP/ Xbox etc ?

Tim :We all tend to spend most of our time listening to music! were big music lovers. If were not needed for anything, well be listening to our ipod. Our other love are computers, Apple Macs. Always searching for the free wireless internet hotspots to check our email and myspaces.

VP: What have been the best things about being in a band so far?

Tim : For me, i absolutely love performing, and I get to travel around the world, doing what i love. I would have to say that is the best thing about being in a band!

VP: People have been surprised at how young you are, but as they say if you’re good enough you’re old enough. Does it bug you that people, even if they are well meaning go on about your age (like I just have ho ho)?

Tim :No, i think were used to it, let them get it out of their system. It is only bugging to us when they talk condescendingly towards us because we are young. I don’t think music should be limited to age, e.g Tiny Masters of Today are 10 and 12. One of Amandahs favourite bands!

VP: Using Australian slang sum yourselves up in five words

Tim : Bloody flamin’ mongrels we are……. (or not)

Links

On Myspace

Official Site

Click here to buy the CD!!!
Click here to get it on iTunes

VIDEO

“Leave It Alone” By Operator Please

“Get What You Want” By Operator Please

“Crash Tragic” By Operator Please

Wallpaper

Yes sometimes nice people send us music, sometimes we “randomly” discover it ..

So whats on the VPME I-pod this month ? (in no particular order)

Operator Please - “Get What You Want”
Pure incendiary, deep down and dirty rock n roll – This is where its at ! A classic. This is a band who really should be as enormous as John Prescott’s waistline. Ripper, as they say in Oz.

The Pipettes -“Your Love For Me” (a new song from the Japanese Import Of “We Are The Pipettes”) sounds a little bit like what The Sundays may have produced if they’d have adopted a 60’s girl group vibe, and stopped moping around (and had three Harriets)-which is a good thing! Hurrah!

Millburn -“Wolves At the Door”
Somewhere between Arctic Monkeys, Sean Bean and Reverend And The Makers, there is Millburn, I can’t pretend I don’t like it, so i wont, I like it!

Róisín Murphy-“Dear Miami “
Ah Ms Murphy is back with a lovely slice of Electro/Disco/Funk, cooler than a chriogenically preserved James Dean, in an ice cream parlour, with the door left open, in Alaska, in January….

The Phantom Lovers- “Heroes And Idols”
This is their first single apparently, due out at the end of the November. A dark menacing gothicy vibe, with a layered sound that swirls around like the presage to some great foreboding revelation …she’s got a great voice and repeated plays really make this track grow on you. But is it bland enough to get radio play ? No, it’s far more interesting and therefore will probably get no airplay…

The Blue Smarties - “I Feel Like Ian Beale”
Anyone remember these little pop pixies ? The Pipettes should cover this lost classic about the unluckiest man in Albert Square. Mind you he was and continues to be, a Tw*t !

The Hot Puppies - “Clarinet Town”
This band just get better and better , from the forthcoming “Blue Hands” album- which I’m very much looking forward to. I just wish their gigs where easier to attend

Siouxsie- “Here Come That Day”
Blimey ! No it’s not about Darren Days ex’s waiting to beat up the philandering little shit, it’s a storming return to form from the High Priestess of Punk, the best shes done for many moons, this time she remembers that sometimes songs can sound better with a tune-Great Stuff !

Screaming Ballerinas - “Jessica” (demo)
They can argue all they like, but this is a song Blondie would have been proud of, more hooks than Peter Pans nemesis and a fantastic vocal, hard to believe the tracks on here are essentially demos -Amazing!

The Bordellos -“Blank Letter”(bass version)
What would have happened if The Jesus & Mary Chain’s Reid brothers had let Bobby Gillespie sing and not bullied him into playing the drums ?-Possibly this, its raw, and conjures up the bedroom sleaze of early JAMC demos. From The Album “Meet the Bordellos” which contains the frankly disturbing ” These Boots Are Made for Stalking” ….

Babyshambles -“French Dog Blues” – Oh dear, I almost thought this was going to be good, the melody strains to escape, almost succeeds and then Pete says “Chien bleu” and thus ruins the whole song, as he sounds a complete cock, he’s no Serge Gainsbourg that’s for sure… And what the F*ck does ” I model lacklustre panicky in vain search for the remedy, No words only melody come, so I take the day off “????- What a load of pretentious half baked w*nk in a Tupperware box ! If that’s what’s considered by many to be modern day poetry then my name’s TS Elliot. Rhyming panicky with remedy is almost in the same class as when the world of pop bowed down to the genius of Billy Ray Cyrus when he rhymed “achy” with breaky ” -time itself was almost torn asunder and Stephen Hawking’s head exploded, due the complexity of such a rhyme ….I was indeed humbled…….Anyway the guitars aren’t bad, problem is, just as it promises to deliver it becomes all limp, flaccid and ultimately deeply unsatisfying, rather like bad sex….

The Real Tuesday Weld – “Last Words“- Now this is good, imagine if Paddy McAloon and the ghost of Billy McKenzie sang lyrics penned by Jarvis Cocker -  in Tin Pan Alley……It’s up on myspace for a free download too. I see there’s a penchant for pencil thin taches too

The Duke Spirit -”Lassoo” (from the Ex Voto EP) . Magnificent, rollicking, epic sounding slice of blood and guts rock n roll . Its sheer quality transcends genre and in time it should rightly be regarded as a classic. Everybody should buy it !