- Over the last weekend of May, Time Warp took place for the first time outside of Europe, forming part of the German institution's 20th anniversary celebrations. Argentina was the chosen location—a reflection of Buenos Aires's continued commitment to electronic music. The lineup was impressive, with a decent mix of old favourites (Richie Hawtin, Chris Liebing) and younger blood (The Martinez Brothers, Valentino Kanzyani, Tale Of Us and local boy Barem.) Centro Costa Salguero, a cavernous warehouse space in Palermo, housed the two-day festival.
Kicking off at 9 PM on Friday, May 30th, the atmosphere inside the venue was palpable from the start. In keeping with Time Warp's reputation, production values were high in both rooms, with black drapes and a killer lighting rig giving the spaces a cave-like feel. A host of well-established local names, including London Ground, Jorge Savoretti and Cristobal Paz did a solid job of warming up. Of the headline acts, Barem was first on stage in the club room, shaking the walls with his signature blend of techno and tech house. Paco Osuna followed, upping the pace a few notches. Over the years, the Mindshake boss has developed a close relationship with the Argentinian crowd. Leaving the stage to a thunder of applause, chants and wolf-whistles, Osuna was justly rewarded for his sleek, pounding set. Last up was Loco Dice, whose extended three-hour set replaced Art Department (Johnny White was ill.) The Desolat boss more than made up for the cancellation, cutting and splicing his edgy, drum-heavy tech house with typical aplomb.
Cadenza staple Valentino Kanzyani opened on Saturday with his classy brand of groovy techno. It made for a smooth transition into The Martinez Brothers, who took to blending rough acid cuts with Detroit techno. It was the duo's official debut in Argentina, and they set the mood alight. Next up was Tale Of Us, one of the most highly anticipated acts of the weekend, thanks to their mesmerising set in the ENTER. tent at Creamfields Buenos Aires in November. They didn't disappoint, diligently driving forward with their fusion of dusky grooves and epic melodies. This ended up being a highlight of the festival. Even Richie Hawtin's closing set, despite cultivating a strikingly dark energy in the 15,000-capacity arena, didn't quite have the emotional tug of Tale Of Us' performance.
Time Warp lived up to the hype. Next year, though, it would be nice to see a more varied lineup, one with more acts who rarely make it to Argentina. Still, bar a few sound glitches in the club room, the festival was an impressive feat of production and engineering. The organizers of Time Warp have confirmed they will return to Buenos Aires in 2015. They will be welcomed with open arms.