Rave on: Movement 2010 rolls out headliners

The countdown officially begins now for Movement 2010, Detroit's biggest electronic music party held each Memorial Day weekend. Let's see, it's 79 days (if our calculations are correct) until the first beats roll out at downtown's Hart Plaza, where the festival has been held since 2000.

Even bigger news: the headliners for the Main Stage, and a partial listing of other performers, were just announced (at 12:01 a.m., as a matter of fact). On Saturday, May 29, Plastikman, Richie Hawtin's wriggly alter ego, goes live for the first time ever at Movement. The last North American Plastikman gig was at Montreal's MUTEK Festival in 2004. Also headlining (and doing it live) are Kevin Saunderson's Inner City on Sunday, May 30; and Model 500, led by techno pioneer Juan Atkins, closing the festival on Monday, May 31.

Other highlights on the schedule: Detroiters Anthony "Shake" Shakir, Kyle Hall, Minx, Robert Hood, Stacey Pullen, Kenny Larkin, K-HAND, Rick Wilhite, Theo Parrish, Recloose, Rolando, Luke Hess, Secrets and Phat Kat & Guilty Simpson with Will Sessions Band; Chicago house legend Larry Heard, Ninja Tune's Mr. Scruff, Dutch-American bass producer Martyn, Hudson Mohawke, Simian Mobile Disco, DJ Koze, Cassy, Magda, Michael Mayer, Radio Slave, Martinez Bros, Francesco Tristano and ItaloBoyz; and, no we didn't forget our longtime Detroit-Berlin connection, Mark Ernestus and Scion. How could we?

Stay tuned in for more lineup announcements in the weeks ahead.

Weekend passes for Movement go on sale today for $40 until 12:01 a.m. April 3.  The price for weekend passes increases to $50 after the discounted early bird promotion ends. Early bird tickets can be purchased exclusively at http://www.paxahau.com/movement. This is the fifth straight year Ferndale-based Paxahau has promoted and produced the festival.

Movement is an all-ages event. Kids under the age of 12 years receive free admission. Families are encouraged to attend. But we advise bringing ear plugs. That goes for everyone, mom and dad, not just the baby ravers. State of the art sound spells l-o-u-d.
       
In 2009, Movement recorded its best attendance figures since becoming a ticketed event in 2005. A whopping 83,322 people filled Hart Plaza last year. Get ready to rave on again like we did last spring. And the one before that. More news coming as soon as we tease it out.  

Gilded eternities

Without spoiling too much of the current thrill-a-minute Subterraneans column, which puts to rest a bloodstained year in a fractious imperial democracy and looks ahead to even stranger days ahead, I thought I'd jot down some essential tunes to take with you to the island of your choosing, when you need to get away from it all. Here is the best of what I've returned to again and again in 2009, shared in some random kind of lyrical disorder. Jams that made my mind and body turn and twist and shout. Crossing genre borders, including comps, singles and re-mastered and reissued stoner-approved classics.

Hyph Mngo (Hotflush) - Joy Orbison. Ecstatic funky legit house-dubstep blender that gets better and better before your virgin ears. A young talent (Pete O'Grady, 22) to watch. Good pairings to seek out: Hotflush label owner Scuba's two side-sided powerhouse ('Speak/Negative') for Naked Lunch; and Hessle Audio co-head Pangaea's one-sided 'Memories' released on (our favorite) label unknown. Next up, freaks: flame out to the Dark Knight's highly combustible 'My Bitch/Mutant Funk' sides. We're dancing to it right now, in a bass haze, in case you want to join us.    

Exploding Head (Mute) - A Place to Bury Strangers. Heavy, mysterious, loud, mumbled psych-punk poetry. Yes, the Jesus & Mary Chain comparisons are apt, but it has me reaching further for my Loop reissues, A Gilded Eternity (Beggars Banquet) and The World in Your Eyes (Reactor), each filled with hypnotic drone pop and proto-ambient metal, initially released in those golden years, 1987 to 1990.

5: Five Years of Hyperdub (Hyperdub) - Various Artists. Sexy greatness is all over it, beginning with the sublime modern poptones of Darkstar's 'Aidy's Girl is a Computer,'  Cooly G's 'Weekend Fly' and Ikonika's 'Sahara Michael;' reprising a Burial track (a beefy 'Distant Lights'), finally losing its temper on 'Fukkaz' and the Specials' 'Ghost Town,' the latter two grindcore dubs courtesy of Kode9 + Spaceape. And there are close to 30 other gorgeously-produced tracks. Rock!

