The path of music evolution is never straight, god forbid. Curveballs, odd combinations and juxtapositions feed the rich variability of production, fuel the creativity of producers, and aggravate and agitate listeners toward new territory. Artists this evening cross-pollinate and fertilize, expanding their reach and deepening their productions with the increased richness that comes with drawing new and unexpected connections. Get carried away by a program that straddles powerful club and textured home listening, connects experimental and pop, electro and rock, classic and futuristic, exploits contrast, digs-up unexpected links and builds spontaneous bridges into the unforeseen.
Compare the rich and layered archaeological sounds of Andrea Sartori’s 2007 debut album with his dense, textured four to the floor live sets for a study in unexpected transference. Another surprise from Persona Records, the imprint run by nineties Tresor stalwart Stewart Walker that consistently throws brave curveballs into the fray.
Parisian guardian of eclecticism, Joakim Bouaziz, founder of the eclectic Tigersushi label offers a set of punked-up house with his live band, the Ectoplasms, followed by Mouse On Mars, one of Germany’s biggest music exports. After starting out as an avant-garde, philosophical investigation into electronic music, for a dozen years, Jan St. Werner and Andi Toma have pursued a path that proves intelligence and playfulness are not mutually exclusive, with audacious experimentation and pop sensibility coming together in a series of albums, remixes and performances articulated with an intent to confound expectations. From the ambience of 1994’s Vulvaland to the ever heavier beats and increasingly incorporated hookey vocals and drumming of longtime collaborator Dodo Nkishi, Mouse on Mars have crafted a distinctive sound while constantly innovating in unforeseen directions.
Emerging from the ashes of Funkstörung, Chris de Luca is forging a fertile new partnership with Phon.o; the pair drawn together by their unlikely mutual love of booty bass. Tonight’s performance with US MCs We Boss is an untested and potentially explosive combination. Maverick French electro giant Vitalic follows next with a slippery set of what he does best. Pitching from ambient epic to heavy beats to pop and disco, Vitalic ducks and dodges through the many influences and incarnations that have shaped his sets.
Obscure New Zealander DJ TV DiSKO rounds out the night with the best in nameless, weird and undiscovered treasures. Visuals through the whole evening are by Telematique and U-matic, whose elegant combinations of abstract and figurative are transfixing.
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