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Having pumped their way through New Zealand's electronic music scene since their inaugural performance at the annual Gathering New Year's eve festival in 1997, Pitch Black have spent the last eight years rousing dance floor punters, generating rave reviews, winning awards and gaining thousands of fans across the world.
Hard to box into a single audio 'genre', Pitch Black is a combination of musical journeys, created by Paddy Free and Michael Hodgson. Their sound is distinctive; ranging from organic ambient beginnings and layered soundscapes to skanking keyboards, cutting acid riffs and thumping rhythmic grooves, with dub being the glue that holds their sound together. One critic has described them as like "Richie Hawtin meets King Tubby, or Rhythm and Sound in Technicolor".
Their debut album, 'Futureproof', was released in September 1999 and rose to the top of the New Zealand electronic charts, despite no marketing or advertising. Their second album, 'Electronomicon', followed in August 2000, and led to a sell out 30-date tour of New Zealand and Australia. Both albums spawned remix projects, featuring mixes by local luminaries such as International Observer, Epsilon Blue and Downtown Brown.
Their latest offering is 'Ape to Angel', which was released in New Zealand on October 4, 2004 to critical acclaim. The Ape tour was the biggest yet, with 42 shows across the world, including their debut performances in America.
It is their live show that really makes Pitch Black stand out from the rest of the crowd, both sonically and visually. Their tracks take on an added dynamism and their performances reveal the dialectic behind the band - Paddy wants to do it for the crowd, Michael wants to do it to the crowd. Visually they are in another dimension due to Mike's cutting edge visuals.
Band Members:
Michael Hodgson
Paddy Free
Artist Website
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