Tag: techno
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iii Points 2021 Recap: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
If you’re unfamiliar with Miami music festival iii Points, it’s quite singular as far as US-based festivals go. Gates run from 5 pm to 5 am, reminiscent of many EU-based fests, many of the acts identify with the dance music genre, and there’s a heavy emphasis on local and international talent. On paper, this should be the festival that fills the void of the late-night city festivals, like the now-defunct Day for Night (which in all honesty, good riddance), providing us rave-seekers an outlet to work out all this pent-up energy in the knees. But iii Points has been plagued with a slew of issues ranging from hurricanes to artist cancellations via the pandemic (RIP Zenker Brothers and Special Request). Regardless, promoters were dead set on a return to Wynwood in 2021 and they made it happen. It wasn’t all peaches and cream, more on that later, but I would like to think most that made the trek left with smiles on their faces.
The Good – The Music
In my humble opinion, this should be the main reason that anyone attends iii Points. The booking team provides a jaw-dropping curation of genres, house to techno to hip-hop to indie, second to only Coachella for my US dollars. If you don’t particularly care for a highly-detailed set of acts and are just looking to party with your friends, this probably isn’t the fest for you.
The first day was hectic. Rushing into the festival after a poorly-communicated rain delay, I was able to catch the tail end of Vegyn, who put a smile on my sullen face after transitioning a Playboi Carti leak into “Miss the Rage”. After Vegyn came Objekt, who tore down the Main Frame stage with a mix of breakbeats, 909’s, and an unexpected amount of groove. Kelly Lee Owens marked the point in which Main Frame became filled to the brim but managed to keep the crowd moving in the stew of sweat, smoke, and other smelly aromas. Yves Tumor blew my damn mind with a glammy opening of the hits, “Gospel For A New Century”/ ”Jackie”/”Noid”/ etc., before being rudely interrupted by a torrential downpour. However, I don’t think the band and it’s frontperson were too pressed as they almost summoned the rain and reveled in it before being told off by fest coordinators. This rain delay did give me a chance to stumble into a crowd of rollers and trippers dancing violently to local DJ’s, Coffintexts, hammering of breakbeats. Romy gave an unexpected dance party of a mix, fitting in perfectly before Peggy Gou, whose mix was everything and more than I had hoped for. She focused on techno for the Miami audience and kept the pace at 140 for the entirety of her set until crowd favorite and smash-hit “Starry Night” got everyone’s phone up in the air. Jamie XX ended the early-morning with a mix of bass, disco, and soul samples.
Day two was less hectic. I was only able to catch three/four sets: Virgil Abloh, John Tejada, Johnny from Space, and AceMoma. Virgil made the hour and a half time slot worth the price of admission with a full mix of his unreleased “Ibiza (Won’t Be Late)” and a mix of Cardi B’s “Bodak Yellow”, a unashamed favorite of mine, into Overmono’s “So U Kno” (shout out to those of you keeping up with VM’s weekly playlists). My friends and I couldn’t have asked for a better 1-2-3 punch from the Celebrity DJ. Next was John Tejada on the tucked away Isotropic stage whose techno mix strayed from his more minimal works, but perfectly soundtracked the news that the Braves had made it to the world series. After shotgunning a Stella Artois, I made the short trek to the S3QUENC3 stage, which by the way, was one of the coolest designs for a festival stage I’ve ever seen. Johnny from Space was currently keeping the party going for those who were preparing for my most anticipated and favorite set of the weekend, AceMoma. The New-York based duo did not waste anytime in getting the crowd to go nuts. Track after perfectly-mixed track turned the entire crowd’s clock to zero as a surprised yet over joyous MoMa Ready informed the audience that “We’ve only been playing for 30 minutes!”. The boys just about threw every genre, from house to Drum and Bass to Techno to what sounded like Mario Kart music, that the 4 CDJ’s could handle. To say it was a religious experience would be an understatement and I had to fight off tears at the end of the set. Magical.
The Bad – The Weather
Every festival promoter’s worst nightmare is rain. iii Points has a combative history with rain and 2021 was no exception. And boy, did South Florida have a lot of it to offer Friday evening. Gates were pushed back an hour and a half as faith in the 15-minute Florida shower theory dwindled to nill. No communication from the iii Points staff was sent out to attendees other than a wildly optimistic Instagram story stating “Clear skies ahead!”… yeesh. Once in to the festival the grounds weren’t too muddy as much of the venue was atop of concrete, yet the 5pm acts were unable to perform. As mentioned before, another Yves Tumor summoned storm hit around 11:30 pm, delaying all current sets, sauf pour Coffintexts, and funneling majority of attendees out of the fest or into the cover of the Main Frame (so much for getting close at Peggy Gou). Shoes were soaked, shirts ruined, and illness likely filled the lungs of attendees but unfortunately there’s none to blame other than mother nature. Hopefully, iii Points communication/decision making team learned a thing or two from the fiasco.
