Computer Magic

For Computer Magic’s Danielle Johnson, the future has always been something to look forward to. “When I was younger, one of my favorite movies was Blade Runner,” the New York-based musician says. “And after I saw it, I read ‘Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?,’ the Philip K. Dick book that inspired that movie. I loved the book, I loved the movie and it was just such a cool subject — what’s going to happen in the future, robots being hardly detectable among humans — that it was an interesting thing to play on.”

Interesting and booming, so it seems. Johnson has since turned her bedroom project into a full-fledged band, with a number of free EPs released on the web and two years of gigging behind her. Computer Magic also released the Orion EP (Kitsuné) this month, their first recording for a label. (Johnson calls it “the EP people will have to pay for”). She and her band will wrap up a full-length album before leaving for a nationwide tour.

It’s a long way from where Computer Magic got its start. “I started making music about a year and a half ago, the summer before last. I was living in New York and took a break and went to live with my mom in Tampa, Florida for about six months,” Johnson explains. “I had nothing to do there, so I kind of started dabbling in Ableton and making music. I didn’t even know that I actually could do anything until I made my first song and put it up online for fun.” To Johnson’s surprise, people liked the music. And more than that, they were inviting her to play it for them — in person.

“People were asking me to play live shows even when I was in Florida, before I had been on stage before,” Johnson says. But she wasn’t ready to leave the house just yet. She came back to New York and asked two friends to join her on stage, even though one was a guitar player and there was no guitar in her songs. Later they added a drummer to the band. “In the beginning it was more so I didn’t have to be on stage alone,” she says. “Now, the live element is better than it being just me up on stage by myself.” Indeed with James Morley on guitar, Justin Coles on bass, and Chris Egan on drums, Computer Magic has a more cohesive feeling — something evident on the striking, space-chilled songs on the Orion EP. All this has made her optimistic about recording. “The idea is to keep improving, to become the best I can. It’ll have the same kind of theme: 1970s science fiction and the vintage future.” Computer Magic’s own future keeps getting brighter. Take her appearances at South By Southwest, for example. “Last year we played at The Driskill in the Victorian Room. Everybody was so totally out of it,” Johnson says. “This year, somebody shouted ‘Computer Magic!’ while we were walking. That didn’t happen last year.” - MTV Hive

Morceau emblématique des années 90, le "Don't Speak" de No Doubt a fait chavirer plus d'une génération. Les vocales déchirantes de Gwen Stefani et la nostalgie qui se dégage de chacune des notes y sont pour quelque chose. Cette chanson fait partie de ces classiques intemporels qui traverseront les âges sans prendre une seule ride et continueront d'influencer une ribambelle de jeunes artistes. C'est d'ailleurs le cas avec la mignonette Computer Magic toute droit venue de Brooklyn qui s'est essayée à l'exercice de la cover. La jolie new-yorkaise et son univers musical rêveur et doucereux nous fait don d'une reprise magnifique et pleine de sensibilité qui se démarque avec succès de l'original. On vous laisse savourer.

Being part of the emblematic songs of the 90s, No Doubt's "Don't Speak" has turned more than a generation upside down. Gwen Stefani's harrowing vocals and the nostalgia from each note have something to do with it. This track joins all these timeless classics which willl go through the ages without getting a day older and will continue to influence a throng of young artists. This is the case with the cutie Computer Magic coming from Brooklyn who has just released a cover of the song. The marvelous New-Yorker and her dreamy and sweet music universe offers us a magnificent and sensitive cover which distinguishes itself successfully from the original. Enjoy.
- French Symphony

Computer Magic is Danielle Johnson, a young New York DJ, producer, and fan of ’70s sci-fi. We made her a Band To Watch way the hell back in 2010, and she’s about to release a new 7? single. The A-side, “A Million Years,” is a warm and wistful Italo-disco jam, and you can download it below. - Stereogum