- Equation Festival, Vietnam's answer to homely events like Organik, Nachtdigital and Love International, owes its name to a French girl and a Hong Kong boat party. Run by the team behind Equation, these voyages were, by all accounts, spectacular affairs, as free-spirited and headsy as any events in the area. During one particularly inspired session, the girl, who rarely partied, turned to her friends in a state of wonder. "The food, the drinks, the music, the setting—it's the perfect equation!"
Last weekend, the three-day festival returned for the second year to Son Tinh Camp, a charming woodland sprawl located about an hour's drive from Hanoi. The site, dotted with Japanese lanterns and wood-and-rope swings, extended out into Dong Mo Lake, with a number of grassy spits feeding off a dusty central expanse. In the distance, you could make out the faint outline of the Ba Vì mountains, all bluey greys and oranges against the verdant bushes lining the banks below. Swimming was forbidden, but otherwise the 800 or so punters—plus several unfazed dogs—were free to roam. The only semblance of authority I saw all weekend was a youngster in a black-and-white "security" T-shirt performing a one-man balancing act on a see-saw.
The music ran for 24 hours, spread between two main stages—Journey (house) and Universe (techno)—and the cosier Tea Tent, a mass of rugs and cushioned wooden pallets that got going around sunrise. I hit the site after dark on Friday, by which point an earlier torrential downpour had churned some of the dust into sticky mud. At Journey, the Hanoi-based Welsh DJ Johán battled technical difficulties valiantly, forced, for a brief period, to play off just one CDJ. Not that anyone cared—at that stage, few things could have spoiled the early festival buzz. (Bombs like Pryda's "Rymd," possibly the Swede's best-ever track, helped.)
The first excellent set was delivered by Quan, the techno artist currently spearheading Vietnam's burgeoning dance music scene. He performed live using a modular, serving up two hours of writhing rhythms speckled with dynamic melodies and charging basslines. Universe, which sat right by the water's edge, was lit up in bright white lights, its bird-nest décor a visual treat alongside the rich tunes. When he finished, I trekked back over to Journey, via the van doling out endless laughing gas balloons, to catch Samo DJ, who got the crowd grooving with big cuts like Sandy B's "Make The World Go Round (Deep Dish Vocal Mix)" and DHS's "House Of God." The sound at both stages, powered by Funktion-One, was great, though overall I preferred Journey for its in-the-round setup and proximity to the best-stocked bar.
The lighting at night was minimal, so it was only in the overcast haze of Saturday afternoon that I could properly identify Equation's audience. The majority were British or French expats, a mix of young backpackers, bedraggled hippies and residents of Hanoi. There was an East Asian contingent, ravers and industry heads from Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan and further afield, lured in by a lineup heavy on wicked regional talent. Ouissam Mokretar, one of the brains behind the festival, estimated that around 10% of the total crowd were Vietnamese, a number that, though slim, will only rise with the years, as the locals grow more accustomed both to electronic music and culturally unfamiliar practices like camping and partying for three days straight. (Also, most 20-to-30-year-olds still live with their parents, who can take some convincing.) At Savage, the Hanoi club set up by Mokretar and others in 2016, it took the team 18 months to go from all-expat crowds to parties that regularly strike a 50/50 balance.
In that respect, one of the driving forces behind Savage's success is its bookings, which draw generously from East Asia's fast-expanding pool of talent. Indeed, at Equation, most of the regional acts had already played the club, which helped foster the festival's strong community spirit. The atmosphere was at its best during these sets, and never more so than on Saturday evening, when Powder, arguably East Asia's fastest-rising export, bobbed and weaved behind the decks at Journey. Coming after upbeat, soulful sets from Yoshi Nori and Alex From Tokyo, her performance fused light with dark, moving from cosmic deep house through proggier textures and dramatic techno. She eventually came full circle, finishing with the lush tones of Boo Williams' "Fruits Of The Spirit." Jonathan Kusuma, the Indonesian DJ whose dark, chugging style recently caught the eye of Andrew Ryce, also excelled a couple hours later at Universe, though it was Powder's name who kept cropping up in booze-fuelled conversations.
