After the less than favourable reports from last year's Eastern Electrics bank holiday bash, it was clear that 2009 could go one of two ways. The line-up last year was pretty good and it still managed to flop. (By all accounts: This reviewer wasn't there.) But with the roster once again packed to the gunnels by a fine selection of some of the most respected and cutting edge artists in the scene today, I'm sure I wasn't the only one who still entered with some degree of trepidation.
If you've been to Manchester's Warehouse Project, it'll give you a pretty good idea of what the set-up was like for Eastern Electrics: Cavernous spaces walled in by rough brickwork, with a minimal lighting scheme, and, yes, good ol' Funktion One soundsystems. I'm all for celebrating the roots, but I miss the finely tuned PA's and mind-boggling light shows in clubs like Fabric, which I don't go to anymore because it's too crowded to have fun. The acoustics in Ewer Street Car Park were OK at close quarters, but much of the detail dissipated over longer distances, and the more interesting acts were those sympathetic to the muddiness of the lower ranges and provided aural nutrition elsewhere.
Photo credit: Sam Donnison
Mulletover's own Geddes wasn't quite in tune with this concept, and a very basic kick-and-snares sound made things a bit too generic. Anja Schneider added warbling undercurrents to this, which didn't make it a great deal better. A rare exception occurred when the template was broken with a set of melancholy riffs descending upon the masses, whose appreciation for something to hang on to was clear.
After that, though, the night took off with a vengeance. After passing the RA room a few times, it was clear that Trevor Jackson was doing great things, cracking out destructive snares and tough, tribal basslines in an electro style. But we never really caught much—perhaps one for next time. Matias Aguayo's set was just as fascinating, breaking things down with congas and samba rhythms in 6-8 time. He was also the highlight of the night for my friends, who weren't particular technophiles and found some of the acts to be somewhat standard.
Photo credit: Sam Donnison
Damian Lazarus, similarly, didn't disappoint with a rolling workout. By that point, there was a difficult choice to be made: He was matched up with Ben Klock and Claude VonStroke; however, at about half past five the choice was made for us, as the club began to empty somewhat prematurely, and VonStroke emerged the victor with the other rooms pretty much dead. This included Herr Klock, whose clinical, studious approach, including a bunch of Mike Dehnert records, didn't translate particularly well from the dungeons of Berghain to a small room of about twenty people. Techno's answer to Brian Blessed was a different story, and he reeled 'em off one after another without abating; tough and techy with a mainstream sensibility and strong sense of fun, a great finisher.
Published /
Thu, 03 Sep 2009
| 
|
