MUTEK / MONTREAL / MAY 30 - JUNE 3

Compared to previous years, the eighth edition of Mutek proved to be disappointing, for numerous reasons.

It began with Cafe Electronika at Hotel Godin. The three-day event sponsored by CBC Bandeapart was poorly executed and delivered a dated concept at a festival that prides itself as being on the cutting edge of technology. Thirty Canadian artists performed from locations across the country and were broadcast live into the hotel. Unfortunately, very few attendees actually knew that this was what was going on. I spoke to one listener who had no idea what had been happening for the last three hours until I explained the concept to him. It was uneventful, with no visual elements or link between the audience and the experience. There should have been a live web-cam of the artists, so there could be some connection or understanding that it was happening live, and that it wasn’t just a cd playing background music for people to meet-up and lounge. Perhaps having the live broadcast cut costs, but what’s the point of attending a festival when the artists you want to see aren’t actually visible. The local Montreal artists did perform live which was the only saving grace of this poorly executed event. I’m praying that this concept won’t be repeated at Mutek again.

Wednesday evening, Nocturne 1 turned out to be a spectacle and an experience I won’t forget. Kitschy, grandma, circus freak, and happy hardcore extravaganza are the words I would use to summarize the night, as opposed to clean or minimal. When entering the SAT (the Society of Arts and Technology), to the right of the entrance was a table full of stuffed animal parts that people could destroy and sew together. People seemed to be enjoying it, but to me it was a throw back to the tacky rave stereotypes of electronic music (think soothers, candy bracelets and fun-fur). Mutek has worked hard to take dance music to a new level, and suggest that idm is in fact intelligent dance music, an art form worthy of respect. It was disappointing to see the organizers revert to these tired old clichés.

The line-up that night didn’t prove to be any better. The first performance was by Pero and the Electric Machine, which sounded like Adult mixed with T. Raumshmiere. A blend of electro-clash, rock and roll and shaffle, which was all the rage a couple of years ago. The second act was so over the top it blew me away. Gangol & Mit created circus-freak happy hardcore music. It was entertaining for three songs but then became too much to handle. The visuals were well done and matched the music perfectly, but it seemed like a novelty act or a performance piece. The deal breaker of the night was Candie Hank, who bombed. Break-core crap mixed with allot of talking. Some spectators said it was a joke, but I wasn’t laughing. His music cleared out the venue, and I left as well, having endured too much pain to stay for the last act.

Nocturne 2 was an improvement, featuring dub artists Rhythm and Sound, and Kode 9. It was less offensive than the previous night, although still not really my thing.

Usually, the A/Visions events prove to be true highlights at Mutek. A/Visions 1 had some emotionally stunning work by Boris & Brecht Debackere and Semiconductor, but A/Visions 2 was just plain bad. Mark Templeton, who I adore, played first. His albums are delicate and lovely, and have been compared to Fennesz. However the sound was too loud and all the subtle moments were lost in the blaring. Also, I can appreciate film, but the visuals by Aaron Munson were so boring. Lines dancing back and forth on trees, the same image for over an hour. I don’t know if Mark was just giving one of his friends a break, but after this first year art school project, I doubt any other artists will be interested in collaborating with him. Colleen fumbled around like an idiot. She kept on tuning her instruments, and it was difficult to tell the difference between her performance and when she was taking a moment to prepare. At one point she was shaking her cello upside down due to a loose object affecting one of her strings. Also, in the middle of the set, when she couldn’t find a pin and had to ask for help on stage, all the lights in the theatre came on. The charade was painful to watch. I love her music but seeing her live made me lose all respect for her. So many professional musicians would have killed for an opportunity to play Mutek and she blew it. It’s apparent that what you do in the studio doesn’t always work live.

The festival finally made a turn for the better on Friday night at Metropolis, with the Mole and Cobblestone Jazz who were incredible. Kalabrese was alright, mediocre house music with quirky lyrics, which sounded good for what it was. Despite mic problems, Matthew Dear delivered an overall good performance.

Pantha du Prince, one of my favourite artists and the main reason I attended Mutek, delivered a quality set featuring some new tracks. Unfortunately, he was the first artist to perform in the Kompakt showcase, and he deserved a better time slot when a larger crowd was present. I also had to argue with the sound guy to get him to turn up the volume, and while I was requesting this others were also approaching him for the same reason. Jichael Mackson started off strong, but then it became repetitive and dull. Matias Aguayo’s sexy soulful tech-house sounded muddy and sloppy with singer Marcus Rossknecht. Gui Boratto worked the crowd into a frenzy and received the loudest applause at the end of his set. Michael Mayer was in good spirits when he came on at 3:00 am. Unfortunately, I was unable to last for his entire set due to tiredness. The biggest surprise that night was Miskate in the second room. Her minimal deep techno was superb and has only made me want to hear more.

