29/04/2013

Burnt house rave

The last track was too youthful


Hello ghetto by Jarmo the Gifmeister

 There was a special party called "Kuri Karjas" in the center of Tallinn. It took place in a burned house. Just a cross the street from a mainstream club. The event took place on a Wednesday night at around midnight. Everything was charred, there were walls missing and holes in the ground.

Friendly faces everywhere

One of the rooms looked like a meth rape commercial with a single mattress in the middle of it and no lights on. There were also fire extinguishers spread around the windowpanes and next to the stages and heaters.

The "meth rape room"

One of the guys who had no respect for the fire safety was Dj Fabrique. In the heat of the night he played his new mash up of 212 and Firestarter. His set included new ghetto electronics from around Europe.

Dj Fabrique dropping Bass

His bass was so hard that the speakers cable kept getting loose. All of this "reminded" me of old raves where you had to call someone or some number in order to find out where the rave was going to be that night.

Bar and the power.

Hanging at the bar

There were quite some scenesters present as well and I'm a bit surprised the night wasn't mentioned in other media afterwards. Strangely enough I think it was sponsored by a new drink. What better/worse place to endorse your new drink.

Kiwa

The first dancers

Then again maybe the cutouts were there to add to the crowd of the house. I left somewhat early and didn't see the biggest crowd, but the atmosphere was potent when I was there, or maybe it was just the mixture fog and smoke.

There's never a place for the plates

There were also incountable birthdays happening during last weekends. Things went down and  photos were taken. Here's a peek for you.

The simplest punch I've ever had.

I have been missing for some time from the interwebs as I have been completing my new record. Also we spent a weekend with my good Swiss friend, shooting a music video for one of the coming tracks. I can't promise anything else then I will not hog it once I get it.

Shooting the video at my studio.

I will write about the process of making it once it's close to done. Meanwhile swing by soundcloud and get some of my tracks or invite Fluon to your event.

See you soon
Barthol

14/04/2013

Tallinn Music Week 2013 part 2

Respect to the team of Tallinn Music Week!

Hey

Continuing the Tallinn Music Week recollections. Here is part one. So on Friday night after I was in Bibabo to see Cubus Larvik. I headed over to Von Krahl for the delegates' bar and the showcase.

Ranglekodz? Rangelkodse? Oh Rangleklods the only act with a harder name than mine.

I managed to squeeze myself in to listen to one and a half songs by Rangleklods. I haven't seen any starting bands working the stage in such a professional way. After them I didn't try to elbow around and I just enjoyed the spaciousness of the bar.

A girl lost in the men's room

My main assignment was to be present at the Red Bull Music Academy showcase with Dj Zinc headlining. I raced to the last tram and headed over to F-Hoone at around midnight. It's hard to pass Baltijaam without getting a tšeburek, so I did it. F-Hoone's empty rooms seemed like a bliss when compared to the mass of sweaty bodies at Von Krahl.

Two school teachers waiting for Zinc to come on.

My joy was shortlived as 40 minutes later people started pouring in and the place got packed tight. Even the wardrobe didn't accept any more clothes. I go to the farthest room to wait for Zinc to go on.

Dancing on the tables at F-Hoone.

Zinc comes on and his House and DnB fans gather to the dancefloor. Zinc played his Crack House stuff and most of the people didn't mind. I slipped out of the tight crowd and looked at the show from the door. My patience paid off as in 20 minutes enough people left and I got to dance in the first row for an hour or so. There's also a guy sitting on the ledge in the first row. I wondered if it's "the one guy who will always be at the show asking for DnB". 10 minutes later he started bullying Zinc for DnB. The security soon escorted him out.

Ecstatic from music or ecstasy. 

I get to the Nordic Hotel Forum a bit later on Saturday morning. The main panel I want to hear is the "Check My Demo" one. I fuel the day with some coffee, beer and snacks. Vul Vulpes plays a short set in the lobby. Why do recently all the people want to leave their bands to do a solo show? I've been asking around to find out about the Finnish reception to see if there's a free place for that. My Finnish friend sorts me out in 10 minutes. Next I drop my demo to the big brown box and I hope that my lottery luck would be better than usual, better than last year.

The Delegate pass has taken a beating.

