Rhythmicon’s set opening for Mount Kimbie

download Rhythmicon’s set opening for Mount Kimbie @ Rifflania 3

Rhythmicon has had an amazing summer. Despite The Big Reds being split up by life’s myriad paths, the homie has gigged like a motherfucker, ripping opening slots for Zed’s Dead & 16Bit among others.

At Rifflandia 3, dude also opened for, er, MOUNT KIMBIE. Now, MK’s show was a bit of a letdown – the Riff3 performance was their first on North American soil & thus, they were unprepared for the EU/NA power conversion, meaning they could only generate about “half” of their set. Yes, it was painful seeing the dudes frustrated, even though their neutered set still sounded deep & cool as fuck.

Anyway, earlier that night, Rhythmicon laced this slick mix of moodier, paced tunes. Some stellar moments on here… Pangaea’s “Router” & Eskmo’s “Cloudlight” both shine. Another fine mix from the crew…

Rhythmicon: ”When I was asked to play a set of downtempo ‘I wouldn’t normally play’ at Alix Goolden Hall for Victoria’s Rifflandia Festival, I was grateful for the opportunity to perform in a style I would usually be unable to share with a live audience. As the venue is a church sanctuary turned music conservatory & performance hall, I tried to select work that made unique use of space & verb; music that I thought would be interesting to hear in a room with such powerful acoustics. There’s definitely an influence of the shift into autumn, deep and atmospheric after a dark & wet September.”

 

a final word on Rifflandia… (@ 5:07)

This vid was taken by the ever-graceful Jason Guille on Saturday night, a killer sub⎹div showcase with Longshanks & The Motherfucking Gaslamp Killer (with Tanlines squeezed in between)… there’s clips of GLK cutting up DJ Shadow breaks on the iPad, dropping Coki’s “Goblin”, Hendrix’s “Watchtower” & Aphex Twin’s “Come To Daddy”. The energy at this show was insane – Gaslamp Killer is legendary for his antics & selection – those in attendance on that night won’t soon be forgetting the multitude of “OH SHIIIIT!” moments this evening provided.

Again, a mad shout out to all who came out for this amazing festival & all who showed up to support the sub⎹div fam on Fri/Sat/Sun.

You better believe we’re already plotting another amazing lineup for Rifflandia 4 in 2011.

Rifflandia: Friday recap

The Motherfucking Gaslamp Killer & LongWalkShortDock @ Rifflandia 3

Well, that was fuuuun. A HUUUUUGE shout out to Atomique/Rifflandia HQ for a monumental weekend of diverse music. The third installment of Rifflandia proved that even a city the size of Victoria can have a healthy, sold-out, many-faceted festival that satisfies across many demographics. Punk, indie-rock, Canadiana, dubstep, techno, hip-hop… man, everything was represented at the festival this year.

This year the sub⎹division fam was given the opportunity to curate our homestead venue – Lucky Bar – and needless to say, the programming was a great success. Our goal was a broad spectrum of dance-worthy sounds & so far the feedback has indicated that we hit the nail on the head.

Friday night’s lineup was a steady progression; openers Eames & Fatso got their Soft Wear on – smoother house & deeper 4/4 vibes were a great way to start the weekend. Their Soft Wear project is likely to turn out a few bangers over the next 6 months – stay tuned. The big homie Rob Speakerbruiser aka Megasoid stepped up next. If there is a new official member of the sub⎹div fam it’s this cat. Mega love & support has been mutual between our parties & man did he ever wax the joint with his fresh new iPad set up. Bye bye MPD – Rob’s self-styled interface on the iPad allowed him modular access to numerous elements – be it cracking hip-hop drums, acapellas or full lazer-disco jams – all of which combined to form a hip-gyrating mob of sweaty folk, preparing them for…

LongWalkShortDock. Dave LWSD is an absolute gentleman & the sub⎹div fam were stoked to finally be able to link with this in-demand regional sensation. Most of y’all know the deal – LWSD is a beast live & his set was on point; loud, LFO-ridden bangers, with a peppering of vox & a whole load of headbangin. Fly Yo.

