Don Juan Dracula

Don Juan Dracula - The name of an actual band, and starting next Tuesday, the name I will insist people call
me in public. Synth-happy, Human League-y, these dudes kicked off Øya Festival day two, arriving in a
chopper, playing some silly-ass electro shit that worked if only because they aren't Fisherspooner.
I jest but let's get down: You can actually draw the line here why DJD work and Fisherspooner don't. FS have
costumes and stage drama and self-satisfied cool but all these are knacks--totally incongruous with the music,
totally boring and empty. DJD, like my boys Datarock, or your boys Devo, actually care about presenting a
seamless aesthetic: Their songs are sexually absurd, hot but fading like early TV color, so we get slinky
moustachios wielding keytars, bassists in eye-glitter but white sweater vests, a live high school marching band
playing foreplay songs, cheerleaders in short skirts, but in braces too, and choreographed as if to play up their
gawk. - www.villagevoice.com

Don Juan Dracula - The name of an actual band, and starting next Tuesday, the name I will insist people call
me in public. Synth-happy, Human League-y, these dudes kicked off Øya Festival day two, arriving in a
chopper, playing some silly-ass electro shit that worked if only because they aren't Fisherspooner.
I jest but let's get down: You can actually draw the line here why DJD work and Fisherspooner don't. FS have
costumes and stage drama and self-satisfied cool but all these are knacks--totally incongruous with the music,
totally boring and empty. DJD, like my boys Datarock, or your boys Devo, actually care about presenting a
seamless aesthetic: Their songs are sexually absurd, hot but fading like early TV color, so we get slinky
moustachios wielding keytars, bassists in eye-glitter but white sweater vests, a live high school marching band
playing foreplay songs, cheerleaders in short skirts, but in braces too, and choreographed as if to play up their
gawk. - www.villagevoice.com

Anyway, once back on terra firma we race up to the site, where we've been promised a bit of a spectacular
display from Norwegian band Don Juan Dracula. They arrive by helicopter, have a children's marching band
and a vampire string quartet accompany them, and release a flock of homing pigeons from the wings of the
stage. Yup, that sport beloved of dour flat-capped Yorkshiremen is big in Scandinavian lands too. Don Juan
Dracula's bassist and keyboardist could advertise that 118 phone service thing if it had a Norse equivalent,
and they're all dressed in white. They put the necks of their instruments together, igniting something, and
showers of sparks scatter from the tuning heads. Woo! Ah yes, the music, nearly forgot about that. Don Juan
Dracula play very Scandinavian guitar pop, you know, the kind of thing that's as clean and unthreatening as
their motorway hard shoulders, and although it's all very simple fodder - lyrics are of the "let's stay together /
things will be OK / wooo" mould, it'd be churlish to deny Don Juan Dracula our praise. Especially as they follow
the pigeons into the sky and leave the site by helicopter, cutting their set short because they didn't want to
overstep their hour's rental. - www.playlouder.com

Anyway, once back on terra firma we race up to the site, where we've been promised a bit of a spectacular
display from Norwegian band Don Juan Dracula. They arrive by helicopter, have a children's marching band
and a vampire string quartet accompany them, and release a flock of homing pigeons from the wings of the
stage. Yup, that sport beloved of dour flat-capped Yorkshiremen is big in Scandinavian lands too. Don Juan
Dracula's bassist and keyboardist could advertise that 118 phone service thing if it had a Norse equivalent,
and they're all dressed in white. They put the necks of their instruments together, igniting something, and
showers of sparks scatter from the tuning heads. Woo! Ah yes, the music, nearly forgot about that. Don Juan
Dracula play very Scandinavian guitar pop, you know, the kind of thing that's as clean and unthreatening as
their motorway hard shoulders, and although it's all very simple fodder - lyrics are of the "let's stay together /
things will be OK / wooo" mould, it'd be churlish to deny Don Juan Dracula our praise. Especially as they follow
the pigeons into the sky and leave the site by helicopter, cutting their set short because they didn't want to
overstep their hour's rental. - www.playlouder.com

