Crack

Making their much anticipated debut appearance in Bristol for The Red Bull Music Academy, dance music legends Theo Parrish and Dixon touched down at Motion for a night of house and disco dramatics.
Futureboogie, who have recently pioneered a number of high-calibre disco/house nights in Bristol, hosted the night. Their stock has grown of late with some really good artists coming to play and this was a real coup for them.
The Red Bull Music Academy is a nationwide initiative aiming to provide a platform for progressive and cutting edge music to run alongside intimate workshops and real interactivity with credible artists. During the day, workshops and talks were given at Metropolis by the likes of Dixon and King Midas Sound (who was also on the bill at Motion). This was a great way for those playing in the evening to connect with their audience and a wholly different approach to presenting the artists on the bill. It gave the whole event a real personal touch.
Furtureboogie residents Joe 90, El Harvo and Kid Bongo built up the perfect atmosphere for Parrish and Dixon with some groove-laden house cuts. These guys are brilliant DJs in their own right and have led many previous Futureboogie parties through to the early hours with their music.
Firmly embodying the current trend towards deeper soulful house/ disco, Parrish and Dixon joined the dots between these genres with ease and an expert knowledge. Between them they have a stunning back-catalogue and a real depth to their records. Their near religious devotion to these genres has given house music, possibly one of the most disposable mass-produced musical form imaginable, a deeper more intelligent platform and for that they deserve great credit.
Parrish executed a truly flawless performance. You would never think jazz would be mixed in with deep house and techno, but Parrish crafted his set effortlessly and with discipline. Parrish, who is originally a disciple of Detroit house and techno’s glitterati, used tonight’s performance to juxtapose elements of soul, jazz, disco, funk and techno with simple but often hypnotic 4/4 house rhythm. It was an truly dance floor tailored set
Dixon, who owns the Innervisions label in Berlin, finished the night, leading the crowd into back into a strand of more of a mainstream house with injections of electronica. It was thoroughly pulsating and interesting.
The night wasn’t just for house and disco aficionados. The Cave hosted the cream of Bristol’s experimental and dubstep talent with Appleblim, Peverelist and Headhunter, bringing a real sense of innovation to proceedings. Alongside these big Bristol names, King Midas Sound, a project incarnated from the industrial dance veteran Kevin Martin (AKA The Bug) and Roger Robinson, gave one of their first ever performances.
King Midas Sound are far removed from the stereotypical dubstep more associated with The Bug. The new project is a more ambient incarnation. Their sound can be described as underwater dancehall with their beats building up instead of being issued in a flash. Robinson’s singing is reminiscent of early Massive Attack rather than something spawned from The Bug.
The night is packed and has a great variation in age and personnel. It’s an all-encompassing celebration of innovative producers getting involved on a much deeper level than usually required. The Red Bull Music Academy events in London have had a similar level of quality and it’s great to see this calibre of artist coming to Bristol.

Words: Becka Maskell

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