Egyptrixx “Everybody Bleeding”

Toronto’s Dave Psutka aka Egyptrixx is still being discovered in his homeland, despite his success in the UK & EU. Signed to Night Slugs, Egyptrixx wields a truly unique take on the house/techno axiom. Mid-range fuckery is his signature & truth be told, dude’s live sound is like aliens beaming themselves inside of a bunch of Kompakt clippers. Serious left-field sound shapes inside of some brilliant grooves – hats off to a fantastic show & an amazing Friday night…

Rifflandia images

There’s lots to be said – man, the amount of shit hot music at this year’s Rifflandia was amaaaazing… But before that, have a look at some amazing images. Props to Charlotte Dobre & all the Rifflandia photography & TV team for a stellar job.

Mount Kimbie @ Alix Goolden Hall Thursday

The Motherfucking Gaslamp Killer @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Saturday

Distance @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Sunday

LongWalkShortDock @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Friday

The Motherfucking Gaslamp Killer @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Saturday

Egyptrixx @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Friday

Megasoid @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Friday

The Big Reds @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Sunday

Eames & Fatso = Soft Wear @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Friday

Eames @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Friday

Longshanks @ Lucky Bar sub⎹division showcase Saturday

Rifflandia finale: Distance & the fam

The 4 day feast that was the third annual Rifflandia festival came to an amazing close at the final sub⎹division showcase on Sunday. The night started off right with fantastic opening sets from extended sub|div fam members Outsider & Patience Automate. Outsider’s amen feast was precise as a Photek break & for the early 7:30 slot, the cat had peeps jumpin. PA’s pristine industrial crunk is always a treat sonically & his Riff set was stellar; tunes from his Auto Swagger EP definitely lit it up.

The Big Reds rarely get deck-time as a trio lately – space, time & life are all factors. But thanks to Rifflandia, these 3 cats made it happen again right in front of everyone’s eyes & ears. While Gobe, Frame & Rhythmicon all have the capacity for a live solo set, having all 3 of these soldiers on stage at once is always a treat. Deep, rooted riddims dominated their set, with seriously some of the smoothest mixes to have graced the sub⎹div stage all year. Massive love out to these boys – showing Victoria how this shit truly should be done.

[CLOCK THE VID @ THE TOP OF THIS POST]

Hosting Distance to close out this year’s Rifflandia Festival was a complete honour for the sub⎹div fam & wow, did the Chestplate head honcho come through. Outside of being an originator & respected DJ, Distance has managed two full length albums on Planet Mu that are monumental influences for the growing dubstep comminuty – to have him in our midst on the 1s & 2s was exciting as fuck. Getting right to it, the quality bass pressure was maintained throughout his entire set, with his signature cracking snares & tastefully executed mid-range riffs devastating a packed, sweaty & willing crowd. New dubs were flying left & right, with some slicker new female vox-driven anthems slotting seamlessly next to classic floor-burners like “Night Vision” & “Victim Support“. Complete mastery of the mix was evident – some lengthy mixes & quick cuts presented some brilliant segues between all the the drops & bass. Consider the legendary status maintained; Distance, you are welcome back at sub⎹division anytime.

sub⎸div + Rifflandia = heat

Hyper-hyped to be collaborating with Rifflandia this year to bring the slickest collection of electronic music to Victoria in 2010. Taking place September 23-26, the lineup already features some amazing confirms: Mount Kimbie, Aesop Rock, Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti & Lee Ranaldo (of Sonic Youth) to name just a few.

Fri 24/Sat 25/Sun 26 at Lucky Bar, we are proud to present 3 sub⎸division showcases, exploring new dancefloor possibilities at Rifflandia 3. Full schedule isn’t yet confirmed, but what we can tell you is this… along with the entire sub⎸div fam,  Egyptrixx & LongWalkShortDock are confirmed, plus Saturday night we’ve got the Motherfucking Gaslamp Killer!!! Stay tuned for the full lineup…

GLK live at the Drake in TO, posted with vodpod