Well, it's that time again to recount and reminisce about all the good (and bad) that was 2011.
We have seen the nu-disco sound take the city by storm, with a lot of techno DJs jumping ship to this sound of the moment. It has been a welcome change, because for many, hearing the run-of-the-mill tech-house was becoming an instant-buzz kill. Now that this new sound has gained quite a bit of momentum, naturally there is cheese, repetition, and DJs that don't really know how to do it right. However, hearing a DJ like Jamie Kidd for example, who has expanded his mastery away from techno (which can be a restrictive genre in comparison) has had very positive outcomes. Other resident DJs who have been doing really well this year will be discussed below.
On the more mainstream side of things, a tidal wave of new comers have entered the scene, worshipping mega-stars like Avicii. I feel completely disconnected with this aspect of the scene, but although it is the more mainstream, glamorous cousin to ours, it is still refreshing to see new people enjoying the club life so thoroughly. One can only hope that after a couple of years these people will start enjoying the less-accessible, more acquired tastes that we enjoy. If so, this will be a breath of new life into the underground, which I think is very needed at this point.
On the trance side of things, although I do not really go to trance parties, it was a shame to see Vola close because they seemed to have a quite a regular, dedicated following. I also couldn't help but notice that fewer trance DJs played at Guvernment this year compared with last year. I'm not sure what this means for the trance scene in Toronto, but hopefully this year was just a blip.
I have to say though that I have been really enjoying the UK Bass and Dubstep sound this year thanks to artists like Kingdom, Pearson Sound and Appleblim. It's quite a bit different than the nu-disco sound I was digging a lot during the first half of the year, but it's different, the parties have a more relaxed, social party vibe, and it's just something fresh that I'm not used to. I look forward to delving into this sound/scene a bit more in 2012.
Here is a list of some of the best parties, DJs and sets of 2011:
Sets/Albums/Compilations (in no particular order):
Art Department Essential Mix
Kingdom Oki-Ni Podcast
Horse Meat Disco - Beats in Space Podcast
Tiger & Woods Beats in Space Podcast
Gera Dig Deep Podcast
The Kings Arms La Louche Podcast
Benoit & Sergio XLR8R Podcast
Pearson Sound Essential Mix
Mark E @ Honey Soundsystem
Four Tet Beats in Space Podcast
Weeknd - House of Balloons
Wolf + Lamb and Soul Clap - DJ Kicks
Dixon - Live @ Robert Johnson 8
Resident DJs:
Jamie Kidd (pretty much every time I've seen him)
James Teej (various Cherry Beach sets, Come Undone in January, and La Louce podcast)
Aaron Santos (Come Undone in January, La Louche podcast)
Gera (re: his Dig Deep podcast, or his opening set for Maceo Plex)
Jeff Button + Rich Hope (re: Bounce by the Lake madness)
Parties (in order)
Art Department @ Come Undone
Sweaty, invite only, warehouse rave. I had seen Kenny & Jonny before as Art Department and wasn't really sold on them yet, but on this cold night in January, they just massacred the place. The music they were playing was just out of this world, and the few songs people knew, they would just belting the lyrics out at the top of their voice. At 6am when the party got shut down, I remember looking around me and seeing every single person in the place dancing like it was the last night on earth. The amount of good looking women at this party also made it memorable. :p
Labour Day & Cherry Beach w/ Azari & III, Dirty Dale and The Roaches
quote:
Ridiculous. One of the best times I've had at Cherry Beach in recent memory. Dirty Dale was good from what I caught of him, one of the Azari & III group made a surprise appearance and rocked it. The Roaches played amazingly too (and played back to back). The crowd was loving it and it was a great atmosphere.
I'm sad that it was the last one for the season, but it definitely went out with a bang.
Ricardo @ Stereo
quote:
I was amazed with Ricardo last night.
The first 45 minutes of his set were absolutely incredible. After that, he did have some lulls, but he played everything I was expecting him to play and more. Segments of crazy percussion, really weird minimal segments, funky segments, a little bit of house.. There were about 4 or 5 moments in his set where he would have these craaaaazy builds and drops and had the crowd eating out of the palm of his hands.
Yes, as I said before, he did drone on at times, but that is the way Ricardo plays.
That is the best set I've ever heard him play.
Circo Loco @ TV Bar - DEMF 2011
quote:
I woke up at around 8 or 9 with texts telling me to go to Circo Loco. I had no ticket and no plans to go, but I was already up and had nothing else to do. What a great idea that was!