The Ugly – $6+ Water
Liquid Death. An incredibly stupid idea to can water that has been slowly gaining popularity within festival bars since 2018. Leading up to the festival, it became apparent there would not be free water stations and to that I ask… why?? Event coordinators should know that it is extremely dangerous to not have immediate access to free water and that waiting in the lengthy bar lines could be detrimental to the well-being of attendees. It would just seem to me that having water stations would be cheaper in the long run-in avoiding potential for lawsuits… profit should not be taking priority over the safety of attendees. Despite the ethical dilemma of no free water, the pricing on the trendy liquid death is abhorrent. $6 for water plus the 18% Miami service charge plus tip adds up quickly when combining it with other drinks/food. I guess there’s an argument to be made for the “Don’t attend the fest if you can’t afford it” but to those critics I’d politely retort “Fuck off”. So yeah, a Liquid Death sponsorship, which I should clarify is not problematic as long as there are alternative free water stations, awards iii Points with the title for “Most Expensive Water Options”. Coachella, you’re up next.
Overall, the good outweighed the bad and ugly at iii Points 2021. I left with memories to cherish for years and a smile on my face. As long the booking team can continue to provide a European-style electronic experience in South Florida, I see no reason why I wouldn’t return to iii Points, hopefully with a deeper wallet next time!
Review: Skee Mask – ‘Pool’
Dance music has found itself in a stalemate throughout the age of pandemic. A genre whose beating heart lies on a club floor surrounded by individuals experiencing spiritual urges to move their bodies was demoralized at the snap of a finger. With physical spaces stolen away, the innate physicality of dance music became isolated inside and online.
Berlin-based producer Bryan Müller, aka Skee Mask, found himself further sharpening his production chops with a pair of EPs released at the prolonged apex of lockdown. Critics have pointed out retrospectively that these two projects are a direct response to required isolation, and I say looking back these two projects simply tease a taste of what was to come. After the well-deserved critical backing behind one of the 2010’s most fully realized electronic projects, Compro, ISS005 and ISS06 felt like a regression in scope for Müller. The stunning synthesis of ambient, dub, and break that catapulted Müller into the esteemed artist he is today were seemingly separated by an X-Acto knife. Each EP undeniably taut — breathing new life into grime and ambient production — yet lacking the humane “special sauce” that elevates Skee Mask above fellow contemporaries.
Expectations were set sky-high for Skee Mask’s full length follow up to Compro, and he meets expectations if not often exceeding them. Surfacing tracks that predate a lot of Müller’s released output while weaving current electronic ruminations into 100+ minutes of material, Pool does not amount to a mere compilation but rather feats a complete statement.
From start, opener “Nvivo” wraps listeners in a lightly tattered quilt of acid tech and ambient loops — a salutary encouragement to run outside and feel every tickling blade of grass beneath your feet. Müller follows this path towards amb-techno highlights “Rdvnedub” and “CZ3000 Dub”, with the latter track’s twinkly yet cathartic push-and-pull primed and ready to load into a CDJ. Müller’s toe-dip into footwork on “Pepper Boys” features a youthful whimsy akin to Suzi Analogue or Vegyn’s recent work. Pool leans into the sonic playground that dance music can be, further reminding listeners that only a sympathetic being could construct sounds such as these.
As Skee Mask handily swims further into the deep end, the current sucks in moments like “Breaking Method,” an unrelentingly aggressive breakbeat cut fitting in snuggly amongst the Ilian Tape roster. Another highlight, “Testo BC Mashup”, opens with a jumbled radio transmission only to dunk you head first into drum & bass rhythms followed by ambient soaked hats and pads allowing a moment for air, before the D’n’B pulls us back in. It would be remiss to not vet the contemplative “Ozone” or the subsequent exercise in self-doubt: “Rio Dub”. Each track operating miles above sea level for some necessary R&R. And this is not to say that Müller has depleted listeners’ stamina, rather each track takes the form an undulating body of water.
Skee Mask has cemented himself as an artist whose undying ambition remains his greatest strength. The “special sauce” missing from aforementioned Iss05&06 is the worldliness that Müller so effortlessly breathes into the inherently digital. For Pool, Müller looked outside for grounding: thin air mountain tops and crashing waves characterize the form these tracks heed to (easy to see why Müller pays respect to one of Germany’s ambient techno greats). Not only does Skee Mask deftly wield the line between analog and digital, but also the past and future. Each track on Pool is familiar via Müller’s comprehensive music knowledge and dedication to creating something wholly his own.