On Sunday, the clouds parted and the sun let it rip. At Journey, couples salsa danced in the dust and puffed on imaginary saxophones as Hong Kong-based Frenchman Sunsiaré toasted the hot weather with hits like Sade's "Smooth Operator." Off to one side, workers from the local events team passed the time by performing audacious acrobatics on a huge swing. The mood, serene yet jubilant, was bolstered by the DJ tasked with bringing it home, Hibiya Line, founder of Savage's Ho Chi Minh City equivalent, The Observatory. He was a classy choice, executing long, tight blends to weave together French hip-hop, jazzy trip-hop and Sleeparchive's remix of "Dem Never Know" by Rhythm & Sound. But just as he was hitting his stride, he was cut off, roughly 90 minutes prematurely, by the venue. With a shrug of the shoulders, he exited the booth and began rolling a cigarette, leaving the bemused crowd to their weak applause.
This disappointing finale, plus a couple minor organizational flaws, was all that stopped Equation from scoring a perfect ten. Otherwise, it was exceptional: the food was fresh and tasty, the drinks strong and cheap, and the crowd insanely friendly—everyone was quick to catch your eye and trade smiles. The sense of freedom was the kind that only comes from throwing festivals in places where there aren't many. And, most importantly, the music was diverse and inspiring, further proof that Vietnam, and East Asia as a whole, is enjoying a truly golden moment.
Photo credit /
Derryography
In that respect, one of the driving forces behind Savage's success is its bookings, which draw generously from East Asia's fast-expanding pool of talent. Indeed, at Equation, most of the regional acts had already played the club, which helped foster the festival's strong community spirit. The atmosphere was at its best during these sets, and never more so than on Saturday evening, when Powder, arguably East Asia's fastest-rising export, bobbed and weaved behind the decks at Journey. Coming after upbeat, soulful sets from Yoshi Nori and Alex From Tokyo, her performance fused light with dark, moving from cosmic deep house through proggier textures and dramatic techno. She eventually came full circle, finishing with the lush tones of Boo Williams' "Fruits Of The Spirit." Jonathan Kusuma, the Indonesian DJ whose dark, chugging style recently caught the eye of Andrew Ryce, also excelled a couple hours later at Universe, though it was Powder's name who kept cropping up in booze-fuelled conversations. On Sunday, the clouds parted and the sun let it rip. At Journey, couples salsa danced in the dust and puffed on imaginary saxophones as Hong Kong-based Frenchman Sunsiaré toasted the hot weather with hits like Sade's "Smooth Operator." Off to one side, workers from the local events team passed the time by performing audacious acrobatics on a huge swing. The mood, serene yet jubilant, was bolstered by the DJ tasked with bringing it home, Hibiya Line, founder of Savage's Ho Chi Minh City equivalent, The Observatory. He was a classy choice, executing long, tight blends to weave together French hip-hop, jazzy trip-hop and Sleeparchive's remix of "Dem Never Know" by Rhythm & Sound. But just as he was hitting his stride, he was cut off, roughly 90 minutes prematurely, by the venue. With a shrug of the shoulders, he exited the booth and began rolling a cigarette, leaving the bemused crowd to their weak applause. This disappointing finale, plus a couple minor organizational flaws, was all that stopped Equation from scoring a perfect ten. Otherwise, it was exceptional: the food was fresh and tasty, the drinks strong and cheap, and the crowd insanely friendly—everyone was quick to catch your eye and trade smiles. The sense of freedom was the kind that only comes from throwing festivals in places where there aren't many. And, most importantly, the music was diverse and inspiring, further proof that Vietnam, and East Asia as a whole, is enjoying a truly golden moment.
Photo credit / Derryography