Sasha & James Zabiela – Beirut 2010 – Videos
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMJua4kDgG0
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UedD6ADWcvo
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMPRfREaIm0
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvztt23mh4w
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISI716jS3EU
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4xwSDpGbm8
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmwCsKwYAFA
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HIvjsYnsuU
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-UAlCvGDIA
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inRKw7RoaUE
The return of Plastikman
Richie Hawtin can’t be summed up in a few words nor placed in one category. His imagination and creativity have proven to be without limits. Everything he does has an “un-seen” feeling to it, whether as a solo act, or along his M-NUS crew, it’s always surprising and challenging to live his events.
Yesterday was no exception with the revival of Plastikman. The event was sold out, which meant 10000 people were going to be there. Paris was the 3rd date of the tour and the rendez-vous mobilized French fans as well as many European ones, from UK, Holland and Germany. Time was slow until doors opened at 11pm and everyone got informed via the SYNK application that Plastikman wouldn’t start before 3.10am.
The wait was worth it though and it was mind blowing as expected. The stage was a huge LED screen in a form of a cage which broadcast the visuals. The shape was smart since all the crowd could equally see everything so no one would be marginalized.
The show was mainly visual for my part, since I went there without ever listening to a Plastikman record. Yeah you heard me, I only watched a Richie interview reviewing his career and talking about it. The music was very avant guardiste if you put it back in its right timeline, and I was very happy to witness the evolution of techno music till what we produce today. Sure the records have been re-adapted for the occasion but the essence of Plastikman was there.
Back to the visuals, it really made the music more interesting, as giving it another dimension. Every record was in the perfect harmony with its visual counterpart. Every track talked to the crowd, as if you’d see music alive, the way your brain processes it, well it was there on screen. It was dark, complex and psychedalic at times, very deep at others. Colors ranging from the majestic white to deep red. The SYNK app was fun, I couldn’t use it all the time since it drained my phone’s battery.
The show was an hour or so long, enough to make you go crazy I guess 
Marc Houle, Magda and Troy were in charge of the opening and closing sets, nothing to say about that since they are solid DJs and do great jobs all together. The M-NUS crew showed again that they can make crazy ideas come true with lots of practice, trial and errors (i.e. Contakt shows) and team work.
Overall the experience was quite trippy and I hope that the Richie crew will make a DVD out of it. I have a sure bet on that. Future events are posted on Plastikman’s websites, have fun if you’ll be around.
Richie always beleived in sharing experiences with his crowd over his gigs and he undoubtedly learned a lot from his “Contakt” tour. Plastikman is no exception.
Making Contakt, the documentary
Making Contakt is a documentary DVD starring Richie Hawtin and his M-NUS crew throughout a series of concept gigs that happened in 2009. The idea behind the “Contakt” shows was to create a yet unseen experience out of a gig. The experience was 3 dimensional : One visual, second musical and third physical since the crowd interacted before and after every party.
The musical experience in Contakt showcased all the M-NUS crew live on stage. That is, Richie, Magdra, Troy Pierce with live supports from Marc Houle, Heartthrob & Gaiser. This was made possible with the creation of a unique (and complex) DJ setup that first surprised the hell out of me. It took me 5 minutes to emerge from the setup presentation and was thinking, damn that can open up so many possibilities while bringing up many questions on how can this be real ?
Multitasking as a DJ is a bit of a hassle, even with advanced gears and “Richie’s oh-so-famous sync macros ”. Yet concentration is a must to play a logical track’s progression and keep up with the transitions. Details weren’t given on that part. All we know is that the team worked hard to be on the same page and a huge respect goes to them. Who said computer assisted DJing was an easy task ?
Another interesting aspect was the visual one. Richie wanted it to be a Web2.0 like gig, live SMS messages written on the LCD screens, live webcam feeds to the audience, to sum it up, a live experience on and off stage.
