Rhythmism.comG, B, M - Sonar Review & September Preview
by buckbbuck
Thursday, Aug 30th 2007, 11:03 AM
THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE MESSY - SONAR REVIEW
Ahh Barcelona! If there is a city almost as cool and fun as NYC, BCN has got to be close. This week we look back on the Sonar festival and more.
THE GOOD - SONAR REVIEW
Sonar was very quick with only a few days of action we nevertheless still managed to indulge in a fair amount of musical goodness. So without further delay... The Sonar Review.
Thursday was arrival day which meant exploring, standing in line for Sonar Passes, and getting a quick look at Sonar Dia. The highlights were the Magic Exhibition: lots of clever and cool "magical" installations ideal for spliffing out and blowing your mind.
All we caught musically was a peek into the RedBull Lounge where a pair of Brit rappers were rocking the side room slinging mad funky lyrics.
Thursday night we bypassed the Gala opening and hit the clubs.
Up first was Club 4 at City Hall with Christian Smith, Marco Carola, Misstress Barbara and more. The line upon arrival was all the way down the block, but with the help of Christian Smith's original Tronic NYC door-girl we managed to slide on past without a problem. Inside Christian laid down lots of heavy funk and kept the crowd moving before passing the reins on to Misstress who took things from there.
With so much more to do we had to keep moving on to RazzMatazz. The door situation there wasn't as ideal but when you find a bottle of vodka in the queue the guestlist line doesn't seem so long. Soon enough we were in the giant multiple room club running around from one raging room to another. Tiga was on the main floor with a rabid crowd loving the electro bangers he was dishing out. It was upstairs in The Loft however where we spent most of the evening with Get Physical's MANDY. The hottest action though which we only caught a bit of was Tiefschwartz who probably had the set of the night in back room. Since the last bad bit of sleep we had was in an uncomfortable airplane seat 6 miles above the Atlantic, our choice of skipping the afterparty at the beach was probably pretty wise.
Friday night was of course the ultimate highlight. Beastie Boys. We headed to Sonar Nit early, to find the giant Sonar night grounds almost empty. Gigantic rooms with ridiculous sound systems, killer lights, and absolutely no people: I thought this festival was supposed to be popular? After wandering around to check out all the huge areas however, the crowds slowly filtered in. If you wanted to be kind one might call the band that played in SonarClub before the Beastie's a Kraftwerk tribute band. But I guess they were playing their own stuff so that might not be accurate. Regardless, I think the 3 guys in white standing at their computers has been done, and probably better, so we skipped over to another room to wait for the main event.
In SonarLab, besides the insane and dangerous bumper cars (we saw at least one bloody victim), Fruity techno drinks (I'll have a Jeff Mills to go please), and the "Richie Hawtin of Crepes" (replete with the glasses and shaved head) who masterfully ran 5 skillets delivering the tastiest chocolate crepes around, was also DJ Dubbyman who played some super dope reggae-flavored deep house that probably helped him become my favorite DJ of the festival.
Back in the main room early enough to snag a spot in the front row, it was the Beastie's up close and personal (or at least Ad Roc since the wide stage meant Mike D and MCA were a bit further away). The performance was "wicked good" however. All the big hits were brought out including "Sure Shot", "Intergalactic", "Bodymovin" and more. They even dropped a fair amount of their experimental funk and some of their old Punk numbers which managed to spaz out the sweaty Spaniards behind us who would trigger the requisite mosh pit whenever the Boys went punk.
They closed with the standard "Sabotage" ode to George Bush which of course rocked and then cleared out for rest of the great talent that they reminded us were to follow.
The next exciting thing came Saturday afternoon as Electronic Beats magazine had a majorly classy day party on the roof of the stylish Hotel B in the glorious Placa De Espana. With DJs Tini and Martin Scharrenbroich and a steady flow of Cava, it was class all the way in a beautiful setting.
Back to Sonar day a little later we caught bits and pieces of a few other acts including Junior Boys whose live performance was a nice way to round out the afternoon.
Sonar Night on Saturday was the live band, Mathew Dear's Big Hands. The music was fantastic as to be expected from Matthew Dear, however I was kind of uncertain about the whole rockstar performance, although the tambourine tossing was a nice touch. The band played quite well too, dropping a load of hits from Asa Breed as well as classic Mathew Dear to close it out with "Dog Days". Without a doubt, the Sonar experience was excellent all around.