I arrived to Tale of Us playing in the main room and Visionquest playing on the terrace playing to a crowd of grooving people on an absolutely perfect sunny morning. I enjoyed Visionquest's set at Circoloco more than the festival. Seth Troxler stood out from the group with fresh sounding tracks that you don't really hear anyone else. After a couple of hours of harder edged techier stuff, Ryan Crosson (who had been the worst of out the group up until this point) came on for the final 30-45 mins of the set and catapulted the crowd into sun-fuelled bliss with this track:
We tried to get the "get down, jump up" thing going, and it only worked to an extent. Ryan continued to play happy, vocal house music for the rest of the set, which was just perfect for the weather. It was during this time that everyone on the patio was getting down, including the head of security (who was front-row centre), bar staff and barbacks. The head of security put all the patio umbrellas, telling us that there had been rain for 5 days straight, and that it was now time to enjoy the sun. How awesome is that? The entire staff of this club was just having the time of their life.
During Visionquest, and after they finished, I went inside to see Tale of Us, and WOW. I can't even describe the stuff these guys were playing. Chuggy, slowed down, brain melting music, on the best sound system I heard during the whole festival:
(Think of these songs, but pitched waaaay down)
There was one point during their set where it seemed like the majority of the club flocked to this room and was either dancing their asses of or just losing their minds. This was probably the best set I heard during the entire festival, and they were playing the entire time I was there (4 hours).
Tale of Us specifically at this party was just incredible.[/quote]
Sven Vath @ DEMF 2011
quote:
Sven on the other hand, wow. The expectations I had for this guy were mega-high, and he met them, and shattered them. He just destroyed the bowl. There isn't much more I can say about this set than, "pure destruction", and almost everyone I talked to agrees. After so many years of waiting for his return to North America, he certainly did not disappoint.
Skrillex @ DEMF 2011
quote:
This was crowd pandemonium unlike I had ever seen. I'm glad I was on the perimeter because I would have likely been trampled to death. It wasn't chin scratching music by any means, but boy was that ever a fun set and party.
Steve Lawler boat cruise
Lawler showed here that he still has it. He played a great set for a boat cruise during the day. Probably in the top 3 boat cruises I've ever been on.
What are your thoughts on this year?
LightsOut
Best Toronto Set: Robag Wruhme @ Spin Gallery (26.12.2010)
Guest
I definitely agree with you on the Labour Day weekend @ Cherry Beach, especially the night with the Roaches, Azari. The other night, which I can't remember the date, but had MO spinning a set in the rain was also unreal. , it was POURING, but everyone, I mean everyone was still busting a groove on the sand. That is why I love CB parties, the vibe and people are the best the city has to offer imo.
Other parties that really did it for me this year are as follows:
Trance:
-One of them was Super8 & Tab popping their Guv cherry in January. They mixed alot of classics with newer tunes and they didn't resort to alot of cheese as expected - I had a very solid night. Plus they opened with Illusions, one of Eric Prydz's best latest productions imo
-Another trance night which blew me away was the Halloween J00F Editions at Pacha Lounge. The guy delivers regardless of the venue... just utter destruction. Very intimate vibe due to the amount of people there and the layout of the club, which also proved to be more memorable than seeing him in front of thousands imo
The whole 'nu-disco/"deep" house' parties:
-Every single MLA event at FW. The one that stood out the most to me was with Richy Ahmed. Ahmed and then Nitin played a ridiculous set that night. I probably had the most fun this night because it was surrounded with a bunch of my closest friends all just grooving away.
-Late & Deep parties, hosted by The Deep North. These parties really just started in 2011, and proved to be another alternative to the mainstream clubbing scene while offering an amazing selection of music and rotating DJ's. This past December they flew in Sacha Robotti, who really threw down a good set. All the resident DJ's they've had playing for them every month (Kidd, Hush+Zaid, Nitin, Roman) have always been solid, and the vibe at these parties are some of the best I've experienced in the city
Techno:
-Probably the best experience I've had this year was Family Day at CZ. That Dubfire/Lio B2B set was INTENSE. Then Gary Beck hit the decks?! It was like rapture to me. Some intense techno was heard that day in the Zone.
-Carl Cox warehouse party. I can't really say anything that's already been said about this night, lol.
Prog:
-IN DIGWEED at the Guv. 'Nuff said. Lots of friendly faces, great vibe, plenty of room to dance, UGH. WONDERFUL night.
-Jerome Isma-Ae made his long-lost return to Toronto in 2011, and while it was at a less than desirable bottle service club (TIME), he delivered that rolling prog goodness that he's known for. I was going crazy in the front, dancing up a storm. In terms of prog, he stayed away from the overly synthy commercial stuff. He also belted out his classics, and opened with his mashup of "Flashing Lights+Beat It", which I've died to hear live ever since he opened with it at... Sensation? (Could be wrong here) Anyways, very solid night and I wouldn't have missed it for the world.
