03.23
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For one contingent of EDM enthusiasts, this week hurts. Having to sit on our hands in front of our computer screens at work or at home while the biggest names in the business and their most devoted fans (or at least the ones who had a thousand bones burning a hole in their back pocket) gather in Miami to party, discuss cutting edge DJ technologies, party, preview the best new dancefloor burners, and, most importantly, party is…somewhat disheartening. Our wallets will be heavier, but so will our hearts. Those sacrificing their time and money will be rewarded with a busy week of music, dancing, warm weather, scantily clad ladies, intoxicants, and, of course, the Ultra Music Festival.
Don't miss Andy and Tom of Groove Armada play live on Friday night!
The Festival
I know you’re an educated crowd, so I won’t bore you with the details. Suffice it to say that Ultra is like the Glastonbury of electronic music festivals. It’s everything Electric Daisy Carnival strives to be and then some. The Friday/Saturday lineup is stacked with just about every act you could think of, from the current household names (Tiesto, David Guetta, Deadmau5, Swedish House Mafia) to the venerated pioneers of the genre (Orbital, Faithless, Groove Armada, Carl Cox, Afrika Bambaata). Ultra has it all covered. Big room trance? You got it. Breakbeats? There in spades. Dubstep? Dancehall? Electro house? Minimal techno? Hip-hop? All present and accounted for. There will be so many conflicts to sort through that your head will spin, though I hardly feel sorry for you there!
As far as recommendations go, please at least check out some of the more rare acts of the weekend. Why go to a fancy Italian restaurant and order off the kiddy menu, right? Consider scrapping your plans to see the omnipresent Deadmau5 on Sunday night in order to see Paul and Phil Hartnoll of the legendary Orbital show you where it all came from, or maybe leave “Hello My Name Is” David Guetta to the teenage girls so you can catch a masterclass techno set from Timo Maas, or even visit the breakbeatalicious Biscayne stage. My point is this: don’t just settle for the familiar. Expand your horizons! Having said that, here’s my top 10 for each day:
Friday: Groove Armada (live!), Eric Prydz, Carl Cox, The Crystal Method, Green Velvet, Timo Maas, Luciano, Fake Blood, Flying Lotus, Umek
Saturday: Orbital, Faithless Soundsystem, Swedish House Mafia, Bloody Beetroots (live), Ghostland Observatory, Afrika Bambaata, Japanese Popstars, Bassnectar, Sasha & John Digweed, Markus Schulz
The Parties
The amount of parties during the WMC is staggering. You’d think that the number of people eager to drop disgusting amounts of money on cover charges and fruity cocktails would be finite…guess not? The act of sifting through the laundry list of parties was both shocking (how can people afford these?) and depressing (why am I not one of these people? Why!?), but a few look pretty excellent and perhaps worth the skrilla if you are so inclined.
-Recession Sessions 2 @ Shine/Shelborne Beach Resort: Nic Fanciulli, Steve Lawler, Pryda, S.O.S., James Zabiela, Way Out West (live), Dennis Ferrer, Joris Voorn, and more
-VIVA Music @ Space Miami: Steve Lawler, M.A.N.D.Y., Tiefschwarz, Timo Maas, Radio Slave, Joris Voorn, and more
-HARD Pool Party @ Fontainebleau Miami Beach: Erol Alkan, Boys Noize, DJ Mehdi, Fake Blood, Jack Beats, Kelis, Annie Mac, Brodinski, Aeroplane, and more
-Poplife + Mad Decent + Fool’s Gold @ Electric Pickle: Congorock, Kill the Noise, Jokers of the Scene, L-Vis 1990, Breakage, Dre Skull, Flashing Lights, Nadastrom, DJ Sega, and more
The Rest of Us…
…get to keep tabs on all the fun from home, but hey, at least we have Coachella in 3 weeks! Sit tight!
© 2010, Rob. All rights reserved.
