NU-WORLD DEPARTURE LOUNGE The Caves, Edinburgh, Fri 25 Nov
Purveyors of progressive world-dance music Departure Lounge are lavishing us with not one but two esteemed guests in an almighty Japan Special.
First and foremost is the rare appearance of Ryota Nozaki's cosmic bossa project Jazztronik. the eclectic Japanese entity that brought us the all-conquering deep house piano bomb that was 2004 ‘3 ‘Samurai‘. Fronting a six-piece band. the classically trained pianist, revered producer and remixer will no doubt be shaking up a cocktail of worldly future soul-jazz for the dancefloor.
‘The Samurai LP had a big effect at home and abroad.‘ says Ryota of the recent acknowledgement of his talents. ‘I think now is definitely the high point of my career. I have never done a gig outside of Japan before. and l have only DJed once in London. Because of the fantastic response from foreign listeners. I have been able to hold this, my first full European tour.‘
For one of only two dates in the UK. Nozaki is to be fluffed on the steels by Europe's jazz-dance gateway to Exotic Nippon. DJ Nik Weston. Master promoter. collector. compiler. broadcaster and commentator Weston has been king of the Shire for a decade or more. Drop Astroboy's platters and Cammy's percussive and vocal talents into the mix and it all makes for sc0rcher of unparalleled Far Eastern promise. (Mark Edmundson)
TECHNO PRESSURE The Arches, Glasgow, Fri 25 Nov
Pressure has long been at the forefront of the Glasgow club scene. It big name techno is your thing you can‘t get much better than these monthly nights. As you'd expect as they reach their seventh birthday. Slam are pulling something rather special out of the bag. In a line-up of highlights including Dave Clarke. Radioslave and Vector Lovers. there is one man who still stands above the crowd. One of the pioneers of the scene. and the man who's spearheading the renewed interest in the minimal sound — the mighty Richie Hawtin. ‘Your point can be made more easily if you use the least amount of information. the least i amount of words. the least amount of ' music.‘ he explains. ‘More direct. more 3 pure communication is what I'm 1 interested in.‘
Even Slam are captivated and . astounded by his approach. ‘He was doing things to rec0rds that made you ' think this is what techno is all about.‘ says Stuart McMillan. FOrever embracing new technology and exploiting its new possibilities. ‘lt's always a struggle for electronic music to have some sort of soul.‘ says Hawtin. 'I think that's the beauty of it. i using all this technology and cra7y gizmos and figuring out how to get a little bit of yourself through the apparatus.‘ (Henry Northmore)
ECL ECTIC RAMA LAMA WITH SONS AND DAUGHTERS ABC, Glasgow, Thu 24 Nov.
Scott Paterson of Sons 8. Daughters is in rainy Portland. Oregon when we discuss the band's forthcoming gig-cum-club night at the ABC in Glasgow. He describes the immediate environs: ‘lt's freezing here. very leafy and Twrn Peaksesque. Everyone that you speak to seems to have a demon hidden away somewhere.‘ It seems the perfect setting for a SOns & Daughters gig. The band‘s dark, threshing folk has inspired audiences all aCross Scotland and beyond. They've gone from the John Peel stage at Glastonbury. across Europe and now on to the United Sates. supporting acts such as Franz Ferdinand. Bright Eyes and the Decemberists.
Paterson explains the thinking behind the club night on 24 November: ‘We wanted the Glasgow night to a bit more speoal than the rest. We had been to a gig there jtlSI before coming out here and we thought it went really well.“ This is a night for music lovers. Optimo's Twnch Will be playing records until 2am. and Paterson is effusive about this particular DJ. 'l've never really been into the club thing going out dancing. but Keith [AKA 'l'wrtch] and Jonnie have such great taste in music. Optimo is an education. I remember one night they played something by Nina Simone that went on for 12 minutes. and you've got to remember that this is primarily a dance club. You won't hear stuff like that anywhere else in the world. We are really glad to have him With us on this night.‘ Prepare to see the club-to-gig interface reinterpreted once again. Support comes courteSy of the Gossip and Vincent Vincent 8. the Villains. (Johnny Regan)
34 THE LIST 17 Nov—1 Dec 2005
Gavin Russon and Delia Gonzalez
PUNK FUNK DFA PARTY School of Art, Glasgow, Sat 19 Nov
You’ll have to forgive The List because the DFA Party has us more excited than any other night between now and the end of the year. Well, aside from the late night LCD Soundsystem extravaganza at the Barrowlands in early December, but then that’s almost a DFA bash itself . . .
So what is DFA (an acronym of Death From Above)? Well, the short answer is quite possibly the world’s premiere production team, and also one of the finest labels in this hemisphere. Originally convened by James Murphy (American frontman and creative fulcrum of LCD Soundsystem) and Tim Goldsworthy (English ex-producer for Mo’Wax and former member of UNKLE alongside James Lavelle) while working for hire on a David Holmes album, the pair went on to define a signature sound from their base in New York. The Rapture’s ‘House of Jealous Lovers’, in its attempt to reinvent house dynamics through the rough clatter of analogue instruments, is the most recognisable zenith of this, although Black Dice, Hot Chip, the Juan Maclean and LCD themselves have all benefited from ‘the treatment‘.
Possibly contrary to this dancefloor-orientated fluency, the DFA live contingent will be represented here by Delia Gonzalez and Gavin Russom. With this year’s Days of Mars album, the sometime performers, magicians and multimedia artists have created a head music tableau that reimagines the stargazing intentions of electronic music from decades gone by. If that all sounds a little too introspective to get on the floor to, then be aware that the T&T Music Factory - AKA Goldsworthy and Tim Sweeney will be conjuring up something special from behind the decks. All this and it’s an Optimo presentation. Honestly, we’re very excited. (David Pollock)
Sons 8 Dau
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