Elevate Festival 2010

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  • On a weekend that also boasted the Amsterdam Dance Event and Unsound, European dance music fiends may have easily missed Elevate, nestled away in the less obvious musical destination of Graz, Austria. Six years in and steadily growing in size, Elevate still retains the feeling of an intimate gathering of like-minded people, no doubt a reflection of the underground music that dominates the line-up. This intimacy is helped by the way in which organisers Roland Oreski and Filipa Cicin-Sain run their event, with a desire to increase social conscience as much as have a great party. Running alongside the musical events, a rich programme of discussions and workshops tackled left-leaning political matters, affirming the belief that if the people that care pull together a better world could be made for all. The venue that houses most of the action at Elevate has a significant role in making the event such a special one. The Dom Im Berg is a network of caves burrowed into the side of the Schlossberg, a picture-postcard hill that looms over the centre of Graz. The fact that such a tourist centrepiece can be handed over to leftfield electronic music for five days is a blessing that even the most road-hardened artists were bowled over by. Photo credit: Johanna Lamprecht Starting gently on the Thursday, a forum on climate change gave way to a selection of downtempo acts including local shoegazers Over At The Stars. The undisputed highlight though were Kompakt's new favourite sons Walls, whose emotive live set gently simmered in a cauldron of analogue hardware and loose-limbed craftsmanship. The Friday saw the festival hit its stride with an all-star cast of cutting edge artists that began with the epic drones of Oneohtrix Point Never's live set. With his hood up and hypnotised by his Juno 60, the dungeon and dry ice setting made the perfect counterpart to an engrossing hour of wraith-like pads and howling synth swells. Photo credit: Uhrturmkasematten Music In the main cave, Mount Kimbie stepped up to the plate to demonstrate how confident they have become in the live arena. A year of solid touring has taught Dominic Maker and Kai Campos how to rock a crowd while still retaining their organic take on dubstep. Pursuit Grooves strutted on stage brimming with Brooklyn swagger. Her vigorous presence was equally matched by sonic flair, smashing her SP 505 and chucking her vocals into a heady mix that took in hip-hop, house and chunky broken beats. Photo credit: Lupi Spuma Providing the DJ entertainment for the evening, Jamie XX and Joy Orbison turned in quite contrasting sets. Jamie quietly slapped down a surefire selection of upfront dubstep (in the broadest sense of the term), seamlessly blended and carefully selected. Joy Orbison however seemed much less comfortable, turning too often to tried-and-tested bangers and getting awkward in the mix. Sandwell District's mastery of techno comes into its own in the live setting, and Regis and Function were clearly enjoying their lengthy stint in the second cave. The only flaw in their otherwise pristine set was the wash of white noise that cropped up at maddeningly regular intervals. Surely it's an obvious move for such skilled technicians? Photo credit: Lupi Spuma The first highlight of Saturday night was Actress, who threw down a subversive blend of mutant techno. The spacious climes of the main cave didn't lend themselves to his more subtle sounds, but it was still enough to draw in all ears present. Meanwhile, in the second room, Girl Unit was warming all present by churning up juke, funky, grimy R&B and a dose of Night Slugs flavoured dubs. Altered Natives followed up, and quaked the rock all around with a bright and passionate mixture of old school house dynamics, broken beat soul and raw, punchy basslines that make his music so vital as party-starting material. Photo credit: Johanna Lamprecht Then it was down to DJ Spinn to educate the masses on the sound of Chicago streets. The crowd's reaction to the alien sounds of juke and footwork proved how much the genres have taken hold in Europe, but even to the uninitiated Spinn was on fire, slamming together all kinds of guttural beats, propelled by a ghetto-tech backbone. With the dust settled and the overwhelming range of great music digested, the lasting impression of Elevate is one of unity. There is something inviting about the premise of the festival, which saw a large portion of the artists stay in Graz for the duration of the weekend. The city itself is certainly an inviting one, but equally important is the way in which the line-up is selected, the noble intentions of the non-musical programming, and the attitude of the people involved. Combine that with the vanguard of electronic musicians and you have a festival that is fast becoming one of the most respected in Europe.
RA