Meet The SHUT UP AND PLAY THE HITS Contest Winners

Every LCD SOUNDSYSTEM fan remembers the album responsible for their conversion. For some, it was the 2005 self-titled debut on which frontman James Murphy sang about losing his edge to the “art-school Brooklynites in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered eighties.” For others, it was 2007’s Sound of Silver and meeting their own “Someone Great.” 2010’s This Is Happening seduced even more with the Spike Jonze-directed panda-monium featured in the music video for “Drunk Girls.” And the rest is history.

It was the memory of the lyrics, beats, and the moments they were first experienced with friends and loved ones that drew fans from all over the country to LCD SOUNDSYSTEM’s last three shows at Madison Square Garden. The final one of these now legendary performances was documented in the upcoming Pulse Film SHUT UP AND PLAY THE HITS, directed by Dylan Southern and Will Lovelace.

Last month we announced a contest in association with Oscilloscope Laboratories, asking you to tell us your favorite LCD SOUNDSYSTEM moment for a chance to win a trip to the NYC premiere of SHUT UP AND PLAY THE HITS—in theaters one night only July 18th. The grand prize winner also wins a meet and greet with James Murphy… along with a bunch of other swag and accommodations at the Ace Hotel New York. It was super hard to choose winners from all the inspiring and heartfelt submissions we received, but it had to be done.

Meet the winners and read snippets of the entries that melted our hearts…

GRAND PRIZE WINNER: Samuel Cheney

Samuel Cheney fell in love with LCD SOUNDSYSTEM around the time he fell in love with his best friend’s girl. Their first date was eating pizza and watching an LCD concert broadcast from one of their California dorm rooms. The band’s albums is where they really met each other, says Cheney. He eventually followed his girlfriend to New York and lived the jobless reality that’s oh so “New York, I Love You But You’re Bringing Me Down.” But the good times in their relationship revolve around those lazy, Cali Sundays listening to records in bed.

From Cheney: One afternoon it was Sound of Silver. About a minute into “Someone Great,” she said, “I can't listen to this song, will you skip it?” “Okay,” and I did. But once I was back on the bed I asked her why, unable to really figure how she couldn't love the song. Then, for a half-hour or more, she told me. This is how you learn to love someone; you never leave their side and you share all your secrets. It was a story more personal than I'll share. She had never told anyone, and then she told me, and so in doing her story became mine too, and the song became the story. When I hear “Someone Great” now, after everything, it's still what I think of every time.

RUNNER-UP: Brandon McBride

Brandon McBride once snuck into an LCD SOUNDSYSTEM + Arcade Fire show in Salt Lake City by convincing security guards backstage that he was in a band from Seattle and was a guest of LCD. He ended up partying with LCD and Arcade Fire after the show… before getting pulled over on his way home and spending 30 hours in jail over a previously unpaid speeding ticket. (Pay your speeding tickets, kids!)

Here’s what McBride had to say about the party: Eventually everyone left except me, my brother who I had brought back with me, and the bands, with the exception of Régine from Arcade Fire and James Murphy himself. Dave, who I later found out is the guitarist of Hot Chip, was DJing and we had a solid hour-long dance party. Beers were going down, Arcade Fire’s drummer was snapping photos, a soul train line was formed with LCD showing great moves and Arcade Fire being what I can only describe as Canadianly awkward. My brother and Nancy even ended up making out for a bit. It was an insanely fun night.

RUNNER-UP: Ashley Schuyler

Ashley Schuyler and Collin, her friend of eight years, finally fell for each other when she introduced him to LCD SOUNDSYSTEM at Coachella. Though they’ve been together for two years now, they’re currently living on separate coasts and are about to be even further apart when Schuyler moves to Uganda this summer. She entered the contest in hopes to send Collin to New York.

Schuyler on experiencing Coachella with Collin: Dancing on the open grass, under the swaying palm trees, in the perfect desert air, surrounded by the happiness and bliss that only Coachella can bring, I fell in love. Head-over-heels, pulling-my-hair-out, out-of-my-cynical-comfort-zone in love. There’s something about LCD Soundsystem’s music that moves you, in an unspeakable way—not only to dance your booty off, but to achieve a state of pure satisfaction and epic happiness, and I couldn’t have asked for a better person to share that with than my soul mate.

RUNNER-UP: Eric Eikholt

Eric Eikholt first got into LCD SOUNDSYSTEM when his friend Jack played him “Losing My Edge”—LCD’s albums quickly became the “bump/shots/toke-taking anthems” for him and his friends. Eventually the boys cleaned up their acts, graduated from film school in Ohio, and now Eikholt lives on Jack’s couch in LA. Eikholt entered in order to thank Jack for his friendship.

Eikholt’s thoughts when he first heard “Losing My Edge”: But as I listened to it and got caught up in the lyrics, I had that rare feeling where you sincerely think someone is singing just for you. That they’re describing exactly where you’re at because they’ve been there, and that they’re giving you a desperate little slice of hope to cling to so that you can claw your way out from under. For the first time in a long time, I felt like there was a way out of the shitty place I had trapped myself in.

Congratulations to the winners, and thanks to everyone who entered! Even though the contest is over, we’d still love to hear your stories. Keeping sending them in to SHUTUP@thecreatorsproject.com

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