THE BAD - PS1
Did I just say that? No, no, no. PS1 is not in any way shape or form bad. I said it before and I'll say it again, PS1 is the best party in NY. On any given day it has the potential to be the best party in the world. Just look at each year's parties that have rated as the best of the best: Richie Hawtin, Body & Soul, Francois K & Derrick May, Martinez Brothers and Dennis Ferrer a few weeks ago. Without a doubt PS1 can deliver.
However... it pains me just a little bit, like maybe it pains the parents of a brilliant but troubled youth, or how it pains a sports fan when their hero is in a slump, that the musical lineup at PS1 this year is not as exciting as I feel it really could be.
What I don't understand is why exactly they choose the artist that they choose. I am guessing that they want to go for a little more of a live music or performer angle, or want to avoid the static-ness of "just a DJ". But no matter what your tastes or opinions, it is obviously a DJ-centric party. So whatever the demands or drawbacks of that basic premise are, if you must have DJs and they are going to be the centerpiece, then they should get the most exciting and diverse group of DJs available. As PS1 is such a great event, it should certainly not be hard either to attract the amazing, cutting edge artists that will transcend the admittedly static format of turntables and beat-matching.
Now in my mind, the Martinez Brothers are an absolute slam dunk, perfect choice. They are as perfect as Body & Soul or Doc Martin; funky summery, fun and NEW. Of course not everyone loves straight up House music (even though they should), and they need to cater to the rock crowd, the hipsters, the hip-hoppers and all the other trendy folks in this great city. My main problem is that it does not really feel like it is doing that. It is certainly not the quality of the acts that is lacking, because I am sure all these artists are top talents and will be dope. But rather, the variety and excitement are lacking. It all seems to be the same type of hipster electro disco rock. The bad then is simply this... where is the underground hip-hop, where is the techno, where is the drum and bass, where is the breakbeat, and frankly, while you are at it, I can always use more uplifting house at PS1.
As always, we like to help here at The Good, The Bad, The Messy so here are a few quick ideas for next year:
Bent, Doc Martin, Gilles Peterson, Jose Padilla, Mathew Dear, LTJ Bukem, Photek, Evil Nine, Afrika Bambatta, 2 Many DJs, Plump DJs, Ulrich Schnauss... and I could go on. Until then though, I'm off to go enjoy this year's PS1.
THE MESSY - BACK IN THE CITY
Upon return from Sonar it was nice to find that the party schedule had ratcheted up a few levels insuring continued mediocre performance at work. The highlights were back to back birthday's starting with Derek Plaslaiko's B-Day bash at The Bunker featuring him and Josh Wink. Lots of messiness was delivered as well as some dope sets by Josh and Derrick including some old school hip-hop to close out the party. The next evening was even more fun with Steve Porter's Birthday Bash at Sullivan Room followed by a little Porterhouse at Porter's House afterhours. Other events were Simian Mobile Disco at Studio B in Williamsburg which had bunch of really good tracks dropped by the residents JDH and Dave P, some intense lights in the live show, a Simian performance that was probably a little too big for the room, and more headbands and mustaches than a 1970s racquetball tournament.
Looking forward, there are more boat parties coming our way. We missed what was by all accounts a fantastic Blk|Mrkt vs Wolf & Lamb boatparty a few weeks ago, but Taimur & Fahad wiggle their way back to the high seas on September 2nd with Three and Terry Francis. Followed by the rescheduled Danny Tenaglia Be Yourself boat party on September 5th - just make sure you've been vaccinated against the Chicken Pox. Other certain to be good times include Derrick May's return to Sullivan Room on September 8th for Basic NYC, M.A.N.D.Y. at Shelter the same evening, The Chemical Brothers at Hammerstein Ballroom on September 21st and again at hipster mega-venue McCarren Pool in Brooklyn with special guests Ladytron on September 22nd, and on the weekend of September 14-16th Pacha brings John Digweed back, Underworld hits Central Park with James Holden, Pig & Dan return to Sullivan Room, Miguel Migs brings the funk to Rebel, Danny Tenaglia and Lee Burridge work it at - get this - Webster Hall with a new-and-improved Integral Sound system that might just be worth checking out, and if I miss Marques Wyatt again at Cielo I don't know what I'm gonna do.
