- In a 2016 article on the rise of all-female DJ collectives, UK techno veteran Paula Temple told The Fader: "Maybe when we reach the point where sidelining, gaslighting, denying, undermining, taking over, reductionism, hostile environments and sexual harassment have disappeared, there would be less of a reason to create all-female projects." As long as this idealised world remains a distant reality, the blend of activism and rave proffered by crews like Copenhagen's Apeiron, London's SIREN and New York's Discwoman will remain as fun as they are necessary.
Discwoman, founded by Frankie Hutchinson, Emma Olson (AKA Umfang) and Christine Tran in 2014, is arguably the best-known of these collectives. What started out as an event series and booking agency now encompasses workshops and a regular party at Brooklyn's Bossa Nova Civic Club. But despite their commendable work so far, a quick scan of most festival lineups, or the comments section under a female DJ's set on Boiler Room will show you that some people are still unwilling to support women in techno. If any of these sceptics had been at last Friday's Discwoman party at Corsica Studios, they might have left the club with a change of heart.
Four headline DJs—Umfang, Volvox, Mama Snake and Tijana T—played extended sets, split between the club's two rooms. In the main space, Umfang opened with 30 minutes of subdued electronics full of subtle details and distorted atmospherics. As she shifted gears, her set took an a furious intensity. Tightly interlocking rhythms gave the impression she was mixing loops rather than full tracks, while eerie melodies shone like dim beacons in the dark. Volvox, who followed at 3:30 AM, was even better. She let her basslines do the talking, fusing them with slamming kicks and nimble acid lines to devastating effect.
In room two, Apeiron's Mama Snake played a melodically diverse set that threw up a few fun surprises—among them Björk's "Joga"—even if it was a little lacking in grit. Tijana T went tougher, keeping a small but dedicated crowd onside with a selection of loose, frenetic techno. The audience seemed unusually diverse and friendly, especially for a techno night. Yes, it's a shame that we live in a world where gendered parties are necessary for showcasing and drawing attention to the wealth of female-identifying and non-binary talent in electronic music. But as long as we do, we couldn't ask for a better—or fiercer—advocate than Discwoman.