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Throughout the ages it seems that to be truly immortalised you have to die young. Dying an old and natural death just isn’t very sexy. Plus it means that you’ve had time to get old and not be cool or worse, get old and think you’re still cool. There’s evemn a club of musicians that died at the age of 27 called 27 club or Forever 27.

Since the beginning of time, myth and legend has followed those who died young. If you look at all the Greek myths, the one person who stands out the most would be Achilles. Maybe that’s just pedantic but the next one can’t be denied. A whole religion got started around him. Jesus. By dying young he became immortalised.

Then there was Gaius Julius Caesar. He was murdered by his oldest friend and his name is now in the annals of history and will never be forgotten. Many countries have a variant of his name as the word for king, like, Tsar, Kaiser, etc.

But let’s bring it forward a few thousand years to a time that people care about more. Have a look at the world of film and undoubtably two of the most iconic people of the 2oth century. Marilyn Monroe and James Dean. James Dean died in car accident at the age of 24. His last words were, “That guy’s gotta stop… He’ll see us.” As for Monroe, she died of acute barbiturate poisoning which led to the coroner recording a death of “probable suicide”.

Even more recently we’ve had the 27 club. This was the name given to a group of musicians who all died at the age of 27 within 2 years of each other. They were Janis Joplin, Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison of the Doors. Later Kurt Cobain joined the club by committing suicide when he was 27.

The allure and subsequent immortality with dying young is no doubt in part to the fact that you never grow old. Obvious as that may seem, it means that these people are always remembered as youthful and vibrant, at the top of their game. It’s an attraction that may have led to Cobain’s suicide.

And if you don’t think that’s the reason then imagine what Pete Doherty or Amy Winehouse will look like when they’re old. They’ll fade in amongst everyone else. If either had have died at the peak of their careers then they would have been imortalised. Now they’ll be fond memories for us and musicians our kids will listen to to be cool when we’re 50.

It’s not often that I go to a gig and come away genuinely impressed by what I hear. It’s normally the same old dreary stuff. At the risk of sounding like a music blogger and trying to fill your head with subjective nonsense, I’d like to tell you about Alan Pownall.

On a brisk and pretty cold Wednesday afternoon, I got invited to a showcase by someone who works at ATC management. I’m normally skeptical about attending these showcases as they are pretty boring and industry. But as I came out into the cold and into the amazing St Barnabus chapel in Soho and had a glass of steaming mulled wine thrust into my hand, I was instantly a little less skeptical.

Alan has been playing for 5 years but as he walked up to the stage and picked up his acoustic guitar he looked so comfortable. He said hello before launching into his first song. His voice was sweet and melodic and sitting in the chapel I couldn’t help but think it was almost angelic.

After playing only a few gigs he started playing alongside names such as Florence & The Machine, Jack Penate, Noah & The Whale. He supported Adele on tour and is now signed to Mercury.

He’s definitely someone to watch out for in 2010 and I’m sure he’ll go far. Check out his Myspace at www.myspace.com/alanpownall and let me know what you think.

In the day and age of the remix and the powerful sway that club mixes hold, acts can be made or broken depending on who remixs their songs and how good/popular those remix’s are. But it goes further. Acts that may not have even caused that much of a storm at all can become seminal acts simply through the remix. Let’s have a look at some.

The first was a couple of years ago now. A little known band with an obese lesbian front woman was making it’s way to the UK. They were The Gossip. The music was pretty generic Indie music but I distinctly remember the first time I realised they’d be big. NME released a remix album and on it was the Soulwax Nite Remix of Standing In The Way Of Control. The clubs picked it up and it became huge. Have a listen to the two different versions.

Compared with (starts properly from a minute in):

The Soulwax remix was so popular that it was played on the radio and in clubs meaning that for a while everyone thought that the remix was the original. The Soulway remix is more popular on Youtube and it was also used in the popular programme Skins making it more popular. The Gossip obviously rode on the success of this remix.

