Monday was a good day at the festival. I arrived in time to hear TP on the main stage bring Strings of Life into a remix of Patrice Rushen's "Haven't You Heard" (I like Steve Rachmad's "A Lot of Love" on Spiritual/Outland more but this version was slower and more in line with the mix). Terrence was in a vocal mood, singing along with several tracks. And he played "Blow Your House Down." Couldn't ask for more.
I liked DJ Three (Chris Milo) on the Beatport stage playing an unhurried set of solid acid-tinged stuff. Boo Williams and GU were unfortunately stuck in the underground stage; when will Paxahau finally admit house just doesn't work in there? But I spent most of the day at the Made in Detroit stage. Just missed seeing Franki Juncaj (formerly the friendly guy at the register at Somewhere in Detroit and also a quite good DJ), but heard a lot of District 909 (Tim Baker and HD Substance). Tim Baker has had some interesting releases but I wasn't sure what to expect, and what they deliver is basic stripped down live techno sliding back and forth between really tough and cool and somewhat aimless. Next up was DTM on 5 turntables, that's right, count 'em, 5x5. It could have been a classic pileup but actually it was kind of fun. First up was Throw as the soundbed, which is the obvious way to get started and it went from there. Layers and layers of tracks'n'scratches. Then DJ T-1000 or as known among these parts, Alan. You know what he does and that's bring it up to a high level of intensity and lets it roll. As good as AO was, Claude Young finally had the time, the space and the crowd to really throw down -- nearly two and half hours worth. Everyone I talked to including the man himself felt the inspiration. It's not just about playing the great old records, as great as they remain, or the great new ones, still fresh and not struggling against familiarity. It is about playing great music with purpose and precision. It's what Detroit techno at its best truly represents. ------------ And now some comments on the festival itself (I'll save my rant about afterparties for another time). With a year away due to work requirements last year, I have a little more perspective perhaps than I used to, having been to all ten from 2000 to 2009. First of all, what's working right? Paxahau has a business model that actually works. They are putting serious, serious cash into upgrading the sound, the staging, the lights and all the little things needed to make this work better every year. Even the underground. The big improvement to me was the decision to get rid of the tents for the Beatport and Made in Detroit areas and invest in real stages. The music selection is somewhat less adventurous than I suppose could be imagined, but it is a pretty decent job for what it does. There are too many overrated European superstar-or-wannabes on stage for my taste, but they bring in a crowd (see "business model"). On the other hand, I can complain about Fatboy Slim or whatever but they also bring in Adam X who rocks the box. I didn't feel this year like there were periods where nothing decent was on offer, which was the case in previous years ago for considerable parts of the weekend. And I want to call Paxahau out for praise very specifically for one thing: the strong commitment to live performances across all genres. They not only book creatively on that, but they obviously put serious effort into providing the staging and support needed, from equipment setups to sound and lights. The ticket prices are reasonable given the size and breadth of the event. The lines were better run this year, and amidst the usual carney fare they brought in Slows -- epic win. The not so good parts. Well, obviously it's a white people festival now. I'm not sorry to say it so bluntly. It is in the city of Detroit, but it does not represent Detroit the city. Why? This gets back to "business model." When the festival was free, the city did come, and not just because it was free, but because the proportion of known Detroit talent was higher. The organizing of the festival was drama supreme in the early years, but out on the walks and in the stage audiences, it was inclusive for all of Detroit and the region. So Movement has evolved from being a somewhat disorganized civic celebration to being more of a destination event for the suburbs (see "business model"). Give Paxahau credit, the Made in Detroit stage is an explicit nod to where this all comes from and provides (some) space for the various threads of Detroit techno and house for the last 30 years -- but only some, and we aren't seeing much space at all for new upcoming local talent. Much more has been put into the big and up-and- coming talent elsewhere in the US and Europe. I look forward to seeing non-Detroit performers, and many are quite good and really add to the general diversity and enjoyment. I'd maybe never see someone like Ana Sia otherwise, and she was great. But Paxahau's specific business model does not flex much outside its settled approach. There are two problems. First, they have swung the pendulum too far away from Detroit (not just the city but the region), and too narrow a range where they do go. Just for example -- where are the funk artists from Brazil, Angola and elsewhere worldwide that have taken bits and pieces of 70s funk, house, techno, and all the other genres in the exploding org chart of dance music and mixed them all up with local sounds. There is fresh and mindbending music all over the planet. The present and future of electronic is not just spelled 'd-u-b-s-t-e-p'. I don't think for a moment that the festival should be all things to all people. There are many things I would do differently (and I've done my bit of event management at a smaller scale). But I'm glad it's still happening, and still have some hope Paxahau will actually try and broaden the event and the audience. I'll come back next year to see how they're doing. fh
