Ekko Fest 2009

Finally got round to writing a review for Resident Advisor from Bergen's Ekko Fest this year. The line-up was a great example of how smaller and more compact festivals can pick an astute and interesting line-up without the commercial constraints inflicted upon larger festivals. Suffering from a spot of Norsk swine flu and some sad news from back home detracted from my full enjoyment of the event but, some lager beverage medicine and good company made sure the stellar line-up was enjoyed as best possible. Losing it to Clark's delicate thrasing and merging of light and folksy sounds with crashing breakbeat and electronic noise was by far the highlight. Best new find of the three day festival was definately Velferd, who played a nicely executed live set that took in twisted disco and house sounds amongst many subtle layers. He is in fact also a member of the the band The New Wine from Bergen, who have been getting lots of attention in Norway this past year and will undoubtedly prop up elsewhere soon. Check them out here.

Photo: Clark rocking the Studio room at USF Verftet by Julie Arrive.

Sub-Urban Dexterity

Last week at Landmark, Bergen Kunsthall rocked! Over 200 heads were in attendance to see a line-up that wouldn't have been out of place as a mini festival. The roster included some spectacular landscaped visuals by VJ picks The DJ's vj Birk, Ekko Fest organizer DJ Asel, myself (DJ Uraki Riddim) accompanied by Julie Arrive's visuals, an exclusive debut for Brian D'Souza's new live work and a Norge treat in the form of Nabovarsel starlets Sanhueza and Tobii live. Big thanks to those who performed and attended. Check out some pics from the party below;

Photos: (from top: dj Asel & vj Birk, Uraki Riddim, Brian D'Souza & vj Julie Arrive, Sanhueza & Tobii live) by Ed Barber.

Out The Box

Passing through a wet and drenched Bergen amidst a brief sojourn through the West Coast of Norway brought up the discovery of some new cultural pearls recently. Originally planning to cover Berghain resident Len Faki's gig at the underground cave-like Teknikerkroen club in Bergen, plans had to change at the last minute due to Faki's postponement of the performance to a later date (supposedly he had a bigger gig!). A detour, arguably for the better, introduced a long running and classy soulful night in Bergen and the opportunity to visit one of Norway's youngest and most exciting societal hubs, Stavanger.

The Grand Terminus Hotel is something of a Bergen gem, combing classic Nouveau and Deco styles with a soft yet prominent vein of contemporary urban chic running underneath. The 1920s hotel is smack bang in the center of Bergen and due to it's geographical proximity to a grave yard, often is referred to as the funeral hotel. Sitting directly opposite Bergen's quaint train station and in front of a grave yard though only adds to this places charm and the feeling of a plethora of hidden stories. If a director could best capture the mood of this interesting corner of Bergen, and in particular the aura of the building, it would be fitting to suggest someone of Jim Jarmusch's style would fit. Black and white flooring, deep wooden whisky bar and high ceilings make this a place of class and what no better music to stem a night of music from for such a venue as jazz. In Grand Terminus the jazz is served cort and without the ZZs in the form of Jassbox. Long running and deeply funky, this night serves a potent start to an evening and draws a crowd as diverse as up and coming electro producers to fashion designers and fat beardy men (well dressed though). Hats off to organizers Espen Horne and Åse Langesæter who manage to bring in a melting pot of local and national djs every session with sounds from hip-hop, soul, funk and swing - all with a jazzy evening fresh vibe!

Photo: dj Fusa at Jassbox, Grand Terminus 24/7/09 by Julie Arrive.

FIXed

I was in Bergen a few weeks ago for The Fix party at USF Verftet, created by the people behind Ekkofest as part of Bergenfest. It was a strong line-up (featuring acts like Flying Lotus and Gang Gang Dance) for such a compact event and I was impressed enough by the party to write an article for Resident Advisor magazine.

Bergen is quite a small sized city compared to similar central European destinations but, it makes up for this with a core of cultural and nightlife activity from the heart of the city. While the venue for The Fix was a little away from the center, toward the end of the port, the walk was only about 15 minutes long from the main buss station. The actual venue, USF Verftet, is a former Sardine factory and provided an interesting array of cavernous passageways to mostly low ceiling rooms. Other places worth checking out in Bergen include Cafe Opera where you can enjoy a coffee while people watching during the day and get down to some of the cities finest djs every Friday and Saturday. I'll be back to Bergen soon, where I hope to find out a lot more about the city, it's people and it's artsy goings on. Until then I'd recommend booking a trip for September's Ekkofest which, promises to bring an exciting batch of electronic acts to a charming, cute and compact city.
Photo: Gang Gang Dance at The Fix by Asle.

The Fix - Resident Advisor article

I just got an article about The Fix party in Bergen published on Resident Advisor. You can read the review and leave any comments here. Resident Advisor have a couple of interesting parties coming up during Sonar week (June 18th - 21st) in Barcelona including acts like micro house pioneer Akufen alongside recent RA podcast contributers Thomas Brinkmann and Jus-Ed. The first part of the party is an invite only pool party but, things will heat up and open up regarding the door policy in the evening when RA takeover the newly refurbished Boulevard Culture Club, formerly Fellini. As well as some great parties it will be a great week for new music from the past year and an exciting look into the future so expect some exotic photos of long nights, short days and words about what went down pronto.