P.S. Since I'm a prog friend, this section should be huge, but really, the lack of good prog in this city doesn't allow for a big section :( I know that the boys @ "Prog Monkey" are doing their best to book prog artists, but I think there should be a more concerted effort. I also understand this can be a hard thing to do.
House:
-There was this one house jam I was at. It was at that Parliament St. location... the other side of the Zion Lounge. I can't remember the month, but it was a sweaty sleaze fest of some of the best actual house music I've heard, which was a refreshing change from what I usually listened to in live settings.
-I ing hate tech-house now. I really, really hope something is done in order to revive the sound because as it stands I can't go to anymore tech-house parties. Maybe more REAL and ACTUAL tribal nights? Not wannabe tribal tracks they insist are "real" tribal tracks.
________________________________
That was a brief summary from me. The highlight in 2011 for me was definitely the smaller more intimate parties and the "underground" jams. I think as I get older and as I develop musically in the EDM world, I tend to shy away from big places, other than going there to support my friends who are DJing or if a really, really, really big name ventures to Toronto.
jon jon
quote:
Originally posted by chris1011
-IN DIGWEED at the Guv. 'Nuff said. Lots of friendly faces, great vibe, plenty of room to dance, UGH. WONDERFUL night.
ya I had a lot of fun at this party, everything was on lock
jon jon
weird year to recap!
the standout party of the year for me was Buttrich/ Carlo Lio Labour day Monday at CZ...
my review is funny from that party...
quote:
Originally posted by jon jon
the room had the most intense party vibe, and a lot of ingredients came together in a big way... the return of Lio, labour day weekend vibe, Martin Butrich was like the celebrity guest host lol I find the changing of the seasons to be a variable as well on the epic party meter.
I was there from open (6am) to almost 4pm lol
A highlight was when the room erupted in clapping/cheering when Carlo came in the side entrance lol <3 CZ
Also the room gave Butrich the most ridiculous ovation after his set, he ended up playing an encore to return some love.
imo Nathan kinda stole the show, he had the biggest party moments... I think this set was recorded
--------------------------------------
I think the runner up party for me has to be Lee Foss and the "Modern Love Affair vol. 1" at Footwork, ushering in a new era in dance music for me... this guy was insanely hyped and delivered no problem.. Lee Foss is the real deal
jon jon
feelgood
For me...
Harvest Festival. Spent my entire night in the techno tent.
and High Contrast/Marcus Intalex at Guv. (April I think it was)
kaniz
Feels like I didn't get out much this year, and haven't been actively following the scene as much as I was in previous years. That said, my high-lights of 2011 are probably
- Mutek - loads of stand out acts, Daega Sound System, Elektro Guzzi, Radiq, etc to name a small few. It was one of those years where I was continually blown away by DJs/live acts that I'd never heard of before. Plastikman was the main draw for getting me there this year and loved the set, but musically - a number of other acts were better.
- GummiHz @ some loft on Parliament - god damn was that a sweat box. It was like dancing in a sauna and I'd need to take frequent trips outside for fresh air. But, if you were inside - you were inside to dance, and the place was going off my entire time there.
- Prosumer @ some loft on Parliament - This was a last minute choice to go. Wasn't in my books for the night, but a bottle of red wine later at 12am thinking 'I dont want to spend my night listening to music in-front of my PC, I'd rather be out dancing' - I hauled ass down there and glad that I did. Great crowd, killer vibe, music was great all night long and the place was going off. By the end of the night everyone was dancing like a freak, not just your 'one step two step shuffle', but busting out like I have not seen in a long time.
Yohan
Feels like another year where I didn't go out as much... Or I'm slowing down in my decrepit old age.
POTY probably is Lee Foss. And I caught him earlier in Miami. Deffo one of craziest things I've done to see a DJ, but paid off big time. Wish I went to more Modern Love Affair parties
Also enjoyed Digweed at Guv, Carl Cox @ Stereo, and small venue events like Scope @ Stone Lounge and Dana Bergquist @ School Bakery.
CODE
Hmmmm great year we had....
My Hightlights.
Bohemian Yacht Club w/Art Department was definately the best
cruise of 2011 in Toronto
Maya Jane Coles for Most Craziest Thursday Party ever in Toronto.lol
CHERRY BEACH FTW!
The Highroller
Can't believe I forgot Prosumer @ Parliament and Digweed @ Guv. Those two were great parties.
Come to think of it, I didn't go out to "scene" parties as much this year, but the ones that I did go to tended to be really good.
I went to a lot of good parties this year!
Endlesswave
quote:
Originally posted by feelgood
and High Contrast/Marcus Intalex at Guv. (April I think it was)
I was at that, last min too, it was crazy. Had such a blast.
Jon was your first pic of Marco V at Guv? His was the set of the night IMO.