I spend the Demo panel listening to one indie band after another accompanied by cider. I have to switch to beer halfway through. Someone has added a record by a world famous metal band, most of the other "demos" are actually official records and one of them is even from Universal Finland. Like usually I don't get picked. I head over to the Finnish reception. I'm not sure I met any Finnish people there but I did meet people from Germany and Norway. Two most epic Finnish tracks were played as well: Freestyler and Sandstorm. They held a draw and I didn't get picked.

Odd Hugo at Sõprus

For the first act of the night I go to see Odd Hugo and I pick up some delegates on the way and invite them along. While their genre isn't generally my thing, their live show is so intense and charismatic that it's impossible to resist.

New mates from Russia

I go by the compulsory Von Krahl showcase and try to catch the bus to Köleri 2 from the Nordic Hotel. After 15 minutes of waiting I head inside to the TMW info desk to get an explanation. The bus driver appeared to be missing. Altogether I waited for an hour for that bus and missed the Russian act I wanted to see there.

Russian army humor

I'm glad I still went there, as I got to meet and hang with those Russian guys. We had vodka in the backstage area, recorded us singing "Sunglasses at night" and talked about everything. I also met a pair of Latvian womanagers. They were there to listen to Deeper Upper. After their performance I got all of them on the party bus and we headed over to Von Krahl.

Latvian Womanagers.

There we saw a Finnish act called LCMDF, they blew my mind and all I could compare them to was Oprah on coke. Don't ask me why. The next acts was MIM project's threshing trance. It was blocks of styrofoam being beaten with bats to trance music.

Threshing that styrofoam.

The styrofoam had microphones connected to it so it was kind of an instrument. At that point I was too tired to enjoy a beating, but it was hardcore.

That guy took some home with him and continued there.

Me, the womanagers and two guys from Slippery Slope grab some beers and head out towards the afterparty. On the way we drop by the band guys' place and drink the beers and listen to some music. We finally make it to Partei at around 4 and there's not too many people there, but I see Osku there.

Ending the Tallinn Music Week at the hotel room.

He's a Finnish sound engineer I met a few years back in Von Krahl. We celebrate with Jaegger. The music is really good, but they close at 6 already so there's nothing else left to do, but head over to Nordic for an hotel afterparty...

See you soon,
next post will be about the burned house rave.
Barthol

09/04/2013

Tallinn Music Week 2013 part 1

Aren't you Barthol? I have your music from last year

Tallinn Music Week keeps getting better by the year. (Here's last year's post) This time I didn't have to worry about soundchecks and getting the delegates to the venue as my role was to write you about everything there was to experience at music week.

The festival takes its toll.

The first thing on the agenda was the Latvian reception at Must Puudel. The core of the Latvian reception always are the numerous shots of Riga's balsam they hand you. There were also bands playing and one of them used to be called Brainstorm, but as you probably know, it takes about 15 well placed people to fill up Must Puudel, so I gave up on trying to see them on the stage.

After all the Rigas Balsams at the Latvian reception.

Five or ten shots later it was time to go to the main delegate reception at Von Krahl. I took two Germans journalists with me and on the way there we found some lost Latvians delegates as well for our convoy. There had been some snacks at Must Puudel, but when we made it to Krahl we saw that we had missed the real feast. We didn't mind as there were still drinks waiting for us.

It's a shame when your only pants get drenched in red wine on the first night.

I also met Jussi there, the first person, whom I knew from last year's music week. I managed to see Pastacas and Mr Garfield there before heading over to Sinilind to see Chinawoman. There it was, the same that usual, the place was packed so tight that it was almost impossible to get out of the main room. As I am in no way a fan of being stuck between people, I elbowed my way the hell out and didn't see any Chinawoman.

Finnish VIPs.

I did meet another old friend at Sinilind, Chris from last year. We celebrated our reunion and discussed plans for the nights. I thought it might be the first time in my life I make it to Club Hollywood, as the Bass music showcase was held there, but as things turned out I didn't.

Apparently you also need management.

Next morning the president was giving a speech at the opening. Full seemed to be the way of TMW. Yet again the hall was too full to fit in and hear what the president was saying. Last year he commented on the fresh political issue of Pussy Riot being jailed, but it seems he never ceases to amaze the foreing delegates.

The President's speech.

Another flashback from last years was the bubbly that was served at 10 in the morning. All the foreign delegates always enjoy and comment on it. I guess it's very Estonian to drink champagne in the morning. I was in and out of the different panels as I had heard the same or similar panels last year as well. I felt like a zomby because I hadn't slept that much.