More recently La Roux has shot to fame off the back of a Remix. Till a few months ago the only La Roux people knew was the song played in the club which was the Dubstep Remix by Skream. I remember my DJ mate Flight Commander played the original version of In For The Kill at the night Sextape. People stopped dancing and asked what the shit remix of La Roux that the DJ put on.

Here’s the Remix that everyone knows and loves:

And the original:

The original sounds hollow and empty compared to the remix. A point proven by the fact the 2 biggest videos on there, the remix has a million more views than the original.

You have to ask yourself, would La Roux have been so commercially successful if people hadn’t been wooooooo – ing along to the Skream Remix in every club ccross the land? Would the Gossip for that matter? Probably not. They may not have even scratched the surface past a select few people who were “into music”.

Both these acts owe a lot to the people who remixed their tracks. The weird thing is that with the rise of the home studio this route to success is going to become more and more prevalent. Bring on the Remix’s!

The Eighties aren’t really legendary for much. Bad hair, power suits and cocaine. Not the best of things to be remembered by. And then there was the music. Normally overlooked but the eighties single handedly managed to create one of the most awesome genres of them all. The montage power ballad.

I thought I’d go and find a selection of the best of the eighties and put them up here. So whether you’re training to beat Apollo Creed or you just need to get to work through the overcrowded tube, this motivational music will come to your aid!

I Wanna Dance With Somebody – Whitney Houston

Danger Zone – Kenny Loggins

Push It To The Limit – Paul Engemann

Holding Out For A Hero – Bonnie Tyler

Living on a prayer – Bon Jovi

Eye Of The Tiger – Survivor

So there you have it. Perm your hair and rock out!

Last night was a busy night on the town. Firstly, from 9 the Diesel U:Music World Tour came to town with a fanfare of pomp, circumstance and cool new sounds. Secondly, Frank Musik DJ’ed the Met Bar of all places. It could only mean one thing. Drunken cab rides and free drinks.

Diesel sure know how to throw a party. Currently, Diesel is doing it’s U:Music World Tour where they’re showcasing different bands and DJ’s. They’ve already hit up 7 cities and it seems like they’ve got their act together. Hearing where the venue was, Westminster Universities P3 building, almost saw us going elsewhere. But thank God we didn’t.

Walking out of Baker Street tube you knew something was happening. Gaunt trendsters waited by the dozen. Leaning against railings, smoking cigarettes in technicolor outfits. We got to the venue alongside a stream of people. Walking through steel barrier after steel barrier, it felt like we were going to a mini festival. But it was nothing compared to the what was inside.

We walked in and the place looked amazing. Lights, screens, bar and a massive stage. Dark and moody with a huge disco ball. We walked in on The Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt’s set. As soon as they went on the crowd filled with people in blow up cow and shark and a menagerie of other animal costumes. It was like being raped by a festival. They tore through the crowd bouncing happily. The crowd who had been posing happily, looked a little bemused and distressed as the 5 vocalists wailed on stage.

The best thing about Diesel parties is they understand the nature of free booze. That there has to be lots of it. Buffalo Trace Bourbon (I think but can’t remember cause I drank too much of it), Finlandia vodka and Becks. And as much as you like. The bar was never over packed, and the drinks flowed steadily.

It was all going well, and i mean very well, like party of the year well, until half way through HeartsRevolution’s set. It was absolutely amazing until the fire alarm went off and stayed on for ages. It wasn’t that bad inside but it got a whole lot worse when we went out for a cigarette and got told we couldn’t go back in with the fire alarm on. Damn health and safety. If there aren’t people running out on fire after 15 minutes then you can pretty safely say it’s a false alarm.

It was unfortunate for Diesel because the people outside started to leave as soon as they got back in. It was too much having to wait. Apart from that it was amazing. Poor Diesel.

After that, it was a quick sprint over to see Frank Musik DJ at the Met Bar. It was a good set if a strange location for him. Suits mingles with what looked like hookers. It was all a bit hazy thanks to Diesel’s generosity at the bar. There’s a lesson here. If you want a good night then head to a Diesel party. There are 3 left on the World Tour. Vienna, Sydney and Miami. Anyone fancy a trip?