Mutek

ArtsFestivalsMusic

The first time I saw Takami Nakamoto, was at last years Mutek Montreal.

He was presenting his another project Late Speculations by Nonotak Studio, co-founded by Noemi Schipfer.  I was immediately drawn in by the visual quality of the light installation, see-trough textiles and two projectors. Interesting to see, yet a bit more challenging to photograph.

This year, the artist brought back another project formed by TN and Sébastien Benoits for a ten day residency and then a performance at the Contemporary Arts Museum presented by Mutek.

This year’s set was also designed by Nonotak Studio and as with most projects with elements such as led lights, spotlights and smoke they delivered quite the performance. The combination of heavy base and electric has the perfect balance to the Takami Nakamoto & Sébastien Benoits’ dreamlike journey.

They were kind enough to give me some time to photograph both their residency and show which was pleasant to attend. I strongly encourage you to check out more of their work :

 

 

Brahja Waldman's Quintet
ArtsMusic

What’s that? You wanna go see some shows this week? Well get to it.

FRIDAY, MAY 30

EM15

This year, MUTEK teamed up with Elektra to celebrate both festivals’ 15-year anniversaries and the result is EM15. The festival wraps up this weekend so be sure to catch a free event at the Musée d’art contemporain featuring Markus Floats, Santoz, Leon Louder, Bataille Solaire, Hugues Clément, Marie Davidson, Processor. Check their schedule for more events.

Most nighttime events start at 10 p.m., ticket info here.

Static Gold @ Cabaret Lion d’Or

Funk and swing collide into a dance party tonight when Static Gold launch their debut album Speaking Easy.

Show starts at 9 p.m., $13 at the door.

Brahja Waldman’s Quintet + Sam Shalabi, Anthony von Seck and Alexander MacSween @ Resonance Café

Brahja Waldman’s Quintet launch Sir Real Live, a vinyl recorded live at Resonance Café last August.

Doors open at 8:30 p.m.; $6, $8 includes download code, $15 includes vinyl. 

Bearmace + Yardlets + Melted Faces + Hiroshima Shadows @ La Vitrola

Show starts at 10:30 p.m., $6 with some proceeds going to Sun Youth.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4

Suoni per il Popolo: Crosss + Sheer Agony + Maica Mia + Shitsu @ La Vitrola

Show starts at 9 p.m., $6.

THURSDAY, JUNE 5

Suoni per il Popolo: USA Out of Vietnam + Public Animal + Marie Davidson @ La Sala Rossa

Doors open at 8:30 p.m., $8 in advance via Suoni per il Popolo or $10 at the door. 

Fringe Fest: APigeon + Girls In Uniform @ Divan Orange

Doors open at 8:30 p.m.; tickets cost $10 and are available at Divan Orange, Atom Heart, l’Oblique, Cheap Thrills and online via Indie Montreal.

B-17 + UUBBUURRUU + The Disraelis @ l’Escogriffe

Doors open at 9 p.m., $5.

ArtsFestivalsFTB WeekendsMusicNightlife

Mutek 2013 is starting tonight. We could make a list of top five acts not to miss at this year’s festival, but we all know you’re too busy and excited to go through all that reading.

This year we decided to go straight to what’s important: the music itself! We made you a playlist that you can enjoy while pre-dinking at your house. We honestly think the Mutek organizers have come up with the most impressive lineup in their history and you should attend ALL of their events!

So, for now, sit back, relax and for the complete schedule head to their website.

 

John Tejada – Operation Photon (original mix)
Michael Mayer – Good Times
Brandt Brauer & Frick – Plastic like your mother (feat. Om’mas Keith)
Andy Stott – Numb
Robert Hood – Dancer
John Talabot – Afrika
John Roberts – Fences
Laurel Halo – Throw
San Proper – Cut your hair
Axel Boman – Purple drank
Juju & Jordash – Doctor Strangepork

 

ArtsMusic

Sunday June 3rd (well, Monday afternoon for me) marked the end of another edition of one of the most important electronic music festival in North America. I’ve been attending Mutek for four years now and I can say without hesitating that this year edition was my favorite so far. I mean, every year has had its highlights but this time it was different. Every single night, I’ve found myself discovering or re-discovering incredible musicians! Which was priceless. Here’s a list of my favorite performances day by day.

Wednesday:

Probably my top discovery of this year’s festival is the American duo Blondes. Having heard of them without knowing what they would sound like, I was expecting some minimal intellectual electronic music. How wrong was I! These guys can teach you a thing or two about how to do a proper live techno set just like any other Detroit dude. Apparat live right after was a little bit too Sigur Ros infused to keep the party going.