Tracks and Traces (Gronland) - Harmonia & Eno '76. Trance rock of epically-beautiful proportions, matching members of Germany's Cluster and Neu! with new wave Brit synthesist Brian Eno. The original 12 songs are plenty to digest, but plan to add smart remixes by Appleblim & Komonazmuk ('By the Riverside') and Shackleton ('Sometimes in Autumn') issued by the Amazing Sounds label.

Great Lengths (3024) - Martyn. Almost everything he touched turned to hipster gold. One of the first to build bridges between Detroit techno, Chicago house, LA hip hop, UK jungle, drum 'n' bass and rave, this debut shows off the transplanted Dutchman's (from medieval Eindhoven, now living in suburban Washington D.C.) skill at shaping dub desire into coherent, universal pop.

Fever Ray (Rabid) - Fever Ray. Karin Dreijer Andersson's (The Knife) unchallengeable synth/goth/pop masterpiece, now in special three-disc edition including live tracks and video. Dead sad exquisite northern beauty. Here's your chance to surrender, slave. I did.

Self-Assessment and Symbiosis (both Modern Love) - Pendle Coven and Demdike Stare. Two LPs, two separate Manchester, UK projects connected by the presence of warehouse techno-house/evil dub producer Miles Whittaker, Berlin's Dubplates & Mastering studio wizardry and kinship with Detroit otherness and self-mystification of artists like Rod Modell and his Deepchord and Echospace crews.

Waiting for You (Hyperdub) - King Midas Sound. Narco-dream dub from London space-bass producer Kevin Martin, who doubles as the man behind the Bug, featuring acid-dread vocals by poet/MC Roger Robinson and Hitomi. The lovely voices float over waves of melodic sub-bass and crazy effects all pitched down to a junkyard crawl. How low can you go?

The Strange New World of Bernard Fevre (Lo Recordings) - Black Devil Disco Club. Amazing recordings from 1975, revived and re-worked for instant groovy dancefloor reaction by the now 63-year-old Fevre. Ripping French disco basslines meet German space rock elements, suggesting a careful listening to Can and Faust. If you like it, and you will, also dig around for another more tragic re-discovery: Wolfgang Reichmann, who was knifed to death in a bar brawl in 1978, the same year his Wunderbar debut was issued on Hamburg's Sky Records. Big, ambitious recording (re-released on Bureau B) will make you shiver if you like 'Man Machine' era Kraftwerk or even Tangerine Dream. Say you will.
 
Until Then, Goodbye (Smallville) - Lawrence. What's the most quietly consistent house-techno combo player in the world, Peter Kersten (Lawrence/Sten), been up to lately? Pristine productions, as usual. The new one is for you, closet Emo girls and boys, pure melancholy danceable 4/4 pop for now people. Don't bother dressing up, the party is at your house tonight and we're coming over.                     

Also riding the year out on a high: the Netherlands' Dave Huismans, whose A Made Up Sound ('Rework/Closer') and 2562 (Unbalance LP) projects continue to impress; Detroiter Omar S went to the plate swinging and went yard on Fabric 45, a mix that contained all original material; Berlin-based Redshape's The Dance Paradox, was pure Detroit love in all the right ways, as was Actress' (Londoner Darren Cunningham) stomping 'Ghosts Have a Heaven' and Quantec's Basic Channel-Deepchord flavored Cauldron Subsidence. Moodymann (Westsider Kenny Dixon Jr., lusty and re-invigorated at 42) stayed chic in the global underground with Anotha Black Sunday, and contributed tracks, along with fellow Detroiters Theo Parrish and Rick Wilhite, to 3 Chairs' Spectrum LP. LA funk was re-born (sounds a lot like Seven Mile and Ryan neighborhood to us) on Dam-Funk's massive, soul-stirring Toeachizown. More good dubs from the UK came via Untold's 'Dante/Sweat,' Millie & Andrea's 'Spectral Source/Ever Since You Came Down' and Ramadanman's 'Humber' and 'Justify' (with Appleblim). Mordant Music developed hauntological kitchen sink surrealism as a new sub-sub-genre on the monochromatic SyMptoMs LP; Blue Daisy somehow made shoegaze and wonky-funky space-disco riddims work on the 'Stings Detached' four-track EP; and Klimek continued on his alternately grimy, haunting and beautiful journey through the ambient ghetto of the imagination on his Slavoj Zizek/Van Dyke Parks/Brian Wilson-inspired Movies is Magic LP.