Piknic was great. Perfect weather after a week of rain, combined with seamless, polished music, created the perfect outdoor party vibe. It was a happy closure to an overall disappointing festival.


boris & brecht debackere


semiconductor


gangpol & mit


the SAT


panel 1 / demo derby / philip sherburne, patti schmidt, kode 9, marc leclair


panel 1 / demo derby / seth horvitz, mike shannon


mark templeton


rhythm & sound


deadbeat & sophie trudeau


robert henke


kalabrese


crowd at metropolis


the mole


cobblestone jazz


claude von stroke

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my my


chic miniature


audion


pantha du prince


miskate

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gui boratto


michael mayer


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efdemin and carsten jost / split ep / dial
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ryoji ikeda / dataplex / raster noton
boomkat review
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cyclo (ryoji ikeda and carsten nicolai) / untitled / raster noton
boomkat review
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theleftovers

[a]pendics shuffle and mikael stavostrand / take me higher ep / adjunct
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agnes / dumbles debut / resopal red
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va / death is nothing to fear 1 / spectral
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nooncat / underwater / phlegmatek
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Jennifer Coates

pantha du prince / betalounge / 14/04/07
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va / hamburgeins / dial

01 gluhen 4 / you don't know me
02 efdemin / joni
03 lawrence / deadline
04 mense reents / dacia
05 pawel / kamel
06 alexander polzin / lighter
07 benjamin wild / auf + davon
08 ha.te / winterhude
09 diamantenrauber / let's rogue
10 nightshift / penny
11 blend / unarrange
12 carsten jost / makrame
13 autosundmädchen / all the world loves lovers
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Dutch Coiffure Awards 2007

lali puna / i thought i was over that: rare, remixed and b-sides / morr
boomkat review
part one
part two

bibio / hand cranked / mush
boomkat review
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I'm off to MUTEK. All downloads, photos and reviews will return in June.

Jesse LeDoux

montag / going places / carpark
pitchfork review
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touane / figura / persona
boomkat review
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markus guentner / 1981 / kompakt
boomkat review
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julien neto / le fumeur de ciel / type
boomkat review
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Check out these hilarious ecards

clark griswald / sounds like spring

tracklist:
substance & vainqueur / reverberation
substance & vainqueur / reverberate
carl finlow / count on it
dominik eulberg / die gruenschenkel im blauen priel
marko fuerstenberg - untitled
patrice baeumel / just electricity
booka shade / in white rooms
pier bucci / hay consuelo (samim remix)
gummiHz / the light
fusiphorm / am i?
sandiego / rogoredo
sandiego / axum
patrice baeumel / fantomas
maetrik / future will survive (R.B remix)
efdemin / le ratafia
marko furstenburg / falling leaves
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green velvet / constant chaos / musicman
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Kevin Christy

thomas fehlmann / honigpumpe / kompakt


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gui boratto / chromophobia (remixes part 1) / kompakt
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ernesto ferreyra / memoria colectiva / mutek_rec
boomkat review
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Mark Dean Veca

thomas schumacher / perlen 5 / spiel-zeug schallplatten


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skeletons & the kings of all cities / lucus / ghostly
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audion / noiser/fred's bells / spectral
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damero / happy in grey / bpitch
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nobukazu takemura / scope / thrill jockey


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Mario Wagner

pantone / toibar, toronto / 04/20/07



jake fairley/pantone / presence / cereal/killers
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minilogue / elephant's parade ep / wagon repair
boomkat review
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portable / don't give up (remixes) ep / sud electronic
boomkat review
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wighnomy bros. + robag wruhme / remikks potpourri ii / mute
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jpls / twilite / m_nus
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celer / bells


Another gorgeous release from Celer. Warm tones with deep soothing atmospheric pulses.
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alva noto / xerrox vol.1 / raster noton
boomkat review
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hannu / worms in my piano / osaka
boomkat review
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sans arc / when eye meets eye
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matthew dear / asa breed / ghostly



stewart walker / concentricity / persona records
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b.fleischmann / melancholie / morr
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bjork / volta / atlantic

Jennifer Rowsom

senking / list / raster-noton
boomkat review
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steadycam / in the moog for love ep / k2
boomkat review
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niederflur / din / minus
boomkat review
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kit clayton / grey amber ep / nummer
boomkat review
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On Balloon: "Drive one day less and look how much carbon monoxide you'll keep out of the air we breath"
Black Cloud

tobias thomas / please please please / kompakt


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various / superlongevity 4 / perlon
boomkat review
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guitar / dealin with signal and noise / onitor
boomkat review
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Sam Weber

telefon tel aviv / remixes compiled / hefty
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alex smoke / hanged man ep / vakant
boomkat review
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vladislav delay / live pa, mutek / 05/03
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hannu / worms in my piano / osaka
boomkat review
metsa mp3
valisoitto mp3


Jose Luis Martinez

anja schneider / electronation / 14/04/07
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dominik eulberg / kreucht & fleucht @ uzic radio / 13/04/07
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3 channels / 4 fun tv mix / 07
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Yuka Yamaguchi

people press play / people press play / morr
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digitaline / anticlockwise / cadenza
boomkat review
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joerg burger / polyform 1 ep / k2
boomkat review
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Liz Hickok's jello San Francisco.

