Midnight Juggernauts – Shadows

So, today was a big day in the microcosm of the developed world that is Australia. Long maligned as ‘Down Under’, much forgotten about in the world press and often so caught up with itself that we don’t seem to care about the first two, Australia proved itself as a nation of wonderment today. In between severe bouts of sleeplessness, much tossing and turning and the loss (gasp!) of the BBC world service frequency from my bedside radio throughout these wide-awake hours, two events of major significance set the agenda for the day to come and only served, unfortunately, to add to my restless bitch of a night. In the first instance – and far more impressive in my opinion – Australia were knocked, valiantly, out of the World Cup even after overcoming staunch opposition in Serbia. In the second event – and equally as exciting for those who get turned on by politics – our loyal leader, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd (Krudd for short) was knocked, somewhat less valiantly, out of his leadership after succumbing staunch opposition in our new first female PM, Julia Gillard.

In the midst of all of these nocturnal disturbances and confusions, how exactly did this track, from the perennial hometown favourites The Midnight Juggernauts (Juggies for short), manage to penetrate the subconscious and make an impact on a day otherwise overshadowed by big news rather than big music? Fundamentally, the Juggernauts represent a group which, as brother J would maintain, has long past its used-by-date, having traipsed around the local festival circuit longer than most, touring on the back of debut album Dystopia, and just recently, on the release of a follow-up that took too long to follow-up has cemented its growing irrelevance as an electro-rock outfit. That last bit possibly hints at just why the Juggies seem to be moving out of the frame. Where in the 2008s/2009s, clash of genres was all the rage and loud, crazy music was considered important and avante-garde and spectacular, chill-wave 2010 doesn’t seem to have room for the Juggernauts and their noisy counterparts.

Against a backdrop of huge disappointment (mainly for Krudd, to some degree for the Socceroos), glimmers of hope arise (mainly for Jillard, to some degree for the future generations of Socceroos). With the almost inevitable soul-searching that follows the post-exam lull (see: I now have so much time and such a dearth of things to do), a sense of such hope is what is needed to plug the interminable depths of introspection. Midnight Juggernauts’ Shadows, in its overwhelmingly huge dance form, provides this plug for me, for today at least. I feel inspired, as much as one can be, as I type this post in the back of Mother D’s highly uncomfortable Tarago as we hurtle (occasionally dangerously) towards Brother and Sister Z’s band camp final night performance. Moreover, the song sings with promise for what was and can still be one of Australia’s great electro exports. Tomorrow promises to be full of excitement. Tomorrow comes today.

Midnight Juggernauts – Shadows

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