Ahh Barcelona! If there is a city almost as cool and fun as NYC, BCN has got to be close. This week we look back on the Sonar festival and more.
THE GOOD - SONAR REVIEW
Sonar was very quick with only a few days of action we nevertheless still managed to indulge in a fair amount of musical goodness. So without further delay... The Sonar Review.
Thursday was arrival day which meant exploring, standing in line for Sonar Passes, and getting a quick look at Sonar Dia. The highlights were the Magic Exhibition: lots of clever and cool "magical" installations ideal for spliffing out and blowing your mind.
All we caught musically was a peek into the RedBull Lounge where a pair of Brit rappers were rocking the side room slinging mad funky lyrics.
Thursday night we bypassed the Gala opening and hit the clubs.
Up first was Club 4 at City Hall with Christian Smith, Marco Carola, Misstress Barbara and more. The line upon arrival was all the way down the block, but with the help of Christian Smith's original Tronic NYC door-girl we managed to slide on past without a problem. Inside Christian laid down lots of heavy funk and kept the crowd moving before passing the reins on to Misstress who took things from there.
With so much more to do we had to keep moving on to RazzMatazz. The door situation there wasn't as ideal but when you find a bottle of vodka in the queue the guestlist line doesn't seem so long. Soon enough we were in the giant multiple room club running around from one raging room to another. Tiga was on the main floor with a rabid crowd loving the electro bangers he was dishing out. It was upstairs in The Loft however where we spent most of the evening with Get Physical's MANDY. The hottest action though which we only caught a bit of was Tiefschwartz who probably had the set of the night in back room. Since the last bad bit of sleep we had was in an uncomfortable airplane seat 6 miles above the Atlantic, our choice of skipping the afterparty at the beach was probably pretty wise.
Friday night was of course the ultimate highlight. Beastie Boys. We headed to Sonar Nit early, to find the giant Sonar night grounds almost empty. Gigantic rooms with ridiculous sound systems, killer lights, and absolutely no people: I thought this festival was supposed to be popular? After wandering around to check out all the huge areas however, the crowds slowly filtered in. If you wanted to be kind one might call the band that played in SonarClub before the Beastie's a Kraftwerk tribute band. But I guess they were playing their own stuff so that might not be accurate. Regardless, I think the 3 guys in white standing at their computers has been done, and probably better, so we skipped over to another room to wait for the main event.
In SonarLab, besides the insane and dangerous bumper cars (we saw at least one bloody victim), Fruity techno drinks (I'll have a Jeff Mills to go please), and the "Richie Hawtin of Crepes" (replete with the glasses and shaved head) who masterfully ran 5 skillets delivering the tastiest chocolate crepes around, was also DJ Dubbyman who played some super dope reggae-flavored deep house that probably helped him become my favorite DJ of the festival.
Back in the main room early enough to snag a spot in the front row, it was the Beastie's up close and personal (or at least Ad Roc since the wide stage meant Mike D and MCA were a bit further away). The performance was "wicked good" however. All the big hits were brought out including "Sure Shot", "Intergalactic", "Bodymovin" and more. They even dropped a fair amount of their experimental funk and some of their old Punk numbers which managed to spaz out the sweaty Spaniards behind us who would trigger the requisite mosh pit whenever the Boys went punk.
They closed with the standard "Sabotage" ode to George Bush which of course rocked and then cleared out for rest of the great talent that they reminded us were to follow.
The next exciting thing came Saturday afternoon as Electronic Beats magazine had a majorly classy day party on the roof of the stylish Hotel B in the glorious Placa De Espana. With DJs Tini and Martin Scharrenbroich and a steady flow of Cava, it was class all the way in a beautiful setting.
Back to Sonar day a little later we caught bits and pieces of a few other acts including Junior Boys whose live performance was a nice way to round out the afternoon.
Sonar Night on Saturday was the live band, Mathew Dear's Big Hands. The music was fantastic as to be expected from Matthew Dear, however I was kind of uncertain about the whole rockstar performance, although the tambourine tossing was a nice touch. The band played quite well too, dropping a load of hits from Asa Breed as well as classic Mathew Dear to close it out with "Dog Days". Without a doubt, the Sonar experience was excellent all around.
