Goodbye Future, Hello Presets: Australian Electro-Rockers' Return to Dance Music

Up until recently Australia’s catalogue of electronic dance music has been very brief. Before, an Australian electro-head’s library might have included the likes of everyone’s favourite electronica hit-and-runners, The Avalanches, as well as tunes from PNAU, Cut Copy, The Aston Shuffle, Sneaky Sound System and Midnight Juggernauts.
Nowadays, the game has changed significantly. With the recent flush of bangers from artists like Ta-ku, Wave Racer, L D R U, Tyler Touché, Yahtzel, DCUP, Peking Duk, Flight Facilities, Kilter, Touch Sensitive, Emoh Instead,  Seekae, Hermitude, Knife Party, Hayden James, Indian Summer, Cosmo’s Midnight, Willow Beats, Motez, Alison Wonderland, and of course, Sydney’s fresh prince, Flume, Australia is experiencing what many have dubbed a ‘golden era’ of EDM.
However, the guys who have arguably been a part of Australia’s electronic scene for the longest period of time (apart from The Avalanches, who have essentially been lying dormant for eons) are Julian Hamilton and Kim Moyes, a.k.a. The Presets. Coming off their gigantic album Apocalypso in 2008, they became the first dance act in Australian history to win the ARIA Music Award for Album of the Year. With hit singles like ‘My People’, ‘This Boy’s In Love’, ‘Talk Like That’, ‘Ghosts’, ‘Promises’, and more recently, the euphoric electro-storm that is ‘Goodbye Future’, their importance to Australia’s electronic scene is iconic, in the same way that Daft Punk are to France, or The Prodigy are to England.
It’s only appropriate then, that these were the musicians who influenced the Australian electro duo when they started out.
“We were just two nerdy guys that liked techno, going to nightclubs, and listening to new bands like Daft Punk and The Prodigy!”

Listen to The Presets’ latest single, ‘Goodbye Future’ on YouTube.

Hamilton, The Presets’ vocalist and keyboardist, would humbly refuse to admit the band’s integral significance to the Australian electronic scene though.
“Certainly, we might have been the first [dance act] to ever win the ARIA for best album. But, if we didn’t, someone else would have, and Empire of the Sun won it the very next year, for instance.”
But that’s just the kind of guy Hamilton has always been – modest, diligent, and innovative. In 1995, at 19 years of age, Hamilton was enrolled at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where, apart from the occasional night out thrashing the city’s nightclubs, the future Presets member was all about learning and gaining the dexterities of the accomplished musician he is today.
“I really enjoyed the library, and I really loved learning piano and learning about all these composers, and gaining skills and all that boring stuff that university isn’t really about! It should be about partying, but yeah, I was a bit of a music nerd.”
The Conservatorium of Music was also where Hamilton met his band mate and life-long friend, Kim Moyes. From the beginning of their bromance, they have shared a passion for producing electronic music with subtle hints of meaning, and a love for turning those tunes into gargantuan dance floor anthems when they perform.
“He was the one like-minded person who I hung out with,” Hamilton says. “Kim and I really saw eye-to-eye on music and performance and thankfully, we have ever since.”
Australia’s proudly owned electro rockers have recorded two EPs, three albums, and a handful of remixes since then, and have celebrated their work with a stack of awards, including six ARIAs in 2008 and one in 2009, an APRA award, and one J Award. These days, both band members are married with children, but according to Hamilton, the quieter life hasn’t impeded on their ability to produce tunes for the party-goers.
“It’s funny, I considered myself pretty settled down way before I even had kids,” he says. “I mean, I used to go to nightclubs and party on and have a good time like everyone else, and obviously, we’ve both got kids now and we’re having a bit more of a family life than we used to, but it just doesn’t feel too different to the life before all that … I mean, I don’t need to go to nightclubs all the time to understand that techno music is fun to dance to!”
Arguably, The Presets’ success is owed entirely to the unique sound that they have cultivated over the years. In 2005, their debut album Beams was recognised for its experimental, subtly sinister and twisted approach to electro-rock – but it was in 2008 that Apocalypso made their name by carving out a thunderous, dystopian new rave of angst and sexual frustration. Their 2012 follow-up album Pacifica holds onto the band’s nocturnal and aggressive elements, but in the context of warmer, more inviting techno-house. Across their discography, however, the common motif is the band’s unmistakably dark edge.
“A lot of people will tell you it’s a bit more difficult to paint with a light brush. So to make a happier song, it’s hard, whereas to make a darker thing, it’s a little bit easier,” Hamilton says. “Certainly, songs like ‘Promises’ were probably some of the trickier songs that we’ve had to write – or have ever written. But it’s interesting, I guess we just try and do what we’re feeling on the day. We try to explore all different human emotions and energies in our music … we sort of like it all.”

