a quick event review: Metalogic & James Holden

Went to see Metalogic and James Holden at Footwork last night.

Arrived with my friends early - really early. Maybe a little too early? We got in quickly - no waiting outside in the cold - to discover that the club still smelled of bleach and was empty. We found a nice little spot to sit while we waited for things to pick up and pick up they did!

Metalogic was a pleasant surprise for me. I didn't know what to expect from them. Their live set was tight and quite nice. I didn't expect it to be minimal tech. My friends do not like minimal music and so there was a bit of convincing that needed to happen for them to keep dancing with me. (I tried breaking down the music for one of my friends who seemed interested in hearing what it was I was hearing - I tried... but didn't make very much progress.) I also really enjoy it when the DJs seem to be enjoying the music they're spinning and they definitely were.

I have to be honest, I almost didn't go last night. I wasn't feeling particularly social - in fact I was feeling quite the opposite - after spending a day surrounded by people I ended up having to retreat home part-way through the evening to gather myself and have a few minutes alone. [This seems to be a recurring thing for me lately - I can't deal with large numbers of people I know in social situations. I just shut down completely.]

Just when I thought I was in heaven with Metalogic's minimal sound... came James Holden. Wow. James Holden made getting out of the house worth while - mixing new stuff with his older stuff... fairmont, nathan fake, MFA, his various remixes of tracks... wow. Some of his stuff was particularly heavy - a lot more heavy distorted guitar sounds than I'm used to from him. I haven't been at a club and been so blown away by the music in a very long time. I didn't want to leave when I did but I was tired, my legs felt like jello and I've got some things I'd like to get done today.

Kudos to you James - you did it again.

And for a lack of better choices of videos on youtube here's a part of one of James' sets from last year.