David Haberfeld

Last updated

David Haberfeld
David haberfeld.jpg
Performing as Honeysmack in 2011
Background information
Born1969 (age 54–55)
Melbourne, Australia
Genres Acid House, techno, minimal techno, electro, mashup
Occupation(s)Music producer, composer, performer, improviser, dj, academic
Instrument(s)synthesizer, drum machines, modular synthesizer
Years active1992–present
Labels Hand Made Acid, Smelly Records, Kickin Records, Zomba, Jive Electro, Shock, Idiot House, Sony BMG
Website davidhaberfeld.com
honeysmack.info

David Haberfeld (born 1969, in Melbourne) is an Australian electronic dance music producer, [1] performer, DJ and educator. Best known for his productions and live performances as Honeysmack, [1] [2] he is a proponent of acid house and techno music styles. [2]

Contents

Career

During his studies at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in media arts, Haberfeld began experimenting with electronic dance music. Soon he was collaborating with electronic composer Phillip Samartzis under the name Hysterical Systems. Their 5-track EP was released in 1993/94 by UK dance label Kickin' Records. [1]

In 1994, Haberfeld started his first independent record label, Smelly Records. [2] [3] Initial releases included his Pura project, [1] a hard-acid outfit called Cynosure (with Phillip Samartzis), [1] PIN (with Voiteck Andersen), Graham Mono (with Adam Raisbeck and Scott Anderson). The first full-length release was the Smelly Records Compilation CD in 1996. [4] As Honeysmack, he released his first full length artist album, Honeysmack Live (1997), a collection of live recordings taken from performances at underground clubs in Australia such as Club Filter Melbourne.

Along with his performances as a live electronic dance music artist during the mid 1990s, Haberfeld gained respect with rock audiences with his punk approach and attitude as Honeysmack. [2] Intersecting the genres of rock and dance, he soon become a fixture at popular Australian rock events and festivals, including Big Day Out, Falls Festival, Meredith Music Festival and to a large extent at dance music festivals and events. [5] [6]

In 1999, Honeysmack's song "Walk On Acid"—which sampled the melody from Burt Bacharach's "Walk On By"—became a popular hit. [1] [7] The song was a nominee for the Best Dance Artist Release at the Australian Recording Industry Association ARIA Music Awards of 1999. [8] The video (directed by Philip Brophy) accompanying the single was the source of some controversy after being withdrawn due to legal action brought on by the Coca Cola Company, which objected to one of their vending machines appearing behind a scantily dressed dancer. [9] [10] "Walk on Acid" featured on Honeysmack's studio album Flick Bubble [2] [11] in 1999. "Walk On Acid" was listed in The 100 Greatest Australian Dance Tracks Of All Time [12] in 2015.

In 2002, it was announced that he would perform as a supporting act on Britney Spears' Australian tour to promote her album Britney and the film Crossroads . [13]

Haberfeld combines the musical influences of punk, disco, early hip-hop, electro, kraut rock and synthpop. [14] He studied under Philip Brophy at RMIT; they have since collaborated on various projects, including the Brophy-produced Honeysmack album Rock in 2002. As an example of contemporary Australian electronic music, Haberfeld's work was exhibited at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in September of the same year. [15] He has collaborated with a diverse range of artists encompassing different styles, including performing in a quartet [16] with Jacq Gawler (Coco's Lunch), Anthony Schulz (Zulya and the Children of the Underground) and Adam Starr (Frock). Haberfeld produced Frock's last album, "One Room One Day" in 2016. [17]

He and Antonio Celestino formed the DJ duo Acid Jacks in 2004. Acid Jacks were ranked in the top 50 DJs in Australia by popular vote in 2007 [18] and 2008. [19] The pair presented a different twist on the electro and fidget house genres. [20] As part of Acid Jacks, Haberfeld and Celestino founded the record label Idiot House. In 2009, Haberfeld parted ways with Acid Jacks and Idiot House to return to his productions as Honeysmack.

Haberfeld formed a new techno and acid house label, Hand Made Acid, in 2010.

David Haberfeld holds a Master of Arts [21] in Media Arts from RMIT, a Postgraduate Diploma in Music Technology from La Trobe University and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Media Arts from RMIT. He completed a PhD in music composition at Monash University in 2021 titled "Bacharach, Britney and Acid Techno Bangers: The Evolving Compositional Practice of Honeysmack". He was a lecturer in the Bachelor of Music (Interactive Composition) at The University of Melbourne Faculty of VCA and MCM. [22] between 2016-2019.