The rain stopped, at last, and we enjoyed a dry, sometimes sunny, day. Norwegian act Don Juan Dracula
kicked off proceedings on the main stage, featuring their local schoolband in a wacky blend of electro-pop and
baton-twirling. After Fischerspooner ruined me for all things synthesized the day before, I wanted to stay away
from Don Juan Dracula, "Norway's Fischerspooner" by one account-- dressed in white, mullets, and sweater
vests, a high school marching band and drill team on stage. Oh, and they arrived in a helicopter. Don Juan
Dracula did 'Spooner better, really, because the kink sex-drip stage/lyrics/gawky teenager aesthetic went the
extra mile for Devo consistency-- not afraid to see the shtick out to its logical conclusion. In this case, it was a
set cut short because the band needed to return the helicopter (it was a rental), and a marching band playing
the theme from Police Academy for their exit music. - www.pitchforkmedia.com

The rain stopped, at last, and we enjoyed a dry, sometimes sunny, day. Norwegian act Don Juan Dracula
kicked off proceedings on the main stage, featuring their local schoolband in a wacky blend of electro-pop and
baton-twirling. After Fischerspooner ruined me for all things synthesized the day before, I wanted to stay away
from Don Juan Dracula, "Norway's Fischerspooner" by one account-- dressed in white, mullets, and sweater
vests, a high school marching band and drill team on stage. Oh, and they arrived in a helicopter. Don Juan
Dracula did 'Spooner better, really, because the kink sex-drip stage/lyrics/gawky teenager aesthetic went the
extra mile for Devo consistency-- not afraid to see the shtick out to its logical conclusion. In this case, it was a
set cut short because the band needed to return the helicopter (it was a rental), and a marching band playing
the theme from Police Academy for their exit music. - www.pitchforkmedia.com

Øya Festival - live review
Playing the early sets at the festival doesn’t faze anyone, least of all Don Juan Dracula, who touch down in a
chopper, setting off fireworks and kicking out the early afternoon jams with a set of Spinal Tap via Pop Will Eat
Itself rock-n-roll. You can almost hear them say, “We’re not playing last, but goddamn it, we’re gonna
headline.” Pretty much every band that plays early gets a huge crowd, but Don Juan Dracula take Willy
Wonka’s lift straight through the roof. - www.stylusmagazine.com

Øya Festival - live review
Playing the early sets at the festival doesn’t faze anyone, least of all Don Juan Dracula, who touch down in a
chopper, setting off fireworks and kicking out the early afternoon jams with a set of Spinal Tap via Pop Will Eat
Itself rock-n-roll. You can almost hear them say, “We’re not playing last, but goddamn it, we’re gonna
headline.” Pretty much every band that plays early gets a huge crowd, but Don Juan Dracula take Willy
Wonka’s lift straight through the roof. - www.stylusmagazine.com

Young Debutantes II is the first full length album from the Norwegian electronic pop wonders Don Juan
Dracula, produced by Alex Møklebust of Zeromancer. The band is well known in Norway for their crazy
entertaining live-shows, but on this album, you'll also hear that Don Juan Dracula is the masters of elegant pop
music. Don Juan Dracula was a part of the Norwegian casio-pop scene, together with bands like Remington
Super 60, Safariari and Kawaii, but has lately drifted away from the casio-aestetics incorporating real liveinstruments
as well. Featuring the hit single "Take Me Home"
- The Village Voice

Young Debutantes II is the first full length album from the Norwegian electronic pop wonders Don Juan
Dracula, produced by Alex Møklebust of Zeromancer. The band is well known in Norway for their crazy
entertaining live-shows, but on this album, you'll also hear that Don Juan Dracula is the masters of elegant pop
music. Don Juan Dracula was a part of the Norwegian casio-pop scene, together with bands like Remington
Super 60, Safariari and Kawaii, but has lately drifted away from the casio-aestetics incorporating real liveinstruments
as well. Featuring the hit single "Take Me Home"
- The Village Voice