The documentary narrates the unique experience of this crazy adventure. The concept’s risks were way too high, Richie’s ambitions were extremely high (As usual right ? ) but in the end it worked. There were flaws and there were successes and this is the beauty of it all.
I loved seeing all the sides of the production, it’s a melting pot between a behind the scenes, a movie and a documentary. You just don’t want it to end and once its over, you just want to replay the DVD.
The DVD comes with a CD of the soundtrack, most of the tracks are the M-NUS classics that you might have heard over a Richie or Contakt set if you attended any (Lucky you if you did).
The world needs people like Richie Hawtin, audacious, experimental and willing to take the experience further from what it is today. Some might not like him, for his personality or for his music style. But it’s undeniable how his presence affected the scene and how we mix music today. Digital DJing is good because it opens up possibilities, it opens up creativity, it makes you concentrate on more essential things and who knows, tomorrow you’ll be 3 on stage rocking the place down
You can buy the DVD from Amazon or M-NUS’ website.
Cheerz
Porcupine Tree – The Incident – Album Review
[Rating:5/5]
Last monday, while trying to figure out what to play on my CD Player, a sentence popped up in my head and it was “The sky moves sideways”. I wondered still for 5 seconds processing this sentence and then “Porcupine Tree” was the answer. It has been a while since I haven’t run those CDs near any player. So I grabbed Signify, one of my favorite progressive rock albums and enjoyed the trip from start to finish, looping on the go. Then I decided to analyze another album, and there was “The Incident”.
The Incident, PT’s 10th album, comes as a double concept album. The band describes it as a vaguely surreal song about beginnings and endings, and feelings; “after it, things will never be the same”. Critics claimed it would refer as being a musical turning point in Porcupine’s music style.
While we’re at it, let’s see what this album has to reveal.
CD one hits you, pretty straight into the situation from the first seconds as the Occam’s Razor starts with a heavy distorted theme. The latter is later exposed directly and indirectly throughout the future tracks “Degree zero of liberty” to state the most obvious. CD1 is heavily charged with “Pink Floyd” influence : Similar guitar sounds, guitar slides and induced delays mainly referring to “Animals” and “Dark Side of the Moon” and “The Wall“. Don’t be surprised to hear typical drum breaks, similarities in solo progressions, and glitchy electronics in some tracks. Those similarities didn’t bother me, but rather made me quite happy to hear them transformed into something new. Classics are guiding lines, so why not use them.
The major positive change in my point of view is the introduction of trip hop to progressive.
“The blind house” reminded me of a Danish band named Carpark North, too many memories popped back when listening to this song. Then comes “Kneel and disconnect”, a dramatic piano song, with dramatic vocals, such a goose-bumping song. I will remain speechless on “Drawing the line” with its oriental trumpet/sax intro. “The Incident” 6th track, is a living example of the direction PT is taking, as it’s dropping a Massive Attack like sound. Spoken reverberated sentences over an electronic trip hop beat. Nonetheless, the heavy theme comes back in the middle of the song, reminding that PT isn’t far away. This track is by far, another favorite. “Time flies” is a big hello to Pink Floyd’s animals yet with weird lyrics, “Born in 67, the year of Sgt Pepper”, but I love it because yes “time flies, and the best thing that we can do, is take the things that come to us”. The rest goes gradually less heavier into a more mellow and breezy like atmosphere.
With this album, you can feel that progressive reached another state. Every song is perfectly crafted since you can feel every part coming to life. It’s definitely a true fascination to me, how music genius works to create such epic albums. Every instrument makes you feel closer to the action and the story behind it. The sound rendering is just amazing. Producers worked hard on it, there’s no glitch in any sound, layered instruments take the perfect amount of spectrum. No instrument is left behind, the care for detail makes the ensemble come to life enhancing the experience.
