- Minimal techno has become all the rage in electronic dance music these days. One of the key figures at the top of the genre for ages has been Richie Hawtin. Whether playing his own DJ sets, or performing live under his Platikman moniker, Richie has stayed true to his sound.
Although Richie used to call Brooklyn home, he has since moved to Berlin and his visits back to New York are relatively few and far between. I had never seen him play before, as something always seemed to be going on, but this date was one was determined on attending. The folks at Made Event put together a somewhat unlikely pairing as Lee Burridge had the opening duties on the evening. Quite a buzz developed around this evening as soon as the date released to the public. It should be a note to all clubs and producers to try and diversify your nights more and take a chance! I met people from all over the East Coast who came to NYC specifically for this night.
A friend of mine came up from DC and I rendezvoused with her at Bright Bar for a few drinks (hey, can someone fix in the air in there!), and then went over to Spirit. The queue moved quickly, and before I knew it, I was seeing friends I never expected to be there! New York's favorite guest resident, Mr. Burridge, had the room moving well-enough, and playing a great warm-up set. Lee is on the third stop of his "365 Tour," and the city has grown to love him even more. I commend him for keeping the reigns held tightly for his set, but it was almost two and I thought he was a co-headliner. Perhaps I just had the wrong impression of how the night was arranged. However, I just think Lee never really got to become himself. I know that is an abstract thing to say, but if you have ever spent much time around the man, you know how he can really open up. This simply never happened.
Richie stepped behind the decks, got his Ableton and Final Scratch laptops ready, and took over around three. Lee had picked up the tempo a bit toward the end of his set, but the Canadian took things back down again- and that is where things stayed- for the rest of the evening. I have a few friends that are slightly Richie obsessed, and they informed me that he plays the range from either really minimal or a unique brand of driving techno. The former was the order of this evening. I must admit that minimal stuff really does not excite me. In fact, I find it really boring most of the time, but he kept the sounds interesting. No one can doubt that he is one of hell of a skilled DJ. His set had a unique flow and structure to it that had me thinking about it, but not at all interested in dancing. However, I seemed to be in the minority as loads of folks were getting down. As the night wore on Richie was having a blast. He kept smiling and necking the remaining portions of bottles of vodka, then spiking them as if he just scored the winning touchdown at the Super Bowl! I kept holding out to hear Mathew Jonson’s “Marionette,” but alas ‘twas not to be. Not even the shouts from Lee in the middle of the dance floor to "Come on Dickie!" could keep me from departing. I called it a night, well more of a morning, at 7:45 am.
Overall, I had a really good time. Spirit sounded good, the crowd was really friendly, and I got to run around and talk to loads of friends. I just have this feeling that the music missed me somehow. Oh well, I’d still do it again in a heartbeat. That is what defines a proper night out in my book!