When listening to Madison electro-poppers Null Device’s latest, Suspending Belief, it’s easy to tell that these were the folks that attended the midnight sales for both Depeche Mode’s Songs Of Faith And Devotion and New Order’s Republic in 1993.

In other words, when synth-pop tumbled out of the modern pop-culture climate in the early ’90s, Null Device hung on for the bumpy ride out of cool. Fast-forward to 2010 and synth-pop has once again kicked a hole through the airwaves. However, many of today’s electro-pop stars only call upon the most novel aspects of classic synth-pop records: The Roland Jupiter-8 and 303, cutesy vocal tics, and decadent fashion. But when Null Device draws from Depeche Mode on Suspending Belief—particularly on album highlight “Notes From The Fallen”—it sounds like a B-side that never was from Mode’s 2005 effort Playing The Angel. The tastefully reverberated vocal melodies of multi-instrumentalist Eric Oehler rise and fall over a pulse of word-tinged rhythms and synths that soar and bounce behind a thin layer of what sounds like sitar.

The group’s earnest approach to synth-pop is at its best when Oehler and Co. aren’t overindulging, which is unfortunately the case with “Blades Of Grass” and “Many Forms.” The way vocalist Raya Wolfsun’s ethereal vocals collide with the clinical sonics of “Many Forms” pulls the tune dangerously close to new-age bookstore territory. Thankfully, the warped, shuffling synth hooks of “Blow My Mind,” the punchy, string-laden “Inkblots,” and the entrancing sequencing and Bertrand Russell-alluding lyrics of “Teapots Orbiting” round out Suspending Belief quite nicely, offering a refreshing perspective on a genre that’s overshadowed by dance-party kitsch.

Get it from nulldevice.bandcamp.com, Nilaihah Mail-order, iTunes, Amazon, and other fine retailers.

 Since forming in 1997, Null Device has bridged production and live instrumentation to show there’s more to electronic music than beats per minute.

 The fourth album by this Madison act is mostly a collection of down-tempo house and trance that’s perfect for chilling out. Led by Eric Oehler, he of the self-declared “studio geekery,” the band’s members continue to integrate world music influences, as they did on their 2007 release, Excursions.

The Arabic lyrics sung by Raya Wolfsun on “Blades of Grass” are shrouded in the mystery of tribal beats and synth drones. “Teapot Orbiting” has a strong orchestral flavor. The rising strings are a reminder that Oehler is a classically trained violinist.

The album’s last two songs show that Null Device has a poppier side, too. The steady beats and accessible synth of “Blow My Mind” are the band’s surest path to radio airplay.

I’ve yet to hear a local disc this year that matches the sonic diversity, musical depth and substance of Suspending Belief. It’s one of my early favorites of 2010.

Fri June 25th – Madison WI – The Frequency
Sat June 26th – Milwaukee WI – Club Anything
Sun June 27th – Chicago IL – The Darkroom
Mon June 28th – Quad Cities IA – Lumpy’s
Tue June 29th – Columbus OH – The Shrunken Head
Wed June 30th – Pittsburgh PA – Garfield Artworks
Thu July 1st – Baltimore MD – The Depot
Fri July 2nd – Philadelphia PA – The Fire
Sat July 3rd – Washington DC – The Meeting Place/Midnight
Mon July 5th – Tallahassee FL – Engine Room (TDC Only)
Tue July 6th – Atlanta GA – TBA (TDC Only)

Primarily masterminded by Eric Oehler, local synth-pop duo Null Device casts a spinning mix of ancient folk instrumentation, heavy computer beats and Eric Goedken’s vulnerable lyrics. Oehler is classically trained but a total omnivore when it comes to music, and even though Null Device is drunk on a variety of world influences, it coheres into a slick and haunting whole. They close out the fifth anniversary party for local website Dane101. Also performing: German Art Students, Little Red Wolf and former Madisonian El Guante (with Big Cats). Cover is $7. 21+

The way it works is this – tracks and albums are submitted for consideration by the artists, and then people from all over the place log in, listen and vote.  Round one determines the nominees, round two determines the winners.

