Friday, March 15th, 2013 // Blogs,SXSW
Disclosure is comprised of two brothers, Guy and Howard Lawrence, who produce some of the best house/future music out right now. They have been releasing a steady stream of awesome music since 2010, but really picked up their pace in 2012 starting with The Face EP in June. Songs from this EP sent waves throughout internet blogs and has led them onto a fast track to fame. My personal favorite from The Face was the track “What’s In Your Head.” Since then, they have released two stellar singles: “Latch” (feat. Sam Smith) and “White Noise” (feat. AlunaGeorge).
The Hype Hotel is a very cool venue sponsored by the Hype Machine; it’s set up on the first floor of the Whitney Hotel in downtown Austin. It feels like a warehouse with its open space, stark concrete materiality, and makeshift restrooms. Despite this seemingly cold setting the stage setup was stunning. The lighting was interesting and versatile enough to host a variety of acts. The venue also had free Taco Bell and drinks — nothing can beat that.
Disclosure came on at the end of the Hype Hotel’s Wednesday event and did not disappoint. Instead of doing a DJ set, they came out with a full percussion setup, DJ equipment, a keyboard, and a bass. One of the brothers took care of all the percussion while the other brother switched between keyboard and bass. As a result, the performance made their music seem much more natural and exciting. At the same time it was clear that they were not performing every aspect of their songs. Regardless, it was impressive that they were treading new ground for producers by performing live. The first song they performed was even sung by one of the brothers, which really helped them connect with the audience. From then on, each song got more people dancing. Every moment of the performance was memorable. Disclosure is one group you should not miss this year.
Post by Sam Friedlander. His DJ show “____lander” airs Thursdays at 1 a.m.
Thursday, March 14th, 2013 // Blogs,SXSW
Terrorbird Media held their showcase at Red 7 on Tuesday, featuring a collection of great artists like IO Echo, Fol Chen and Widowspeak. But the standout performance was Shugo Tokumaru.
Hailing from Tokyo, Tokumaru is a meticulous singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, creating and controlling every aspect of his music himself. For his albums, the first of which, Night Piece was released in America in 2004, Tokumaru combines over 100 different instruments to create a unique sound that is inherently Japanese. Guitars, accordion, and piano mix with the twinkle of a xylophone or toy bell and Tokumaru’s warm voice. For his live shows here at SXSW, however, he has enlisted the help of a drummer and a xylophonist/keyboardist/toy instrumentalist to accompany him while he bops along on guitar.
Like Tokumaru’s music, the show was fresh, fun, and optimistic. It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon in Austin and the music fit the setting perfectly. Despite being sung entirely in Japanese, the crowd seemed to be going right along with Tokumaru’s cheery pop tunes. Cheers erupted every time a new toy instrument was introduced; a contraption consisting of a spinning ball and pecking wooden birds being the crowd favorite. The band also seemed to be enjoying themselves, with smiles all around and a healthy amount of jamming.
To finish off the set, Tokumaru pulled out the only english words of the afternoon with a surprise cover of “Video Killed the Radio Star”, played on ukulele and kazoo. The crowd definitely reacted to the familiar tune, and which sounded great with bursts of bells, xylophone and melodica.
Check out a tune and the awesome stop motion video of “Katachi” the single of Shugo Tokumaru’s newest record, In Focus?
Shugo Tokumaru “Katachi” from Kijek / Adamski on Vimeo.
Post and photos by Eden Weingart.
Thursday, March 14th, 2013 // Blogs,SXSW
Monday night at Viceland: Breakbot, PEACE, Brenmar, and The Hood Internet
Monday night at the Viceland grounds was stellar. Each act’s energy built up the next, fueling the crowd with constant dancing all night. Half of The Hood Internet was there to get things started by mashing up some more mainstream tunes. Usually, I would not have been a fan of his music selection, but the finesse with which he did this kept me and the rest of the crowd dancing.
Next up was DJ/producer Brenmar, who also played an awesome, energetic set. His set consisted of more hip hop, trap, and rap, with some bass music in between. Once again, the crowd loved it and continued to dance. Brenmar dropped some nice tracks including the “Turn Off The Lights” remix by Lloyd, “Stop Me Now” by Sj Sliink, “Wildfire” by SBTRKT, and some old classics like “Naughty Girl” by Beyonce. Sadly, in this set he didn’t seem to play much of his own productions, but if you want to check them out you can hit up his Soundcloud.
The plot twist to the all-DJ night was an energizing performance from the four-piece Brit-rock group PEACE. They played songs including “Bloodshake” off their EP Delicious. Their music sounds like the Arctic Monkeys with a more surfy flow. In my opinion, PEACE was good but nothing special. Rock groups have the challenge nowadays of trying to do something original in a genre that for the most part has been tried and tested. PEACE didn’t cross this threshold of originality. Despite the lack of originality, they were fun to watch and were certainly able to stand their ground in a DJ-filled lineup.
After PEACE was the main event: Breakbot. Breakbot has been traveling through the airwaves playing some funky French house. He is signed to Ed Banger, the the same label as Justice. In a sense this is very fitting because Breakbot is in the same vein as Justice, but less dark and rocky. Instead Breakbot picks up a post-disco, jazz-funk, and ’80s R&B flair, and gives it a modern twist. One song he played called “Forget Me Nots” by Patrice Rushen really alludes to possible inspiration for his own music. The most surprising thing about Breakbot’s set was his versatility. I was expecting strictly french house all night, but he was able to dissolve my expectations. At one point he seamlessly transitioned into a TNGHT song, followed by “Girl in The Hood” by Riton, and then he played the new Drake song “Started from The Bottom.” At the end of the Drake song he started to mix in “Move Your Feet” by Junior Senior super slowed down. As he picked up the tempo the crowd got more and more excited. During the night he also played his two most notable tracks “Baby I’m Yours” and “One out of Two.” Breakbot’s set was definitely one of my favorite sets of SXSW so far.
Post by Sam Friedlander. His DJ show “____lander” airs Thursdays at 1 a.m.