Trying to figure out who to give their promo CDs.

The most interesting panel of sorts was the Red Bull Music Academy talk with Dj Zinc. He was playing the same night and told people about how he had started out and about his history up until now.

A local DJ made Zinc sign like twenty different releases.

There were some interesting bits, like the fact that when the instant messenger came out then productivity fell. Also how Dj Hype was very blunt with his feedback about Zinc's bassline being shit and why it took Zinc two years before he agreed to visit Red Bull Music Academy. I promise I'll come over faster.

The Biit crew when I arrived.

After the talk I swang by Biit record store, but the City stage part had already ended there, so I just hung around until it was time to Head over to Bibabo. There Cubus Larvik gave a mind blowing performance. Two stoic performers. One standing, the other sitting and a web of light pulsating behind them to the rhythm of music. It sounded like Vladislav Delay during a polar night. I haven't been in a trance like that for a while.

Cubus Larvik taking it to the next level.

I was pleasantly surprised also by Rangleklods whom I at first mistook for my new favorite Estonian band. It all fell into place when I was explained that they are Danish. Their big stage feel was awesome and I recommend you see them play if you have a chance.

To be continued...
Read last year's part 2 while you wait.
Barthol

01/04/2013

Raving with the cops

your blog is not about Estonian Nightlife, it's about young open creative people having crazy fun time - which is a lot better!!



This was one killer weekend. The type of "killer", that takes two days to bounce back from. All this bang from two parties on two nights. Listen to my remix of Princess Superstar - Perfect while you read on.



Dj SS Fabrique being a pimp with his brandy flask.

On Friday I went to celebrate the birthday of Kalvik - house master of Rakvere. It took place in Snakehouse like the Hotel Salvador party last time. I really like that venue, it has a good layout and an easygoing crowd. There was also a band rehearsing behind the wall.

Birthday boy Kalvik with an affezionato.

Everything started (and for some ended) with a big white bucket of punch. I had seen the ingredients before they mixed it together, but from the taste you couldn't tell it kicked like a mule.

Punch waiting for the victims.

People showed up, some wearing the suggested sunglasses, had the punch and some cake. At first they just kind of stood around and talked about stuff, but as the punch settled in some of them went wild on the dancefloor.

The other birthday boy.

At first the Djs started playing house, but I heard Fabrique had dropped some serious stuff later in the night. I went around looking to capture any of the action for all of you. Not everything fit into this post, but you can imagine what went on.

Special points for style to these two.

On Saturday we went to a rave at an artists' squat. The buildings an old dormitory, but the last floor has been taken over by some people.


The secret location that you had to call for to find it lit with a single candle.


The rave was to celebrate two people moving abroad and a birthday of a third individual. It's one of the wildest parties I've visited lately.

The doorman inviting me in.

The place itself was really intriguing. Just rooms and rooms and rooms next to each other. Some were full of people smoking, one of those hid a second stage.

The second stage with girls dancing.

There was an occasional couple kissing in the built-in closets and people with bottles everywhere. And another room where people where staring at closets, imagining monsters crawling out.

Some people love playing all red.

Apparently at some point three thugs came to the party and went around offering cocaine to people. I can't confirm that rumor, but I did have some Pisang with champagne. It was slightly better than the rum with beer I had at Von Krahl.

Girls do this when they want to make your neck hurt.

At some points the cops arrived and wanted to bust the party. The hotel two stories down had called them because of the noise that kept their guests up.

The secret bar.

The cool thing was that as this was a squat, technically no one was the host of the party and they couldn't fine any one. This was enough of a mind fuck for the cops so they left it at that and went away.

Who invited the party-poopers?

We continued raving and probably the "levels-to-the-red" Dj went back on, so the cops came back for another time. They threatened to get all of us into a bus and take us on a field trip.

Write everything down so you don't forget in the morning.

One of the hosts stepped up and got the police to leave so we could go on. I managed to find a guy who was giving vodka shots from a bottle at the dance floor of the other stage.

Girls who like boys who like boys who dig girls who like boys...


It was the last time to have a dance as it was already around 4 am and people were either leaving or passing out.

Coming or going, in or out.

I made it back to my place at around 7, but managed to fall on my ass for the first time this winter. Might have been that the party's epicness had gotten me weak at knees.

Never give up (drinking)!

See you soon!
Barthol