Here and PNAU

The significance of seeing a Toulouse Lautrec exhibition when you’re but ten years old, is often not identifiable for someone so young, but that was the catalyst behind what’s become a lifelong appreciation for art in its many forms for Nick Littlemore.

“Art is everything to me, my parents instilled that in us from a very early age,” he said.

“Inspiration for me is a strange thing it can come from books and film comes from walking down the street it doesn’t necessarily come from any specific place yet it seems to emanate, I can just get a groove up and start singing or write it.

This inspiration which can come from so many places might not be so apparent today as the day I chatted with him he was preparing to have a needle placed between two vertebrae in his spine. Not something he was looking forward to at all, but as one half of the accomplished electro duo Pnau and with New Year gigs scheduled, including those for the upcoming Big Day Out circuit, he’s determined he won’t risk missing a live performance due to ill health.

“I’ve never missed a gig in my life so even if they have to wheel me out on stage in a wheelchair then so be it,” he said.

Littlemore and his partner in music making, Peter Mayes elicited a blinding performance during their return performance recently at Sydney’s Homebake. However, the gig left Littlemore in absolute agony as he’d slipped two discs in his back just days prior to that performance.

“From what I’m told it was a really cool show, I don’t really remember any of it, as I’d broken my back and was completely out of it on stage,” he said.

Pnau broke through with their ingenuity in sound in 1999 presenting a sultry ‘summer time’ feeling release called Sambanova. This album inspired many poolside party tracks like ‘Journey Agent’ and propelled the lads towards sonic success for some time after. They followed up that debut in 2003 with their sophomore release Again. This album fell short of capturing the essence of what they had unleashed in Sambanova and as a result disappointed critics and fans alike, but not least the duo themselves.

“Again, to be honest, is the worst record I’ve ever done,” Littlemore stated resolutely.

“We didn’t really conceptualise any of it before we did it and it was a very strange time for us, my other band Teenager were starting out and it was just weird,” he said.

After Again’s lacklustre reception the pair parted ways. Littlemore took up residence in London produced with other artists including Robbie Williams and he and Mayes sought some much needed time apart.

“I’d been working with Peter - we’d been working every day together since we were 14 we needed a break from each other and that sort of extended through Again, “Littlemore said.

But the urge to work together again had grown and in Littlemore’s mind –the revelation that their working partnership really did amount to something developed.

“I’ve known peter since I was ten, he’s like my brother, like any relationship we love each other and hate each but we’ve sort of realised music overrides everything,” he stated. “We really wanted to work together again, we really looked at each other and looked at our lives and decided that we really make the best music we do together and we just had to recognise how to get back to that,” he said.

Together once more, over 200 songs written, as well as a full album laid down between Again and their latest, the self-titled Pnau, but it wasn’t until Littlemore penned the track ‘With you forever’ and a collaboration with another talented muso, frontman of Sleepy Jackson Luke Steele occurred, that magic emerged.

“I wrote With you forever sent it to Luke Steele and he just sung the most amazing pop line, which changed it forever,” he said.

“With you forever is the best song we’ve ever written,” Littlemore added.

The new self titled offering exemplifies their strength in partnership. A return to the form of their first album Sambanova which pulled at the heart strings of listeners due for the happiness it created -something the guys were keen to capture this time around.

“With this album we really wanted to do something positive, and understand what it was that had worked about Sambanova.

Sonically the two albums are very different, but ultimately the two both leave you feeling good and so the overall feeling was that we really wanted to make a statement of positivity,” Littlemore said.

The album has not gone unnoticed either. Respected music man and celebrity Elton John publicly applauded the boys and their latest album so much so he’s sent copies out to his friends including the Scissor Sisters and Littlemore is hopeful of a collaboration not too far in the future.

“This week has been pretty crazy we met Elton John he’s a wonderful person really generous and into his art, and he and I share that in common,” Littlemore reflected.

The prospect of working alongside the likes of Elton John much less being held in such high esteem has Littlemore excited, perhaps enough to momentarily forget about his impending surgical procedure. Still he ponders what else is ahead this year for Pnau and indeed the artistically driven Littlemore himself.

As he talks of the blinding Big Day Out tour and their own tour later in the year which promises many surprises including a large circus tent, fire eaters and other amazing things the actual live shows will produce a polished outcome for Pnau. “We’re taking it a lot more professionally,” he said. “When we perform the new album – there are some tracks we remix some of our older songs, probably not going to see too many new cuts,” he continued.

But that isn’t all this inspiration fiend will fit into 2008. Littlemore is a self confessed film connoisseur and along with his talents for making music the coming months will see him delve into the world of feature film production as he will embark on an acting role for a film which focusses on colours.

Music fans need not worry though as he’ll also release the latest Teenager album and will continue to write four – five new songs a week, inspiration never waning.

Pnau play the Big Day Out festival from January 20, 2008. For more information visit www.bigdayout.com.

Posted: October 11th, 2008 under Australian Interview, INTERVIEWS.
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