There is this pretty good reason why we’re bringing cameras to our Electronic Beats Festivals: we want to remember stunning artists and their shows, and more importantly later on share them with you lot who couldn’t make it to the show. So when Wiley played EB Festival Warsaw in late 2011, we of course caught Eskiboy‘s performance on video – which is why you can now watch the recap in case you planned on going to one of his upcoming tour stops in support of his new, Big Dada released album Evolve Or Be Extinct. Earlier today, Wiley’s February live shows have been cancelled.

According to (and confirmed by) Wiley’s German concert promoter/booker Contra Promotion, all four Germany shows in Berlin, Frankfurt, Leipzig, and Cologne have been cancelled, no information on the reasons. All tickets will be refunded at the respective box office. Bitter, but still. Lean back, dry the tears and watch Wiley perform his tunes “Numbers In Action”, “Boom Blast”, and “Rolex”.

In releated news: Wiley just joined Roll Deep buddy and protégée Manga on the track ‘Hottie’, watch the video below:

Wiley Live (all shows cancelled):
February 29th 2012 Berlin, Festsaal Kreuzberg
March 1st 2012 Frankfurt a.M., Nachtleben
March 2nd 2012 Leipzig, Werk 2
March 4th 2012 Cologne, Die Werkstatt

Three days to go until the Electronic Beats Festival in Warsaw, and one of the bands we are most excited about seeing are Brooklyn indie upstarts The Drums. We caught up with the Jacob, the band’s synth player to ask him some questions about life, love and their favourite girl groups.

If you want to see the band in Warsaw this Friday, you just have to follow this link to grab your tickets.

Hello, please can you introduce yourself?
I’m Jacob from The Drums. I play synthesizer for the band.

What was the last piece of music you listened to?
The end title theme from ‘Summer of ’42’ by Michel Legrand

How did you find the process of recording your second album Portamento?
Fine. It was recorded in much the same way as our first. In our apartments, on our own.

Where did you find the cover image? is there a story behind it?
It’s an old photo of Jonny. I don’t know if that particular photo has any story behind it. I think it’s more of a glimpse into someone’s childhood and perhaps one they don’t have many fond memories of.

You supported Erasure on tour – how was that? Are you fans?
Jonny’s old band, Elkland, supported Erasure on tour. The Drums have not. I’ve never been a fan of Erasure. It’s always been difficult for me to understand how I feel about anything Vince Clark does, because I really appreciate his methods, I’ve just never liked the product. To me there doesn’t seem to be a lot of romance in his sound. Everything is so dry and cutting.

You are influenced in part by girl groups of the sixties – what is your ultimate girl group song?
Yes, we certainly are. My ultimate girl group song is Out In The Streets by The Shangri-Las. It seems to have a little more depth than girl groups often allowed themselves.

Are you looking forward to playing in Warsaw – do you have any experience of the city?
I have no experience of the city. I hear the name thrown around a lot but I know nothing about it. I look forward to playing anywhere we’ve never been before but I don’t particularly enjoy traveling so it is a double edged sword!

Where do you write music – do you compose together as a band?
We just write in our homes. Sometimes we compose together, some time not. For example, I wrote and recorded all the music for ‘Searching For Heaven’ at my apartment and then Jonny wrote and recorded the vocals somewhere else.

Do you find that the process of writing songs gets easier or harder?
It’s hard to say. I suppose some aspects get easier and others get harder. But the reality is that once you finish a song you’re happy with, after a brief moment of utter joy, you suddenly become depressed because now you must start again. And every song that isn’t as good as the last one you were happy with get’s thrown away until you nail it again.

What has been your biggest achievement so far? ( that you are most proud of)
I don’t know. Probably not playing ‘Let’s Go Surfing’ anymore.

What other bands are you currently listening to?
Xeno & Oaklander, Suzanne Ciani, League of Nations, The Innocence Mission, Blonde Redhead.

Anyone we should be keeping an eye on?
Meryl Streep.

Groove Armada, the English duo who brought us tons of wonderful sounds to make our nights more danceable, have had one of their greatest tracks updated. Fellow UK producer Ant Brooks has taken their classic ‘Superstylin’ and updated it into a tech house masterpiece. It’s the perfect appetizer for their appearance at Electronic Beats Festival Warsaw this Friday!

Okay, we’re not gonna lie: our The Drums obsession is getting a bit out of control. There’ve been some personnel changes within the band, whoever said “change is good” sure knows what they’re talking about. The Drums added a new bass player, switched drummer Connor Hanwick to guitar and added a new drummer. We think The Drums sound better than ever and in fact, live versions of songs from their albums The Drums and Portamento often have a special kind of vibe. Today a live video from their recent gig in Paris appeared online, the dark jam ‘If He Likes It Let Him Do It’. It’s fascinating how these boys are celebrating their live shows, so we’re ridiculously excited to see them live again this Friday during our Electronic Beats Festival in Warsaw, along with Zola Jesus, Wiley and Groove Armada present RED LIGHT. Check all EB-Festival news here and get inspired by the video below:

The prodigious Zola Jesus will perform at the Electronic Beats festival in Warsaw on 2nd December – we had the privilege of spending a few minutes with the goth-pop queen to talk about a giddy rise to stardom and how music fails to inspire the Russian-American artist in her work.

You’ve been on tour for a long-time now (the US, now Europe) – how are you holding up?
I am tired, but I feel lucky.

You studied business at university, which seems the antithesis of a passionate musical background – why did you choose to study the subject?
I studied business for a very short time, at a moment where I felt like music was too stressful for me. But I realized music is all I have, it’s my compulsion and when I starve myself of it I become very sick.

And then you went on to study French and philosophy – do you think that shines through on your albums?
The things I have learned have informed me and how I live my life. My music is my life. Everything that I am trickles down into my music because my songs are a reflection of my fibre.

Do you have a favourite philosopher?
I am drawn mostly to Schopenhauer but no, I don’t hold any favourites.

You’ve been compared to Kate Bush and Siouxsie Soux, yet you have a classically trained voice – where does your inspiration come from?
My inspiration doesn’t come from music. That would be redundant.

Why did you not continue with opera?
It was hurting me. It was destroying my emotional and physical health.

You have had 3 EPs and 3 albums out since 2009, which is prolific – are the albums something very raw and easy to make?
They are hard to make, but I force myself to let things go. If I didn’t let things go, then nothing would get done. So I work and work and let myself run out and then release it before I’m given a chance to think twice.

Zola Jesus will perform at the Electronic Beats Festival in Warsaw on the 2nd December. Find all the information here.