www.mixmag.net

vip

0123456789

[[1L]] february 2012

Clubland’s fierCest live shows

THE GiG3

Eric Prydz @ TogEThEr, AlExAndrA PAlAcE, london

Prydz’ show is EPICmind-blowing light show establishes eric Prydz as one of the greats

n the Crowd are already cheering in expectation. only cameraphones provide any light. a hollow, ghostly noise echoes around the great cavern of alexandra Palace, building the tension. the silhouette of eric Prydz appears as the huge, rich red strips behind him start to pulsate like the core of a futuristic engine room. it’s as if the swedish dJ is powering up a galactic ship, and as the pulses speed up into a single tone, Prydz’ raised arm is the last thing visible before the onlookers are once again plunged into darkness. to either side stars whizz by, giving the illusion of space. it’s seven whole minutes before Prydz drops the

kick-drum of his own track: ‘Glimma’ (as Pryda). and so the journey begins.

and it is a journey – for Prydz is one of the few remaining dJs who believe this is what a set should provide. he does so with a collection of his own tracks: Pryda’s ‘agag’, ‘illusions’ and ‘animal’ are all in there. yet a quarter of his set could be described as, well, ambient. few other dJs dare risk such extended periods without a beat. in many ways, it’s more like a sci-fi film soundtrack than a dJ set.

the visuals complement the cinematic breakdowns perfectly: holographic cubes and stars self- construct out of thin air, dna helixes

form from nothing, planets spin on their axes and shatter into a million pieces. unlike many ‘mad’ dance act visuals, the only purpose of which seems to be to send you under, Prydz’ light show is more subtle and fits into the futuristic theme. Pryda tracks have always had a retro-future feel too: like how the future was pictured during the 80s. the mixture of the two creates a galactic world to escape into.

finally, Prydz plays the intro mix of ‘Pjanoo’, inspiring a mass sit-down. when the actual track drops, everyone is on their feet, going crazy. he brings the craft in to land with ‘together’, the epic end to an epic trip. Digby

n Ferocious December waves break over the brighton’s madeira Drive and an icy wind licks steam from the open side door of concorde 2. inside, the swirling electronic pop of swedish four-piece Little Dragon is crashing against a capacity crowd, drenched in magenta and blue light. Lead singer Yukimi nagano melts in and out of the light, occasionally striking a giant, multi-coloured trigger pad. a set-list of tracks from the band’s past three albums includes the catchy highs of ‘ritual union’ and 80s casio pop of ‘my step’, and a lovely, atmospheric encore of ‘twice’. swept along by musicians whose instrumental interludes between songs recall the sublime, tempo-changing wanderings of the chems’ ‘come with us’, the crowd move from one song to the next via contagious spells of acidic dancing. “it’s good to be in brighton!” Yukimi cries before hurling into ‘Precious’ with “You know i can’t stay” – a reminder that this is but another stop on Little Dragon’s remarkable journey. P DuDman

it’s happy 10th birthday to Lovebox this year, who are celebrating a week early by holding the victoria Park festie on June 15, 16 and 17.

tickets are on sale now … Helsinki’s Flow Festival confirms björk and bon iver for their ninth outing in the disused suvilahti power station on august 8–12 … the Field Day line-up is set

to include sbtrKt, metronomy, gold Panda, Julio bashmore and Franz Ferdinand on 02/06 … above & beyond have announced

a huge group therapy 2012 uK tour. it will be

the act’s biggest tour to date, taking in birmingham,

Leeds, Liverpool,

newcastle, glasgow and their only London show of the year, at brixton academy on april 7 … sónar has announced a são Paulo edition on may 11–12, featuring Justice and Little Dragon.

FrEsh/livE @ ThE ArchEs, glAsgow

liTTlE drAgon @ concordE 2, BrighTon

n “iF You’re oLD enough to smoke, put your lighters up,” hollers the mc, leaning out to soak up their heat in this cellar under glasgow’s railway tracks. the elder heads are joined by a mass of youngsters, but they all obey. god- father of the breakbeat Kaos label, DJ Fresh has managed to recast himself as the sound of d’n’b reborn, and here he brings his new Fresh/Live show to the feverish new generation. set up to one side of the stage like a pharaoh inside a pyramid of fluorescent tubes, Fresh hammers the keys and takes the wild cheers which come his way with a modest fist in the air. these are tracks which suit the full live treatment, from the joyful electro breaks of ‘gold Dust’ to the huge, crunching dubstep wobble of his adam F collab ‘it’s bigger than Hip-Hop’. singer Fleur’s voice is radiant and soulful on ‘Lassitude’ and ‘Hyper- caine’, and drummer Kodish adds a layer of tightly rhythmic volume, though little of guitarist richard de rosa’s playing is audible above the crunching bass. it’s a work in progress, but surely one of 2012’s festival hits was born tonight. D Pollock

l ivebites

PH

oto

s ry

an

din

ha

m, a

ma

nd

a J

win

do

w

gold Panda

ePic: eric Prydz in concert