Simen Johan

junior boys / la sala rossa, montreal / september 7


I remember catching the Junior Boys two years ago at Beats, Breaks and Culture in Toronto and the attendance was sparse, maybe bleak is a better word, well that wasn't the case Saturday night. The Junior Boys played their best live show to a sold out show. The Montreal crowd was super responsive; hands in the air, dancing and even yelling "I love you" at Jeremy Greenspan the lead singer. The only disappointment was having to watch and listen to the main singer from the Russian Futurists prior. His nasal voice and clown-like gestures defiantly made him the weaker link in a band that could go somewhere, if they got a new singer.

bjork / volta / atlantic
earth entruders mp3

vladislav delay / whistleblower / huume
i saw a polysexual mp3

william basinski / shortwavemusic / 2062
boomkat review
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ulrich schnauss / goodbye / domino
brainwashed review
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apparat / walls / shitkatapult


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dominik eulberg / limikolen ep / traum
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marko fuerstenberg / surphased ep / a.r.t.less
boomkat review
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carl finlow / count on it ep / seventh sign
boomkat review
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stardiver / superpitcher / speicher 48
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Someone sign this guy. Another hot track from Joel Pryde.
slow burn mp3



Love this calendar

Billboard art fills the streets of Barcelona. Find out more here.

efdemin / efdemin / dial
Dial doesn't disappoint. Lawrence, Pantha du Prince and now Efdemin aka Phillip Sollmann, continues to set the bar high with some of the finest techno to date. This is hot.
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alex smoke / harry klein mix / 17/03/2007
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alex smoke / live at the laundry, australia / 27/01/2007
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ripperton / resident advisor / 26/03/2007
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Yann Orhan

ryuichi sakamoto & christian fennesz / cendre / touch


pitchfork blurb
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colleen / les ondes silencieuses / leaf
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basic_sounds welcomes submissions from musicians, djs, artists, photographers, and other talented people from around the world who are pushing the boundaries of digital and electronic media. Please e-mail all work to basic_sounds@yahoo.ca Regrettably, not all work will be posted but your contributions are valued immensely.

>>>PANTHA DU PRINCE at MUTEK, June 2nd!<<<

dntel / dumb luck / sub pop


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oren ambarchi / grapes of the state / touch
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oren ambarchi / suspension / touch
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alex smoke / resident advisor / 19/03/2007


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ellen allien / the other side of berlin / resist music


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dublee / the beep / mule
boomkat review
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benoit pioulard / fir 7" / type
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human mesh dance (aka taylor deupree) / thesecretnumber12 / 12k
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One of the benefits of being a fag hag is having access to this superb magazine from the Netherlands. Highly recommended. Artistic porn and interesting articles with no boundaries.

helios / unomia / merck


boomkat review
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substance & vainqueur / reverberation/reverberate / scion versions
boomkat review
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substance & vainqueur / surface/immersion / scion versions
boomkat review
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aus / curveland / moteer


boomkat review
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carsten jost / atlantis i + ii / dial
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lusine / podgelism / ghostly
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alex under / 1,2,3 responda otrapez / trapez
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patrice baumel / just electricity / trapez
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sandiego / axum / trapez
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alexi delano / what is control / audiomatique
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Bjork Talks Volta for the Very First Time

ramases iii / honey rose / important


boomkat review
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svarte greiner / knive / type


boomkat review
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belong / october language / car park


boomkat review
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triosk / the headlight serenades / leaf
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octex / podcast 002 / filter27
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Josh Keyes

junior boys / dead horse / domino


I love the Junior Boys, but these remixes fall weak and do them no justice. It's like the remixes are beating the songs like a dead horse.
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A worthy remix by the Junior Boys
stars / sleep tonight (junior boys remix) mp3

dominik eulberg / heimische gefilde / traum


Can anyone explain why there's so much German talking on this release?
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steve bug / fuse presents / music man records

01 plasmik / eight to nine
02 pier bucci / hay consuelo (samim remix)
03 namito / joujou (martin landsky remix)
04 johnny dangerous / problem #13 (beat that bitch)
05 seph / dash (heartthrob's acid for bongo interpretation)
06 guido schneider / halo
07 efdemin / lohn & brot
08 mikael stavostrand feat. big bully / no turning back
09 steve bug / wet
10 guido schneider feat. florian schirmacher / transmission (bets'n'bluffs edit)
11 foremost poets / reasons to be dismal? (beyondsight version)
12 square one / vesuvius (justin martin's "i hope it doesn't blow" mix)
13 mymy / moneybowl
14 bangana / skrik (dub)
15 move d / anne will (vincenzo remix)
16 rhythim is rhythim / the dance (living room mix)
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thomas fehlmann / emo pack / kompakt
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the dead texan / the dead texan / kranky
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benni hemm hemm / kajak / morr
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camera obscura / let's get out of this country
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