Bristol's Peverelist dropped a tasty full-length bass bomb, Jarvik Mindstate; Deastro (early-twentysomething Randolph Chabot of Sterling Heights) produced the kinetic Moondagger, for Ghostly International; Matias Aguayo put another stake in the heart of boring elitist minimal with the populist South American-European street party-club music hybrid, Ay Ay Ay on Kompakt. From the vaults, we were digging the Soul Jazz collection Can You Dig it? The Music and Politics of Black Action Films 1968-1975 and the Kill Rock Stars reissue of the stunning Mayo Thompson-produced Raincoats debut, originally out on Rough Trade in 1979. We raise a toast to 30 years of post-rock relevancy with a glass of champagne that tastes just like Cherry Cola.  

The hits kept on coming: Editors' In This Light and On This Evening, the Depreciation Guild's In Her Gentle Jaws and The Mary Onettes' Islands brought pop poetry to club life, shaking fists at God, nature and human failure. Thanks to the marvelous ears of Pop Ambient visionary Markus Guentner, those LPs are on heavy rotation on various iPods, iPhones and computers all over the house. As is yet unreleased material from Dresden's Malory (Pearl Diver, out in early 2010), though it has been galloping in my head since November. That's when the digital A/V trio nospectacle (Chris McNamara, Jennifer Paull and yours truly) performed with Guentner at a special event called Collapsing Borders on the University of Michigan's North Campus. I mention it partly because I have a great picture posted here of McNamara (mixing live video, left) and Guentner (right) playing sublime live original material for the first time -- anywhere, ever. It's one of many secret best moments of a pretty great year in Detroit music. You missed it, but the afterlife in the blogosphere is made for eternal second opportunities like this. Enjoy! Not to mention vicariously experiencing other rare live appearances by Move D, Scion, Faust, the Sight Below, Flying Lotus; and less rare happy hours and hours by local mischief makers Macho City, Disco Secret, Aaron-Carl, Kevin Reynolds, Wolf Eyes, Aaron Dilloway, Jamie Easter, the Wolfman Band and, of course, all the discerning music lovers in Detroit that kept it all kicking like a sleep twitch in 2009. Stay safe and don't dare lose your fever knife edge in the new year. 

   




 

   

    


  
 

Don't change the basic channel

In the mid-1990s, a band of Berlin outsiders, centered around the record store Hard Wax and studio Dubplates & Mastering, began reducing sonic pressure to pure grayscale essence. The labels Basic Channel, Chain Reaction, Main Street, Burial Mix and Rhythm & Sound tossed Detroit techno, Chicago house and roots dub beats in a compression chamber and squeezed out something entirely other. Two of the key people in the scene, René Löwe and Peter Kuschnereit, returned to Detroit to perform live (as Scion) and spin individual DJ sets. Tasty textures guaranteed. Support from Detroit's Patrick Russell and Drew Pompa of Blank Artists, your hosts for the evening. Friday, Nov. 13. Doors at 10 p.m. at Bohemian National Home, 3009 Tillman St., Detroit; $10.

In the mood for Ghostly

Ann Arbor-based Ghostly International has just released an app for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Called Ghostly Discovery, the application works as a mood-reading jukebox containing Ghostly's and sister label's Spectral Sound's catalogs, allowing users to create space-age playlists for what they want to listen to based on their emo(tional) state and digital (or) organic preference. After setting your own parameters, you get the option of reading artist bios and purchasing MP3s. Ghostly Discovery is free at the iTunes Store. Download it now, we say. Get it and find Dykehouse's 'Chain Smoking.' You'll want to hug it, guaranteed.

Ghostly Discovery was developed in a partnership with Royal Oak design firm o2 Creative Solutions, which previously worked with Ghostly to create projections for Matthew Dear's Big Hands Band North American tour.

Good work all round by Ghostly/Spectral, o2 and, of course, Apple.  

