- With a reported 20% of Norway's population attending music festivals every year, you would expect the capital to have a glut of quality electronic music pickings for the long summer days. You'd be wrong. While electronic acts are well-catered for by the club program of Øya Festival (a predominantly indie affair by day) and some interesting experimental gatherings, there is very little in the way of a dedicated electronic line-up accessible to over- and underground revelers such as those found in Bergen or Stavanger.
One of Oslo's newest festivals, however, appears to be aiming to change that. Oslo Live melds credible hip-hop and rock acts with big name headliners such as Crystal Castles, Scissors Sisters and A-Trak along with a rich underbelly of underground performers such as DJ Harvey, Pantha du Prince, Levon Vincent, Matias Aguayo and Ikonika. While the outdoor festival site sat ominously exposed to the elements during the day, the party continued by night at a selection of appointed clubs (The Villa, Bla and other late night music spots such as Fisk Og Vilt). Things started slowly at the festival site on Thursday in no small part due to the incessant peppering of light rain (and an umbrella ban welcoming you at the entrance).
Thankfully, for the few in attendance, a tight-knit crowd managed to snuggle together at Prins Thomas's Full Pupp stage and show some support for Matias Aguayo's warming rainbow of electro Latin riddims. Together with his band of merry Comemers, Aguayo's performance was full of energy, humility and humor—the perfect tonic for a damp afternoon outdoors. As the cumbia and "vamos a vailar" calls rolled out so too did the sun. But just when things were looking up, the sound of someone driving a noisy vacuum into a wall of pots and pans warbled throughout the field. Drop The Lime was dropping his particular mash of bass and, in the process, rendered Pantha Du Prince's simultaneous set at the Full Pupp stage impossible to fully appreciate.
Subtle textures were left to sink after that, as acts like Breakbot and A-Trak hammered out glitchy and occasionally funky electro chops to the delight of the youthful audience. Mungolian Jet Set brought things down to an entertaining cruise tempo which led nicely into the theatrics of Crystal Castles' Alice Glass. Trendy cliche or not, Crystal Castles music stands apart from their electro peers, and their performance here was not to be sniffed at.
Harvey and Prins Thomas enjoying the scene at Oslo Live.
Friday night at Blå was perhaps the most anticipated act of the festival program: the return of DJ Harvey, a man revered by Norway's current disco glitterati. His last gig in the city—nearly ten years ago—had been spoken of in folkloric terms. Joining him were eclectic Spanish mixer Chelis and Norwegian skwee honcho Kaptein Melkeveien who paired up to play the smaller 2nd room. Despite the energetic mix of grime and other bass mutations from Chelis and some heavy-hitting skwee interludes from Melkeveien, most were packed into the main room at Bla, soaking up the Harvey-charged vibes as his journey of eclecticism took in any anything and everything kinetic. Even Prins Thomas started busting a groove to the side of the focused but playful Harvey.
Over at The Villa it was house music all night long with Underground Quality's Levon Vincent in town. One of the best sets, however, came from a local: G-Ha is so much a staple member of Oslo's Sunkissed club night that his talents as a DJ are often forgotten. He warmed up the floor perfectly for Vincent, who kept the techno references light and, in the process, gripped the floor.
Catching some of the choice acts during Oslo Live, it was apparent how much place seems to influence an artist's output—from the warm South American jig of Matias Aguayo & his Band to the hyper-coloured sunsoaked waves of Harvey's all-encompassing set. Perhaps the act most emblematic of this idea, however, was one of Saturday's closing acts. A part of the lauded Hyperdub label and an emerging international producer and DJ in her own right, Ikonika's unique blend of electrified and jagged bass with lush futuristic melodies sets her productions apart. Taking over at The Villa from a less-than-memorable warm-up DJ set than the previous night, Ikonika set to work on a journey which left many dripping with sweat. Taking in dubstep, electro, juke house, techno and other bass incarnations, it sat head-to-head in its eclecticism and artistry with Harvey.
Oslo Live served up a well-curated festival experience. That said, while the festival site looked promising, with Mother Nature conspiring against them and some sound clashes between stages, there is plenty to improve upon for its fourth edition next year. Like many in Oslo and Norway, I hope it gets the chance to do so.
Photo credit
Tommyfoto