THE BAD - PS1
Did I just say that? No, no, no. PS1 is not in any way shape or form bad. I said it before and I'll say it again, PS1 is the best party in NY. On any given day it has the potential to be the best party in the world. Just look at each year's parties that have rated as the best of the best: Richie Hawtin, Body & Soul, Francois K & Derrick May, Martinez Brothers and Dennis Ferrer a few weeks ago. Without a doubt PS1 can deliver.
However... it pains me just a little bit, like maybe it pains the parents of a brilliant but troubled youth, or how it pains a sports fan when their hero is in a slump, that the musical lineup at PS1 this year is not as exciting as I feel it really could be.
What I don't understand is why exactly they choose the artist that they choose. I am guessing that they want to go for a little more of a live music or performer angle, or want to avoid the static-ness of "just a DJ". But no matter what your tastes or opinions, it is obviously a DJ-centric party. So whatever the demands or drawbacks of that basic premise are, if you must have DJs and they are going to be the centerpiece, then they should get the most exciting and diverse group of DJs available. As PS1 is such a great event, it should certainly not be hard either to attract the amazing, cutting edge artists that will transcend the admittedly static format of turntables and beat-matching.
Now in my mind, the Martinez Brothers are an absolute slam dunk, perfect choice. They are as perfect as Body & Soul or Doc Martin; funky summery, fun and NEW. Of course not everyone loves straight up House music (even though they should), and they need to cater to the rock crowd, the hipsters, the hip-hoppers and all the other trendy folks in this great city. My main problem is that it does not really feel like it is doing that. It is certainly not the quality of the acts that is lacking, because I am sure all these artists are top talents and will be dope. But rather, the variety and excitement are lacking. It all seems to be the same type of hipster electro disco rock. The bad then is simply this... where is the underground hip-hop, where is the techno, where is the drum and bass, where is the breakbeat, and frankly, while you are at it, I can always use more uplifting house at PS1.
As always, we like to help here at The Good, The Bad, The Messy so here are a few quick ideas for next year:
Bent, Doc Martin, Gilles Peterson, Jose Padilla, Mathew Dear, LTJ Bukem, Photek, Evil Nine, Afrika Bambatta, 2 Many DJs, Plump DJs, Ulrich Schnauss... and I could go on. Until then though, I'm off to go enjoy this year's PS1.
THE MESSY - BACK IN THE CITY
Upon return from Sonar it was nice to find that the party schedule had ratcheted up a few levels insuring continued mediocre performance at work. The highlights were back to back birthday's starting with Derek Plaslaiko's B-Day bash at The Bunker featuring him and Josh Wink. Lots of messiness was delivered as well as some dope sets by Josh and Derrick including some old school hip-hop to close out the party. The next evening was even more fun with Steve Porter's Birthday Bash at Sullivan Room followed by a little Porterhouse at Porter's House afterhours. Other events were Simian Mobile Disco at Studio B in Williamsburg which had bunch of really good tracks dropped by the residents JDH and Dave P, some intense lights in the live show, a Simian performance that was probably a little too big for the room, and more headbands and mustaches than a 1970s racquetball tournament.
Looking forward, there are more boat parties coming our way. We missed what was by all accounts a fantastic Blk|Mrkt vs Wolf & Lamb boatparty a few weeks ago, but Taimur & Fahad wiggle their way back to the high seas on September 2nd with Three and Terry Francis. Followed by the rescheduled Danny Tenaglia Be Yourself boat party on September 5th - just make sure you've been vaccinated against the Chicken Pox. Other certain to be good times include Derrick May's return to Sullivan Room on September 8th for Basic NYC, M.A.N.D.Y. at Shelter the same evening, The Chemical Brothers at Hammerstein Ballroom on September 21st and again at hipster mega-venue McCarren Pool in Brooklyn with special guests Ladytron on September 22nd, and on the weekend of September 14-16th Pacha brings John Digweed back, Underworld hits Central Park with James Holden, Pig & Dan return to Sullivan Room, Miguel Migs brings the funk to Rebel, Danny Tenaglia and Lee Burridge work it at - get this - Webster Hall with a new-and-improved Integral Sound system that might just be worth checking out, and if I miss Marques Wyatt again at Cielo I don't know what I'm gonna do.