Thursday:

Having the chance of seeing a legend like Jeff Mills is a once in a lifetime experience… getting to see him twice in less than a week is the best thing I could dreamed of. After catching his Wizard set on Monday in Detroit it was now time to catch the more experimental and sci-fi side of Mills. A Roland 909 up front, five cdj’s in the back and the moon pumping to the beat in the background, the set-up was out of this world; and so was the performance…

Friday:

To kick-off the week-end, Mutek crew provided us with the most “mainstream” line-up of the festival. Everybody in Montreal was waiting to hear how Nicolas Jaar would sound live. I got to see him last March in Toronto and was very disappointed. Although he didn’t deliver the best performance of this year’s festival; let’s just say that it was decent enough to patch things up between the two of us. Jimmy Edgar closed the night and sounded so good that I had to go to this small sweaty after-party where we danced to his mixes until 6am.

Saturday:

I’m magically out of bed early enough to catch my favorite performance of this year’s festival. It’s a rainy day, so Piknik Electronic has been moved to S.A.T. It’s dark and definitely not what one needs to cure a hangover. It doesn’t matter because nothing will stop the talented KiNK! He delivered an energy-driven set expressing how excited he was to be there. He interacted with the crowd, giving them the opportunity to mess with his sequencer and join ion the music making. Some people say he puts on the best live electronic music around and I tend to agree.

Sunday:

For the last day of the festival, despite the possibility of rain, the weather was on our side and we got to go out to Piknik Electronik . The special guest at Piknik Electronik was none other than Nicolas Jaar followed by Benoit & Sergio live and finally Wolf & Lamb. It was the perfect line-up to listen to while spending the afternoon dancing outside. The bravest among us crawled to S.A.T to catch the last Nocturne, which feature a live set by Dave Aju. I won’t lie; at this point I was so beaten up I can’t really say how good it was…

The Mutek crew, this year more than any other, proved that Montreal is an important player in the electronic music scene. Now, we just have to surf the wave and use this inspiring week-end as a model for more electronic music events in our city.

Also for all our original photography from the fest check out ForgetTheBox on FB

ArtsCityMusic

I’m slowly getting back to what’s supposed to be normal life. After spending two weeks blasting my ears out to electronic music in two festivals, it’s now time to give you my impression about this year’s Mutek festival.

Here’s a list of the best and the worst acts this year’s edition had to offer.

The highlights

Plastikman, Amon Tobin and an Echospace mention – Mutek: A music festival for the eyes
Plastikman, along with Amon Tobin, was the most awaited performance of the festival. He didn’t disappoint. Being front row for this visual experience was magical. Had it been for the music itself, his live set wouldn’t have necessarily been anything to remember. (Or to quote a friend, “Mutek:   A music festival for the eyes.”) It was Richie Hawtin’s birthday the next day, and there was a great atmosphere in the crowd, especially when people started to sing Happy Birthday after his set! Honourable mention as well to Echospace, who set the bar high and put us in the mood!

Arp and Organ Mood
The surprise of this festival came on Thursday night during Para_Nocturne at the S.A.T. While trying to escape from the Metropolis, I found exactly what I was needing: experimental yet accessible electronic music. I caught the two last songs of ARP and almost had a tear in my eye. His beautiful music and beautiful visuals made me promise to myself to get his LP as soon as possible. I was also impressed with the Montreal band Organ Mood. Make sure you check out their next concert here!

Mossa
He’s been around for quite a while now in the Montreal electronic music community. I never paid much attention to him…but now know how big of a mistake that has been. His set during Piknik Elektronik on Sunday literally blew my mind, with the perfect blend of house music to make you dance and get sunburns like there was no tomorrow. Check out his next party on June 17th. The party goes until 4am, and that’s another reason to be happy!

Danuel Tate and Radiq
It was a great way to end the festival. Even with the little energy I had left, I was still able to get in a dancing mood. Danuel Tate from Colbblestone Jazz with a world premiere, and the Japanese Radiq doing his North American debut, both proved that house music can be intelligent and sensible.

Last night a local DJ saved my life
Honourable mention to Jacque Greene, though I missed his first ever live set. Every person I know told me how solid it was. He’s now escaping to Detroit for two weeks to make music with Jimmy Edgar.   Billy Dallessandro also rocked the Savoy room when I darted from the main show at Metropolis because I couldn’t stand Modeselektor.

 

The lows

Modeselektor and Anstam
Don’t get me wrong. Moderat’s performance blew my mind a couple of years ago, but as much as Mutek sometimes gets too intellectual for me, I think Modeselektor was too easy. During a festival with a mission like Mutek’s, I’d rather not be bouncing around to hip-hop-inspired beats with a thousand   underage kids.

Rocketnumbernine and Four Tet
It was not bad; it was just not what was needed on a Saturday night. After a day spent at Piknik Electronik and three nights of the festival already, these downtempo acts were not the recipe to encourage people to keep going. We all regretted not having napped longer, and I even have a friend who decided to go back to his hotel until the party got started   – which didn’t happen until at least 3am!

Photo from MUTEK Montreal Flickr.