Movement '09: revisited, recycled

The numbers keep going up for Paxahau and its three days of electronic love on the Detroit riverfront.

In a press statement released this week, the Ferndale-based promotions group said that 83,322 people visited Hart Plaza during the three-day Memorial Day Weekend for Movement, the annual electronic music festival that featured nearly 100 performances on four stages.
 
“Movement 2009 was an overwhelming success on so many levels,” said festival producer Jason Huvaere. “People loved the lineup of performances we were able to put together this year. Our sponsors and vendors really stepped up this year despite the tough economy. The recycling program surpassed last year’s totals for collected items. And we had great weather the entire weekend, which definitely contributed to the record breaking turnout. As far as events like this go, in our eyes it could not have gone any better.”
 
Since Paxahau began producing Movement in 2006 attendance at the festival has steadily increased each year. An estimated crowd of a little more than 40,000 people attended in 2006 and nearly 45,000 attended in 2007. In 2008 nearly 78,000 attended and for the first time ever festival attendance was tracked using turnstiles. This year hand-held clickers were used to count attendance.   
 
Electronic Music fans in attendance at Movement 2009 proved to be an environmentally-friendly group. Four tons or 8,000 pounds of recyclable materials were collected over the course of the three-day festival. This year’s total surpassed 2008 totals by 5,000 pounds.
 
Paxahau partnered again with Recycle Detroit, a non-profit organization founded by Detroiter Sarah Kubik. The hard-working non-profit had a team of 100 volunteers, utilized 40 recycling stations and successfully convinced nearly 2,500 people to commit to be more environmentally conscious.
 
“We were very pleased to have Sarah and her Recycle Detroit volunteers be apart of Movement again this year,” said Huvaere. “They have single-handedly taken the festival’s recycling program to the next level.  Recycle Detroit is a great organization.”

Paxahau assembled an exciting lineup of local, national and international performers, but it was the announcement of Techno Music legend Carl Craig being named Creative Director for Movement 2010 that dominated the conversation on blogs and among groups of festival-goers all weekend long.
 
“We have received nothing but positive feedback from the announcement about Carl,” said Huvaere. “His involvement will strengthen the future of the Movement festival in Detroit. Carl is a musical visionary whose ambassadorship is unparalleled.  We are extremely excited to have him involved at this level.”
 
In his new role Craig will be involved in various creative aspects of Movement and serve as an ambassador for the Movement festival as he travels the world performing for throngs of electronic music enthusiasts.
 
The new partnership between Movement Detroit and Movement Torino officially started as Movement 2009 ended. Together they hosted the festival’s closing party at Capital Square in downtown Detroit.
 
The two groups will work together to promote each other’s festivals. Movement Torino, which takes place in October, was being promoted at this year’s festival with flyers and the Movement Detroit closing party. Check out the web site at: http://www.movement.it. Once the Torino festival has concluded, the group from Italy will begin to promote Movement 2010 in Detroit ... and up, up and away we go again.

Odds & Ends

I wish I knew her real name. I don't want to call her Grandma Techno.


Surreal speakers in the sky.


Flying Lotus tearing it up.


Cybergoth kids raving by the Noguchi Fountain.


Mr. Nice Guy playing Alice Cooper songs on Roland Micro Cubes.

MONDAY

Clark Warner



Kero



Flying Lotus



Lee Curtiss



Carl Craig

SUNDAY

John R.



Michael Geiger @ Family Funktion



Brian Gillespie @ Family Funktion



Brendan Gillen @ No Way Back

High drama in Corktown

I dont know if it's a combo of lack of sleep along with the relentless crush of constant 4/4 beats amplified at ungodly sound levels, but my house guests are freaking out on themselves. One has lost her ID. The other thinks I hate her. All I want to do now that I have no more gigs scheduled is to relax, enjoy some beats and soak up what's left of this year's festival. will I be able to do that?

Just went to the will call line for the I'm on a Boat Event. DENIED. My name's not down; I'm not goin' in. So that means, Night Moves and YES, the Old Miami. Here I come.

KEVIN REYNOLDS: SATURDAY

CHEZ DAMIER @ 1515 Broadway: SATURDAY

The Subterraneans

March 2010

December 2009

November 2009

July 2009

June 2009

May 2009

March 2009