|
here's my review from that weekend......
This weekend was the most hyped up weekend ive ever been a part of. Not only because of Cream, but also because it was my first time in the city. You could also say Misstress Barbara at Piknic Electronik and Aria had something to do with it as well. Then another factor was i was a fraction of an inch from not going at all, with my sister getting in a serious accident. All of these factors made this weekend an unforgetable experience.
.
.
Friday night we arrive to Montreal, check into our small yet efficient hotel. Took a little nap, then hit the town. First thing you notice in this city is the ladies. My god. I felt like such a dirty but i couldnt help but look. We hit a little pub, scarfed down some fish n' chips and beer. We then hit Saint Catherine street and walked for quite a bit. Lots of action all over the place, even the Montreal Film Festival was going on. Probebly the most surreal environment ive ever witnessed as our group walked in front of a big screen showing a spanish ballroom dance movie with THOUSANDS of frenchies just sitting there in awe. So wierd. Went back to the hotel where we met Erika and Malek. We hit the town again, this time our destination was a little pub style place. We were meeting Louis there, and at first glance, this place was beyond ghetto. We head straight to the patio - and what a setting it was. The walls of the building surrounding us were around 50 feet high, completely covered in vines. The lighting was dim, and there were little trees amongst the tables we sat. So nice. Got pretty shit faced there, and after some "trunk sambuca" we head over to Aria.
.
.
We arrive to Aria. From the outside, this place looks like an abanded building. But after entering we witnessed what an established after hours scene is supposed to look like. Very dark, underground feel to this place. Great sound (although its not as good as Boa), and an excellent setup. The people really go hard. The music, even though it was all local - was top notch. Mini started out things perfectly with a nicely crafted tech-electro set that got our whole crew rocking out from the get go. It was about this time where i met a girl from Halifax (Erin) with her crew. Once introduced to our whole TOTA group, the connection was made, and the journey began. We danced our asses silly, to the point where i started to think i may need surgury to repair my left foot. Mini finished off her wonderful set, and Yaz followed where she began, but took us to the dark side. Still with electro influenced sounds, but more on the techno side of things. With the exception of one VERY LARGE trainwreck, he spun a gem of a set and it was a perfect intro to the main event....Preach. This guy is a superstar in his own right. The second he took to the decks, you felt his presence. His style was so unique, and track selection was flawless. Probebly the best techno set i have ever heard. We rocked it out right until close (11:00am). So much for taking it easy. Crashed by noon, and was a write off for all of Saturday and that evening.
.
.
Sunday i woke up from my deep slumber completely out of it and still aching from Friday. Went to Mister Steer for two medium rare burgers, then proceeded to the Subway to hit Piknic Electronik. What a concept!! I cant tell you how refreshing this was. To be able to soak in the sun, relax with friends in a relaxing environment, and listen to great music was something i have never experienced before to this degree. The diversity of the crowd was too cool, especially seeing young parents out with their little kids dancing their little butts off! With all this being said, lets get to the music.......
.
.
Dj Yaz started things off around 1:00pm, a lot more chill than he was for his previous set at Aria (on Friday night). Electro influenced house, with a hint of funk. Very appropriate track selection, not only to warmup Barbara, but to start the day off in the sun proper! I recognized a few tracks, cant id any of them - but i definately recall him playing two tracks off of Coleridge's march mix (disc one). He spun a little longer than expected and MB*BB hits the decks around 4:30.
.
.
Immediately Barbara's impact is felt as the whole crowd goes complete apeshit!!! By this time the whole P.E. area is packed, people pounding back the wine, and puffin on doobs as if they were cigarettes. I swore to myself i wouldnt spend too much energy on this day (with Cream happening immediately after), but i should've known better. Absolutely smokin set by Barbara. The softest set ive ever heard of hers, but by soft i dont mean light n fluffy. It was just funky-ass-shakin, fun, house music. Her signature latin sounds were felt througout, but she also tossed in a little electro and techno as well. I think the best reaction to a track from the crowd had to be the Scumfrog track mixed with Kelis' Milkshake vocals. Man that was a fun track!! As the set progressed, i couldnt help but notice....the crowds energy was not letting up!!??? It's now close to 8pm, the place is still rammed, and now Barbara is taking us on a bit of a techno trip (much to the likings of Sarah). I stayed til about 9 o'clock, but wouldve stayed right til the end if it wasnt for my Montreal pizza craving and the fact that Cream started in less than an hour. Oh well, so much for saving energy. Nice seeing Skipper, and Rude124_7 bustin it out all day. Looks like ill be back in Montreal for Labour Day weekend for part two of MB*BB @ P.E. next year.
.
.
Now come the jitters. Not too sure if it was the fact i'd been partying all day, or if it was just excitement from Cream being just a half hour away. Threw down a couple pieces of Pizza, then head over to the Bell Centre. Enter the building quite quickly and was in complete awe of the massive dance floor below us. As soon as we hit the floor, i immediate noticed how strong the bass was. Almost took your breath away when you stood close enough to the speakers. Alan Vinet was a good warmup, but really was blown away by Mr. Masiello. Jesus this guy can rock a crowd. He came on at 11:30, and by judging the reaction to the crowd you wouldve thought it was 3:00 at the peak of the party. Dirty, chuggy, prog house that just set me off. Even though his set was kinda short, definately one of my favs of the night. Digweed came on, and at this point the place is livid. So bumpin and full of energy, and EVERYONE was dancing. Something you never see in Toronto. And when its 10,000+ people dancing at the same time, its something that cannot be described in words, but must be witnessed. Digweed got quite dark at times, and his basslines killed me. Then came Sander. For about an hour, i was kind of just feelin him out, not really going full out. But after a little toot on the doobie, Mr. Floorwhore hit the floor and completely went off. I was joined by Andy (Slyguy), and we took to the front stage. It was like an electronic soultrain, people facing off in friendly dance battles trading smiles and gestures and just letting off the best vibe ive ever been a part of. After Sander finished, Ferry came on. I was still going pretty hard at this point, and for the first 3 tracks i was still tearing it up. But realized i would have to save a little bit of energy for Deep Dish, as they were slotted to play for four hours. We sat in the stands, for almost his whole set - i then took to the floor to psych myself up for the journey Deep Dish was about to take me on. Un-Fucking-Believable. Sleep Dish they were not. So upbeat, lacing us with their patented out of the blue basslines, the boys from DC were in top notch form. Dirty progressive house at its finest, with a hint of tribal, trance, and even breaks (much to Rob's liking). Proceeded to spend every single ounce of energy i possessed, and then some. Stayed right until the lights came on (12:15pm), and Rob and i, the only survivers from our crew, made our way to the exits.
.
.
This party wouldnt have been half as good if it wasnt for the great people in our crew. Graham, Rob, Aaron, Andy, Perrin, Alex, Dee, Erika, Malek, Louis, and the Foursome from Halifax (Brendon, Brent, Jen & Erin). This was truly a wonderful experience, and though ive typed alot, word cannot fully describe how good this weekend really was. Til next time Montreal - Keep it rockin, and keep the dancefloor wet for me.....ill be back sooner than later.
___________________
Website / Facebook / Soundcloud
|