Discography

Albums

Awards

ARIA Music Awards

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987. Honeysmack was nominated for one award. [23]

YearNominee / workAwardResult
1999 "Walk on Acid" Best Dance Release Nominated

Related Research Articles

1200 Techniques are an Australian hip hop group formed in 1997 in Melbourne, Australia, consisting of DJ Peril as producer, percussionist, DJ; N'fa Forster-Jones as lead vocalist and Kemstar as lead guitarist. Whilst primarily being in the genre of hip hip, they drew influences from other genres including rock, funk, soul, electro, drum and bass, electro jazz and breakbeat. They released their debut studio album, Choose One, in March 2002.

David Chesworth is an Australian-based interdisciplinary artist and composer. Known for his experimental, and at times, minimalist music, he has worked solo, in post-punk groups, electronic music, contemporary ensembles and experimental performance. He has also created installation and video artworks with collaborator Sonia Leber, such as Zaum Tractor included in the 56th Venice Biennale (2015) and This Is Before We Disappear From View commissioned by Sydney Biennale (2014).

B(if)tek was an Australian electronic music duo comprising Kate Crawford and Nicole Skeltys, which formed in Canberra in 1994. They released three albums, Sub-Vocal Theme Park (1996), 2020 (2000) and Frequencies Will Move Together (2003) before disbanding in 2003. At the ARIA Music Awards of 1999, B(if)tek were nominated as Best Dance Release for the track "Bedrock", which appeared on their second album. The group also composed a four-minute soundtrack for the Kspace exhibition at the National Museum of Australia in Canberra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Britney Spears discography</span>

American singer Britney Spears has released nine studio albums, eight compilation albums, nine box sets, three extended plays (EPs), 50 singles, 11 promotional singles, two charity singles, and has made three guest appearances. In 1997, Spears signed a recording contract with American record label Jive Records in order to launch her career.

Philip Brophy, born in Reservoir, Melbourne 1959 is an Australian musician, composer, sound designer, filmmaker, writer, graphic designer, educator and academic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Presets</span> Australian electronic music duo

The Presets are an Australian electronic music duo of Julian Hamilton and Kim Moyes. Formed in 2003 and signed to Modular Records, The Presets released two EPs in advance of their debut album, Beams, released in 2005 to positive critical response. After two years of touring, including as the Australian support for Daft Punk, the band's 2008 release, Apocalypso, debuted at number one on the ARIA Albums Chart, and went on to win six awards at ARIA Awards 2008, including Album of the Year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Infusion (band)</span> Australian electronica band

Infusion was an Australian electronica band, originally from Wollongong which formed in 1995. It is best known for its ARIA Music Award-winning song "Girls Can Be Cruel" and Six Feet Above Yesterday.

Caroline Frances Kennedy-McCracken is an Australian musician and visual artist. Kennedy-McCracken has been a singer-songwriter and guitarist in several bands, including The Plums (1992–1995), Deadstar (1995–2001) and The Tulips (2002–2006). In 2013, she appeared as a vocalist on Don't Tell The Driver, a solo album by the Dirty Three's Mick Turner. Kennedy-McCracken is also a visual artist, working primarily as a painter and sculptor.

Elefant Traks is a record label based in Sydney, Australia, that predominantly releases Australian hip hop music. The label is distributed in Australia by Inertia Distribution.

Mark Dynamix is an Australian DJ, producer, mixer, radio presenter and record label owner/manager. He ran the Australian operations of Ministry of Sound Recordings for Sony Music Australia from 2017-2019. He began working as a DJ in 1990, aged 14. He has published 40+ mix CDs alongside an extensive catalogue of original music releases.

BeXta is the performance name of Rebecca Elizabeth Poulsen, a trance and hard dance, DJ and producer. She studied classical music and music technology before turning to electronic dance music from 1992. BeXta established her own label, Mixology Digital, in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DJ Ajax</span> Australian DJ

Adrian Thomas, better known as DJ Ajax, was an Australian Electronic Dance Music DJ known for playing a wide range of styles, including electro, techno and electroclash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josh Abrahams</span> Australian musician

Josh Abrahams is an Australian musician who emerged from the underground dance music scene in the early 1990s. He has performed and recorded under the stage name Puretone, and is also known as The Pagan and Bassliners.