There’s a nominal fee for voting.

Normally I’m opposed to nominal fees, but I heartily endorse dropping a few bucks to become a MAMAs voter for a few reasons.  One, our huge egos and fragile self esteem rely on the constant praise that a MAMAs win would bring, two, it’s a fantastic way to hear a whole bunch of exceptionally talented local acts in a variety of genres and three – all proceeds support music programs in local schools.

That last one is a big deal.  I’m talking 100% of the money that comes in goes to helping school music programs buy and repair instruments, keep teachers, and keep programs going.  The MAMAs organization has done a stellar job of this over the past several years – donating thousands of dollars worth of band and orchestra instruments to area schools, showcasing unique school performing groups, and raising awareness of the good works done by many of these teachers and students.  I have a really soft spot for school music programs, since it was a succession of really fantastic school music programs in elementary and secondary school that kept my own love of music alive, refined it, taught me a lot of skills, and generally gave me a much brighter outlook on the world than I’d probably otherwise have had.

The awards show in May is also a good time.  Like most awards shows, it runs long and there’s always a bit of overblown speechifying, but there’s also a ton of really great performances.

So it’s a good cause, and could help us win something.  Head over to www.themamas.org, register, listen, and vote!

At The Frequency, Madison.
Dane101 5th Anniversary party
Little Red Wolf
German Art Students
Guante and Big Cats
Null Device

 9pm $7, 21+

Should be one heckuva show. Little Red Wolf does a sort of alt-country-folk-rock-bluegrass-pop kind of thing with a healthy dose of vocal harmonies, German Art Students is a group that for years has been making nimble, quick-witted new-wave-influenced pop music, Guante and Big Cats is layered, politically charged hip-hop and then there’s…well, then there’s Null Device.

It’s pretty cool that we get to play this gig, since these are some great bands (I’ve been trying to put together a show with GAS for years, but scheduling has never made that possible until now).

More info at Dane101.com

Woo!

The next album will be titled “Suspending Belief.”  It’s almost all recorded and mostly mixed.  We’ve been playing a few tracks from it live for a while now, and we’ve got a few more in the pipe.

Yesterday, it happened again, to another friend, DJ and tireless promoter of local music.

Mike Carlson, a guy who I’ve known as a DJ in Madison as long as I’ve lived here, watched his house burn down yesterday.   Thankfully, nobody was hurt, but preliminary estimates put the damage at over a quarter of a million and the human damage is more – his family are now without a home, clothing, and belongings. Mike’s lost the records and CDs he uses to ply his DJ trade.

Mike, both as a DJ and as the owner of MCAudio, has been a fixture of the Madison music scene for decades.  He’s also a genuinely nice guy.  I don’t know a DJ or a band in town that he hasn’t helped.  Certainly, he’s the guy who spun Null Device discs before anyone else would touch them, regularly throwing our poorly-recorded cover of “Wicked Game” into big night sets. Last time I saw Mike, it was sort of by accident – Wendy and I had wandered over to the Great Dane for a late snack and drink, and he happened to be DJing. He came over to our table, bought me a beer and an apple turnover (!) and talked excitedly about new dubstep records he was getting in the store. He’s always enthusiastic about music, and about the people who make music, and you can tell he’s a guy who loves what he does and loves sharing it with others.

Every few times I see him, he tells me “you know what I’m really digging these days? That acid jazz.” I usually joke that he has so much vinyl that he’s merely rediscovering stuff he’s owned for years and just forgotten about. I won’t be able to make that joke anymore.

A few people have already set up donation points on paypal:
http://www.paypal.com and send money to mikeandfamilybenefit@gmail.com

If you’re in Madison, you can donate a nonperishable food item at MCAudio on University Ave.

UPDATE:

Dane101 is on this.  So is The Onion AVClub.

And there’s already a Benefit tonight at The Inferno:

Tonight (1/27) at the Inferno (1718 Commerical Ave.), a benefit show for Mike Carlson. No cover at the door,  taking donations of both non-perishable food items and money. Starts at 9:00 p.m.  DJs Eurotic and Alan!, + more.