MOVEMENT

Torino, Italy | October 24th – November 2nd

Italy’s Movement Festival prides itself on far more than just a line-up. As well as a healthy programme of sounds drawing from techno to house to disco, the lengthy event in Turin also offers an array of extras including daytime lectures, workshops, forums and business networking platforms, all taking place at various venues around the gorgeous and historic Italian city. It amounts to a 360-degree experience, all grounded in an innovative and unique attitude to music. 

And the musical offerings are where the real highs were found. One of the first acts on offer was Innervisions regular Henrik Schwarz, who got crowds nicely heated through with his classy and seductive deep house selections. Next up was a masterclass from Dan Ghenacia, before we enjoyed a b2b set from two more French pioneers in the form of Laurent Garnier and Agoria: epic melodic tracks, elongated techno, serene house and guttural acid all got dropped into a coherent and engrossing set which truly was the talk of the entire festival.

Two of the main arenas were directly adjacent to one another, but that didn’t affect sound quality, with both offering punchy beats and crystal clear melodies throughout the festival. Of course, everpresent techno troopers Visionquest were one of the biggest draws this year. The collective showcased their mystic and celestial take on pop house and melodic techno with aplomb, while much deeper fare came later from Innervisions’ currently untouchable Dixon.

One of the outstanding moments for many was the famed DJ Harvey, presenting his usual weird selections of afro disco, kosmiche, house, Balearic and everything in between with a rampant smile. The setting – a boutique space that had previously played host to a fashion show – gave that distinctive feel of a bespoke Harvey party, and was all the better for it.

Though there is some synergy with Movement’s famous sibling of the same name over in Detroit, with Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson and Carl Craig all appearing across the week, the Turin edition adds plenty of its own local personality to proceedings, not least due to those particular qualities that can only be achieved in a European setting, with a mostly European crowd. As such, this is an event any self respecting electronic music fan should visit at least one in their clubbing lifetime.

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movement.it

Words: Stephen Flynn