This is apparently the first long player from this Norwegian four piece whom I had not heard of beforehand but
who appeared to be the Scandi version of Har Mar Superstar. (If you don't know Har Mar, imagine the love
child of Jon Lovitz and Ron Jeremy singing Madonna songs while he undresses) So I took the chance and
ordered it, and upon getting this it really turned out to be pretty much what one would expect. Well recorded,
dancy poptronics sung with catchy choruses.The songs clearly tend towards the quasi disco-anthemic with No
Control being perhaps the most perfect example of it on here, and it's even the ideal song of that genre type
perhaps, the poster boy if you will. You'll find this is an outing that just goes along non stop: It drives, it bumps,
it grinds, it's got it's mojo working over time, yeah baby..... it's all that and a bag of potato chips. Of course
there are some old people so stiff they don't like this sort of thing, and some young people so depressed they
don't like it either. However if you are the sort who thinks John Travolta looked dressed perfectly normal in
Saturday Night Fever and you don't let people touch your hair either, then this is the album you've been
waiting for. Like it says in the inner sleeve, "It's not about the money, it's all about the fluffy bunny". Honestly,
what can I add to that.
This has it's moments and quite a few really good tracks, but it clearly is best at the beginning and tends to get
a bit over blown near the end, losing some of the disco sensibility for rock edged droning. That said there isn't
much else out there like this, and it's a wonder..... - www.indiespinzone.com

This is apparently the first long player from this Norwegian four piece whom I had not heard of beforehand but
who appeared to be the Scandi version of Har Mar Superstar. (If you don't know Har Mar, imagine the love
child of Jon Lovitz and Ron Jeremy singing Madonna songs while he undresses) So I took the chance and
ordered it, and upon getting this it really turned out to be pretty much what one would expect. Well recorded,
dancy poptronics sung with catchy choruses.The songs clearly tend towards the quasi disco-anthemic with No
Control being perhaps the most perfect example of it on here, and it's even the ideal song of that genre type
perhaps, the poster boy if you will. You'll find this is an outing that just goes along non stop: It drives, it bumps,
it grinds, it's got it's mojo working over time, yeah baby..... it's all that and a bag of potato chips. Of course
there are some old people so stiff they don't like this sort of thing, and some young people so depressed they
don't like it either. However if you are the sort who thinks John Travolta looked dressed perfectly normal in
Saturday Night Fever and you don't let people touch your hair either, then this is the album you've been
waiting for. Like it says in the inner sleeve, "It's not about the money, it's all about the fluffy bunny". Honestly,
what can I add to that.
This has it's moments and quite a few really good tracks, but it clearly is best at the beginning and tends to get
a bit over blown near the end, losing some of the disco sensibility for rock edged droning. That said there isn't
much else out there like this, and it's a wonder..... - www.indiespinzone.com

Hot new Norwegian group, 2nd EP, Indiepop with organ, like a cross of The Sounds and Stereo Total, 6
tracks, nice digipack. Six catchy pop-melodies from the Norwegian Don Juan Dracula, which has evolved from
a casio-pop-duo to a four-piece pop-band, but still with focus on the catchy synth-melodies. Not unlike
Swedish bands like the Shout Out Louds, Melody Club or The Sounds. The song “Together” and its novelty
music-video has become an underground hit in Norway during the summer. The band played all the biggest
festivals in Norway this summer to raving reviews, they are absolutely one of the most entertaining live-bands
in Norway right now. They also played the Arvika Festivalen this year. - www.hotstuff.se

Hot new Norwegian group, 2nd EP, Indiepop with organ, like a cross of The Sounds and Stereo Total, 6
tracks, nice digipack. Six catchy pop-melodies from the Norwegian Don Juan Dracula, which has evolved from
a casio-pop-duo to a four-piece pop-band, but still with focus on the catchy synth-melodies. Not unlike
Swedish bands like the Shout Out Louds, Melody Club or The Sounds. The song “Together” and its novelty
music-video has become an underground hit in Norway during the summer. The band played all the biggest
festivals in Norway this summer to raving reviews, they are absolutely one of the most entertaining live-bands
in Norway right now. They also played the Arvika Festivalen this year. - www.hotstuff.se