Club Filter, based upstairs at the Lounge bar and nightclub at 243 Swanston Street in the heart of Melbourne, holds the record as the city's longest-running techno music night, having run every Wednesday night from 1992 to 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stereosonic</span> Australian music festival (2007–2015)

Stereosonic was an annual electronic dance music festival held in Australia in November and early December. Stereosonic was held in Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Sydney, and Melbourne, attracting attendances of up to 200,000 patrons nationally featuring the biggest electronic artists in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dirty South (musician)</span> Musical artist

Dragan Roganović, better known by his stage name Dirty South is a Serbian-Australian DJ, record producer and remixer based in Melbourne.

Leigh Ryan, better known by the stage name Plutonic Lab or sometimes as Pluto is an Australian music producer, engineer, artist & performer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Havana Brown (musician)</span> Australian DJ, singer, and songwriter

Angelique Frances Meunier, known professionally as Havana Brown or DJ Havana Brown, is an Australian DJ, singer, songwriter, record producer, and dancer. In 2008, Brown signed with Island Records Australia as a DJ for the record company and began releasing her Crave compilation album series, which featured remixes of songs from other artists. This led to her touring with international artists, including Britney Spears, Rihanna, the Pussycat Dolls, Chris Brown, and Enrique Iglesias.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Davide Carbone</span> Musical artist

Davide Carbone is an Australian music producer, composer, sound designer and technologist. Listed as one of the 7 most influential Australian music producers of all time by Australia's premier audio and music publication Mixdown Magazine, Carbone has released several records, produced music for major artists, composed music and created sound design for TV, film, theatre, and video games, and developed music making software.

Future Sound of Melbourne is an Australian electronic group formed in Melbourne in 1990. At the ARIA Music Awards of 1996, they won the award for Best Dance Release for their album, Chapter One.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Profile: Honeysmack". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Cyclone Wehner (27 May 1999). "Smack Attacks". Sun-Herald .
  3. ↑ "Profile: Smelly Records". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  4. 1 2 David Mothersole (16 September 1996). "Smelly Records compilation review". Muzik magazine (UK), p. 121
  5. ↑ "Honeysmack: Some Sort Of Flickwit". Inpress/Zebra issue no. 560. 26 May 1999.
  6. ↑ "Honeysmack returns". Resident Advisor. 18 February 2002. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  7. ↑ Simon Reeves (3 April 2002). "Honeysmack comes to the party". inthemix . Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  8. ↑ "Winners by Award". ARIA Awards. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  9. ↑ Peter Wilmoth with Sally Finlay (5 July 1999). "Never Mind the Nudity". The Age . Lawyers for Coca-Cola and confectionery company Mars have written to record label MDS to ask for the withdrawal of Honeysmack's latest video clip, Walking on Acid.
  10. ↑ "Philip Brophy: Solo Exhibitions". Anna Schwartz Gallery. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2013. Videoclip for Walk on Acid, by Honeysmack (director and producer) (video short on Smelly Records) TV broadcast nationally, withdrawn and all copies destroyed at order of lawyers representing CocoCola Bottlers
  11. 1 2 Andrew Trimboli (18 June 1999). "CD Review: Flick Bubble". Sydney Morning Herald .
  12. ↑ "The 100 Greatest Australian Dance Tracks Of All Time". inthemix. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
  13. ↑ Libby Clark (27 May 2002). "Honeysmack to support Britney at her Fox Studios gig". inthemix. Archived from the original on 19 July 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  14. ↑ "Honeysmack". Melbourne Music Week Festival. Archived from the original on 13 May 2013. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  15. ↑ "Variable Resistance: Ten Hours of Sound from Australia (San Francisco Museum of Modern Art program)" (PDF). 7–17 September 2002. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  16. ↑ "Other collaborations/productions". SoundCloud. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  17. ↑ "One Room One Day, by Frock". Frock. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  18. ↑ "The inthemix DJ Poll 2007". inthemix. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  19. ↑ "Sony inthemix50 Results 2008". inthemix. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 "Biography of Acid Jacks". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  21. ↑ "Haberfeld, David". Australia & New Zealand Music Research (musicresearchanz.com). Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  22. ↑ "Find an Expert". The University of Melbourne. Retrieved 27 March 2016.
  23. ↑ ARIA Award previous winners. "Winners By Award - 27th ARIA Awards 2013". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 1 March 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.