Ancienne Belgique

Hypnagogic pop, post dubstep and witch house in the mix on one evening. That way you're completely up-to-date with the latest underground ‘dance’ movements, all in one go. Though it's quit...

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Hypnagogic pop, post dubstep and witch house in the mix on one evening. That way you're completely up-to-date with the latest underground ‘dance’ movements, all in one go. Though it's quite probable that by then a handful of new sub-genres will have come into being. Did we hear someone out there shout drumstep?

8:15 pm - Hype Williams (UK/DE)
"The missing link between Ariel Pink and Aphex Twin" (The Guardian)
"An obscure, lo-fi form of dub-inflected half-pop as much akin to the post-industrial funk of 23 Skidoo and early Cabaret Voltaire as the scratchy psych of The Skaters." (The Wire)

There's not a lot known about Hype Williams – not to be confused with the hip-hop video director of the same name. This duo (Roy Blunt and Inga Copeland) was established in London but resides in Berlin. Their version of Sade’s ‘Sweetest Taboo’ (re-christened ‘The Throning’) is already an underground classic on the world wide web. Blogspot No Fear Of Pop described their music most appropriately: “All obvious resemblances to contemporary American hypnagogists aside, Hype Williams assembles mesmerizing, 80's infused samples and blends them into awesome tunes driven by slowly captivating beats”. Although their music mainly circulates via YouTube (with the associated clips), their debut ‘Find Out What Happens When People Stop Being Polite, And Start Gettin Reel’ has only just recently seen the light of day.

9:30 pm - Darkstar (UK)
‘The holy grail of futuristic dubstep’ is still the impressive Hyperdub label run by Kode9. With signings like Burial, King Midas Sound and Ikonika, Hyperdub does indeed define the genre. They definitely released the label's most pop-tinted album ever with the ‘North’ album by trio Darkstar. In the past, Darkstar had also done their thing with Radiohead’s ‘Videotape’  (also picked up by dubstep queen/BBC host Mary Ann Hobbs) and The Human League’s ‘Gold’. Together with James Blake (the musical hope of ’11) and Mount Kimbie, Darkstar belongs to the crowning glory of the post dubstep wave. Lastly: their track ‘Aidys Girl Is A Computer‘ is a classic in the genre and excellent singer James Buttery gives fine form to this trio's electronic melancholy too. Also amusing: the BBC last year described Darkstar as – ready for it? - ‘sadstep’.

10:30 pm - oOoOO (US - dj set)
Aside Salem, Creep, Balam Acab and White Ring, oOoOO is one of the flag bearers of the witch house genre. Unless you would rather refer to it as drag house or haunted house. Lets just say: a mysterious mixture of r&b, dubstep, electro, drugs and witchcraft. Witch house even made it into De Morgen as one of the words that defined 2010. Behind oOoOO (pronounce it: ‘oh’) you will find San Francisco resident Christopher Dexter Greenspan, a disciple of ‘Untrue’ by Burial. His debut EP of the same name was released via Tri Angle Records (see too: Balam Acab, Stalker,…) and brings back the vibe of Fever Ray and Salem. Boomkat wrote of it: “simply one of the most extraordinary debut records we've heard in a long time.”

SOUNDTRACK BY... BL13P DJ

►►► DOMINO FACTS…
Domino has often focused upon undercurrents in alternative dance. So it was that king of dubstep SKREAM already appeared in the ABClub in ’07, years prior to his first Top 10 hit (a remix of ‘In For The Kill’ by La Roux) and his success with the dubstep supergroup Magnetic Man. LCD SOUNDSYSTEM appeared before a full house in ’05, the year that their untitled debut was released.
British label Ninja Tune celebrated their 20th anniversary last year. That provided consistently fine, intractable fare, including the likes of JAGA JAZZIST (with their first Belgian show in ’02 ), AMON TOBIN (with his impressive surround show in ’07), THE CINEMATIC ORCHESTRA (behind the turntables in ’02) and also the great ROOTS MANUVA in ’99 already, two years prior to the release of his hit ‘Witness (1 hope)’.
Dubstep label Hyperdub (now present with Darkstar) marks it's third visit since the impressive KING MIDAS SOUND and also the visit of Hyperdub label-owner KODE9 himself with MC SPACEAPE behind the mic.
Further in the dub corner, RHYTHM & SOUND made an impression in ’05. The duo has since split and Mauritz Von Oswald (under the name Mauritz Von Oswald Trio) now releases albums on Honest Jon’s, the label of Gorillaz and Blur originator Damon Albarn.