CD two is composed of 4 concept tracks revealing the undeniable genius of PT. Every track is another world unfolded in front of us. There’s classic progressive buildups in the first track, Massive Attack’s presence in the second, dramatic and genius keyboards in the 3rd and a great progressive ballad in “Remember me lover”. I called it a ballad because it has this specific ballad drums sound in the chorus. Nonetheless, heaviness is here!
So here we are in front of an epic album, recommended to every fan of progressive rock. You’ll find melodic buildups as well as complex arrangements, you’ll find dramatic passages as well as heavy adventurous waters. If you’re a trip hop fan, you’ll get your treat too. I can’t deny that there are major influences, at least they are clear and connoisseurs will be happy to hear familiar riffs. I know I was!
So go and grab a copy of it, and if you’re in the US, you can still catch Porcupine on their Tour.
All information on www.porcupinetree.com
Artist of the week – Tracklist
I’d like to thank everyone who tuned in for my Artist of the Week show on FriskyRadio.
The set was a hard one to prepare since my gear was literally dying while recording it. My mixer is now resting in peace as we speak and its replacement is coming soon.
I just wanted to add some comments about the set. I tried melting many worlds with the tracklist that I played, a deep atmospheric, progressive one, techy entracte and a rock part.
My biggest discovery was “The Swallow” produced by French based producer Nhar. I first heard it on a set *Microlove 3 – All the words I never told you* by my friends G! & Special_Kase . “The Swallow” is a must have for all DJs . Props go to Kassey Voorn for Neptune and Elegant Universe for Tayrona (Both of them are great producers that I follow closely). Komytea’s remix comes with a killer “Komytea-like” bassline that just rips it off, guaranty to make your dancefloor go nuts. Eelke’s “The way that you are” is just an amazing production, with a very present Rock vibe to it. I love how the distorted guitar solo is built up with a dramatic change in chords. Also props to Fady Ferraye’s remix of “Lemuria”, mashing up “Ya Leil”, an oriental classic into the tune.
I couldn’t skip playing Gui Boratto’s “Paradise Circus” remix, since I am a big fan of Massive Attack and Depeche Mode’s Wrong that closed Sasha’s gig in Beirut back in August ’09.
Again, Props to all producers for their fantastic tracks. Without them the show wouldn’t have been the same
Support them and BUY THEIR TRACKS
01- Massive Attack – Paradise Circus feat. Hope Sandoval (Gui Boratto Remix) [Virgin UK]
02- Nhar – The Swallow (Original mix) [Meerestief]
03- Pacco & Ruby B – Lemuria (Fady Ferraye remix) [Particles]
04- EDX – Party Of Politics (Pete Heller Remix) [Toolroom records]
05- Kassey Voorn – Neptune – Original Mix [Lowbit]
06- Alter Breed – Midnight (Andrea Bertolini Remix) [Tribal vision records]
07- Elegant Universe – Tayrona (Original mix) [Baroque Digital]
08- 16 Bit Lolitas – Smoke Me Away (Original mix) [microCastle]
09- Ray Costa – Pulsar (Chris Feilberg Remix) [Room 69]
10- Maxi Valvona – Revolve (Komytea remix) [microCastle]
11- Kay-D – Fruitful Love (Original Mix) [mistiquemusic]
12- RPO – Idea [Plusquam Records]
13- Eelke Kleijn – The way that you are [Outside the box music]
14- Depeche mode – Wrong (Thin White Duke remix) [Mute records]
15- Chuck Lepley – 6 Days feat Cajardo Un (Original) [Phrunky Recordings]
16- Klartraum – Phantomkatzen (Original mix) [Darkroom dubs]
17- Sasha & Ray Lamontagne – Eclipse [emFire]
18- Seph Vier – Cocktail (Original mix) [BIT Records Mexico]
19- Nhar – Quandaries (Original mix) [Meerestief]
You can download my set right now on FriskyRadio’s Subscription page.
The direct download link will be available in a week on my site.
Thanks again for your support and I hope to see you very soon with a new set