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DJ Alec Empire Showcase@DXO |
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Written by Lee Xin En
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For such a controversially popular and incredibly
talented electronic artist, DJ Alec Empire must have gotten a pretty nasty
shock when he saw the lukewarm crowd on the dance floor of DXO during his showcase on 20th September.
After all, not
only is he the founding member of hardcore activist group Atari Teenage Riot (ATR) , he is also the founder of Digital Hardcore
Records, as well as one of the most visionary electronic
experimentalists in the world.
If that's not enough to impress, he
has over a hundred releases to his name, having worked with top alternative
artists such as Nine Inch Nails, Rammstein and Rage against the Machine.
 Okay, so all that may not ring a bell
with the average Singaporean who is unfamiliar with the alternative or electronic
music scene (including yours truly), as evidenced from the empty dance floor
at DXO.
However, in all fairness, the quality of the crowd more than made
up for the lack of quantity.
As DJ Saito Nagasaki, better known as part
of the Australian Industrial rock Outfit ‘Divine9', hollered during DJ
Chris Ho's set, "Tonight is the convergence of alternative music
in Singapore!"
True enough, the dance floor looked a bit more like
the annual Cosplayers' convention rather than your usual night at
Zouk, as Saito tried to point out the different groups of people on
the dance floor - Punks, Goths and "Souls".
The opening acts were in a category
of their own though. Saito was clad in a black netted shirt with metal
belt buckles on one arm, while Chris Ho put on a mask and a really gorgeous
Betty-Boopish blonde wig. Charming.
The opening acts also included DJ Zul,
better known as Zul Othman, the music reviewer at Today newspaper. For an amateur like me to review his drums & bass
set would be a tad foolish. Nevertheless, it should be plain as to why he reviewed the Singapore
Idol contestants with such scathing disdain; this guy definitely spins
alternative music (and there is no better word for it).
Following DJ Zul, X'ho and Saito attempted to
work the crowd before Empire's arrival, but unfortunately, to no avail.
Sure, the music was pounding (nothing compared
to Empire's hardcore sounds though), and Saito definitely hollered
his lungs out that night, but the indie crowd obviously had minds...
and lungs of their own.
At the end of their performance, the crowd began to hurl some
choice words at Saito, insisting on Empire's appearance instead. After
all, they did pay 40 bucks ($35 for pre-sale) to watch the Berlin-born,
world-class artist spin.
 
The opening acts continued spinning till
about 1am, and the dance floor only consisted of about seven people. Half an hour later, Alec Empire finally appeared and he didn't disappoint,
with a rousing "I come all the motherf***ing way from Berlin and that's
all you can shout?"
When interviewed, a guy I met at the showcase, who professes to
be a super huge fan of indie music and was actually at Alec Empire's
last showcase in Singapore (at Zouk, about 10 years ago), told me gleefully:
"I think Alec got angry...so he went crazy and started spinning like
a madman."
And I can second that.
I've seen pretty crazy crowds
and deejays in Thailand and clubs in Cambodia but Empire - he brings
clubbing to a whole new level of hypnotic, pounding rhythms, and the crowd
clearly enjoyed themselves.
As critics
say, Alec Empire is the missing link between hard dance music and punk
metal. Whatever that means, it definitely re-defined adrenaline-pumping
for me.
Alec Empire has also been touted as one
of the most politically articulate electronic artists in the industry
today. He's in the Greenpeace campaign against global warming,
so you can think of him as a fiercer, meaner, leaner, and surprisingly, blonde-r
Bono with more eyeliner. Indeed,
Empire is actually very attractive in a scary (read: loud) way.
His political activism was clear
right from the start of his showcase, when he repeatedly howled at the
crowd: "Are you going to be part of the problem or part of the solution?"
However, the few whimpers of "Solution!" pretty much drove Empire into a wild spinning frenzy. His punk roots
emerged early in the show as well, with a spoken section about political
activism, commenting on the war in Iraq as a blood transfusion for oil, which eventually led to an unrestrained, fierce aural mayhem.
People-watching was also one of the highlights of the night, to me at least. From executives (judging from their office wear) to gothic-looking
youngsters, it seemed like every chunk of society was represented.
There were also a couple of unique individuals with pink extensions, seemingly having a good time on the dance floor. Speaking of dance, the dancing styles were also pretty diverse,
with a bunch of guys who looked like they had just downed 20 cans of Red
Bull (each), jumping around the entire dance floor like maniacs.
If it weren't obvious enough, let me reassert the fact that I'm not a fan of alternative techno music. However, being able to bring fans of diverse genres
and lifestyles together with an artist whose changing styles of music
over the years have incorporated everything from hard metal, punk rock
to an occasional infusion of jazz, this event was pretty amazing.
For those who are interested to find out more about Alec Empire's music, be warned - Alec Empire seriously
assaults the ears. hooked
Promo picture courtesy of Thobias Fäldt
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Written by Guest on 2008-09-29 12:15:17
please do some reading up before comparing our punk community with cosplayers. Thanks. |
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