Winnipeg music & culture since 1989
by Martyna Turczynowicz
Winnipeg-based John Norman has played everywhere from Toronto to London to Ibiza and major festivals like Detroit Sound. Last year, he signed to KMS records. Kevin Saunderson and Carl Cox have been playing his mixes internationally. Now, the homegrown DJ is back for a stint as artist ambassador for the 2014 MEME festival. Continue reading “MEME 2014 :: Local DJ John Norman to be artist ambassador”
by Daniel Emberg
Summertime signals a bevy of exciting festivals throughout Manitoba and fine music may be heard ringing across cities, woods, and lakes. One of the busiest weekends for festivals will be August 16-18, and here we focus on three festivals taking place during that stretch, which hint at the wide range of options available to Winnipeg music lovers. Continue reading “August Festival Round-up”
MEME (Manitoba Electronic Music Exhibition)
Saturday, June 25, 2011
@ The Cube in Old Market Square
By Shanell Dupras
Free, good music that you can hear bumpin’ all through The Exchange? Check. An entertaining audience to watch while you tap your feet? Absolutely. Sounds like a great night? Yes, and no. Unfortunately I could not make it for the entire concert, but I did get the chance to see three local acts: JNL, Sisk, and Phaze-M. Keep in mind that these kinds of concerts are hard to review due to how they make their music. It seems difficult for them to mess up their sets unless they accidentally press the power button on their MacBooks.
The first DJ that I saw was JNL. His music had insane bass lines that I couldn’t help tapping my feet and bobbing my head to. With a great beat, always come interesting dancers of course. It was the typical rave dancers: neon everywhere, the constant smell of weed and… free hula-hoops for everyone! Thankfully the dancers were entertaining, because JNL failed to do anything interesting at all. I understand it may be difficult to move around during a set, but even a fist pump would have been exciting. JNL wasn’t the only victim to this though, all three DJs I saw that night were not entertaining to watch at all. Maybe I’m just nitpicking, but concerts should be entertaining to watch, not just to listen to.
Following JNL was DJ Sisk. One great things about these kinds of concerts is set up time in between artists is under five minutes. Sisk was the DJ of the night that could hook me in with extremely catchy melodies that I found myself humming afterwards. Apparently others thought the same since the crowd grew during his set. My only complaint with DJ Sisk is that at times his loud and obnoxious bass lines began giving me a headache from the vibrations.
As it began to get dark, the Cube began to light up in neon colours that complimented the dancers’ outfits. This made it more of a spectacle since the DJs still weren’t moving around at all on stage. By 8:20 Phaze-M had started his set, the neon lights changing to the beat of his songs. His first song had vocal appearances, which was a nice change of pace from the bass oriented songs from JNL and Sisk. Sadly, as his set went on it began to sound more like those two: bumping bass lines with simple, yet catchy, melodies. Which isn’t always bad, just repetitive. At least there was a slight change, right?
I ended up leaving after only three sets because after three hours of bass that could be heard all through the Exchange and beyond, I was beginning to get a headache. Overall, MEME was entertaining, although this music might have been better suited to their club shows, where alcohol may make more people motivated to dance. (Beer gardens just aren’t the same.) The music was worth it, although it is strange to say that I stood out like a sore thumb amongst all the neon coloured dancers.
About to begin its second year, Manitoba’s first electronic music festival is getting ready for four electric days and nights.
Starting tomorrow, June 23 and running until Sunday, the Manitoba Electronic Music Exhibition (MEME) features a slew of aural and visual talent. International headliners include Thomas Fehlmann (Berlin, The Orb) and Dandy Jack (Geneva) alongside national and local performers like Hitori Tori (Vancouver) and Winnipeg’s own Venetian Snares and LeBeato. Meanwhile, visual artists Amber Solstice, mrghosty, Rylaan Gimby, and jaymez, among others, will be busy keeping your eyes entranced.
Inspired by Montreal’s legendary Mutek festival, MEME’s free outdoor performances at Old Market Square and club shows are where people have the chance to be exposed to local and international talent they might never hear otherwise. And the festival organizers have injected more international flavour into the festival this year. “A lot of the music is dance music, but a lot of the songs are quite listenable,”says Nathan Zahn, producer and DJ. He’s also excited about the beer gardens and food stalls, which were absent last year. “It’s nice for people to come out on a warm afternoon and enjoy the sun, or in the evening, to come and dance, sit and hang out with their friends.”
The shows at the Zoo, Whiskey Dix and Alive will also be different from your usual club scene. Zahn is enthusiastic about showcasing music that’s not your standard Top 40 and projected visuals which will make for a more immersive experience. International and local VJs promise that MEME will be more than just a music festival. “A lot of them are cutting and pasting from classic TV shows, cartoons. The whole thing about VJing is that it’s not just some people putting on some cool visual show; they’re actually mixing different sources of visuals live, almost improvising,” Zahn explains.
This year’s event also involves two half-day workshops on June 24 and 25 on how to make electronic music, with presentations from performing DJs.
Visit www.memetic.ca to see what you’ll be hearing and where.