When it comes to translating their songs to the big room sound, it’s evident that Moyes and Hamilton are perfectly in sync. The aesthetics and production of their thumping live shows are widely renowned, combining Hamilton’s ruthless ‘80s-style voice with Moyes’ adept percussionist skills. Critics have labelled their performances as an incredible sight to be seen, with one reviewer writing, “I skipped Kanye West to see The Presets, and I don’t have a single damn regret.” It should be no surprise then that these guys supported Daft Punk when they toured Australia in 2007 (which was, coincidentally, also the series of shows when The Presets launched their signature song, ‘My People’ – and what a gig that would have been!).
After seven years of relentless touring however, Hamilton has seen the landscape of electronic dance music change to the point where he feels detached from it – that is, if The Presets were ever a part of it to begin with.
“There was no such thing as EDM, as a term, when we first started,” he says. “When we made ‘My People’, for instance, we wanted to make it tough and aggressive and have a big drop moment, before they were really calling it drops … Now, dance music has really become the style of the day, and even pop bands like Katy Perry’s sound like EDM.”
It’s no secret that a number of industry-established artists, DJs, and listeners have grown tired of the developing staleness of EDM in recent years. While Hamilton respects the thriving talent throughout the industry, he’s grown to disassociate The Presets with the electronic dance scene that’s shaped itself around large music festivals like Future and Stereosonic.
“You go to these festivals, especially some of the EDM festivals in the United States, and it’s just: build up, drop, build up, drop, build up, drop,” Hamilton says. “It’s really cool, but to us, it’s just a drop. It’s just aggression, and noise. There’s not really much more to it beyond that … And the fans, you know, they love it. They jump around to it and have a great time. But when you think about how [The Presets] stand apart, or whether, or how we are apart of it – it’s very valid and enjoyable, but it’s not really what we’re about. We’ve always considered ourselves a bit more of a band.”
In that light, it may come off as a bit ironic that The Presets’ Groovin The Moo live shows are going to be conforming to what Hamilton describes as “DJ culture”. Following the band’s decision to leave Moyes’ floor-shaking drums in the studio, Hamilton clarified that The Presets are going to be introducing their new live routine, which utilises a range of electronic equipment, at the regional festival.
“It’s really cool, and in fact, I’m having more fun in rehearsals than I have in a very long time!” he says. “It’s a whole new beast, and we’re really looking forward to unleashing it on the Groovin The Moo audiences.”

Check out The Presets’ 2008 hit, ‘My People’ on YouTube.

One can only hope that Hamilton’s vocals will be delivered through a microphone, and not via Ableton Live. But even if that were the case, given the band’s long history of annihilating music venues the world over, is there really any reason not to have faith in The Presets? The immensely positive reaction to their latest single, ‘Goodbye Future’, is a clear indication that their Groovin The Moo set, which will close the Triple J and V Music stages, will be one to remember.
“It’s just going to be us standing behind a laptop! [Laughs] Nah, it’s not going to be that. It’s a really exciting new show and we’re really looking forward to taking it onto the stage.”
Get locked up with The Presets’ people when the band performs at Groovin The Moo at the University of Canberra Meadows on Sunday April 27. Tickets are $99.90 + bf through Moshtix.
Text by Andrew Nardi