In comparison to the first day, I did not see so many gigs on Friday. I also spent a lot of time in the Bits zone.
We began the second day of the festival in the Auditori again, with Midori Takada’s show. First of all, she used the gong in order to put all of us in trance, and she continued to present a unique and mesmerizing show. Among the tunes, we might have recognised “Hanya Shinyo”, where Midori was hitting the cymbals with a chain. Then, she played “Another Story” and “Mkwaju” at the marimba. In the last one, it seems she was sometimes improvising. The marimba parts were the most animated parts of the show. In the middle of the show, she recited a poem telling the story of a coconut tree, followed by several pieces played at the marimba. She then played one piece at the tam-tam, which might be “Chang-dra,” the result of her collaboration with Masahiko Satoh. She ended with slow, theater-like movements, as she was playing the bells. Unique.
The following show was María José Llergo’s. She arrived with a guitarist, David Soler playing the pedal steel, and another musician in charge of the programmation. The beauty of her voice and her humility surprised everyone. She played “Niña de las Dunas” as the second tune, where only the guitarist accompanied her. She also presented “Nana del Mediterráneo,” saying she wrote this piece four years ago. We also had the opportunity to listen to the première of a tune to be published this week, composed with a producer of urban. “Me miras pero no me ves” was another great moment of the show. When the show ended, I saw people crying. One of the best concerts of the festival.
After this, we wen to the Adidas stage to see Pond, where a lot of people and wind were waiting for us. They began with “Daisy,” “Sweep Me Off My Feet” and “Tasmania.” The presence of the singer is very strong, and it’s impossible not looking at him. They played “Don’t Look at the Sun or You’ll Go Blind” from their first album, and a version a bit insipid of Madonna’s “Ray of Light.” They managed to get better results with the Bee Gees’ “Jive Talking” and ended with mind-blowing guitars on “Giant Tortoise.” Better than expected.
We then saw Just Mustard because it fitted my schedule, a shoegaze quintet led by a girl. A few people were here to see the gig of this band of youngsters who had a very powerful sound. They only have one album,Wednesday and one EP. We’ll have to see them in the future.
As we wanted to see a friend and as we were not really into anything at this hour, we saw again Fucked Up. Their set was very similar to their Wednesday gig, but this time, it included “Living in a celebration.” Another great show bit not as good as the one in the Apolo venue.
After this, we went to see Jawbreaker, one of the bands we really wanted to see. Those pioneers of emocore are a true legend. The sound was a bit low at the beginning, when they started with “The Boat Dreams from the Hill.” From that point, they chained loads of their best tunes. Even if the audience was not very big, the tunes were acclaimed. We could hear “West Bay Invitational,” “Chemistry,” “Condition Oakland,” “Jet Black,” “Ache,” “Save your Generation,” “Chesterfield King,” “Boxcar,” “Accident Prone,” “Fireman”… Between the songs, the singer made some jokes about who wanted to work in his textile factory. Very good.
As I had a small break between two gigs, I went to the merch area, this time in a remote position, and had something to eat. I then went to the Pitchfork to see the great Aldous Harding. She would have been perfect for the Auditori, where her playing with silence would have had sense without hearing Suede. Anyways, she managed to have our entire attention from the beginning with “Designer,” “Zoo Eyes,” the fantastic “Treasure,” “Damn” or “Old Peel.” I’d like to see her in better conditions. She really showed her uniqueness.
I was next to the Rayban Studios, where was playing Object Blue. Her live was less weird than I thought (you can have a look at the Boiler Room where she is invited to understand this). She was wearing an elegant dress, and we could almost always dance for the integrality of the set.
The beach was our next destination. We saw a bit of Overmono, who was playing with batucada. At last, this was the turn of two of the gigs I really wanted to see. First, Cybotron’s live. They were playing in trio, and gave us some of the best electro and techno classics. They began with “Industrial Lies” from 1983, followed by “R9” from 1985. After this, they played some classics like “Alleys of Your Mind,” “Cosmic Raindance,” “Techno City.” For the finale, they delighted us with “Cosmic Cars” y “Clear.” I was so happy that I could have eaten the sand without even noticing it.
Objekt’s live was impressive as well. I was a bit afraid of it, because it was one of his first lives. But it was mind-blowing. He began with experimental music, and passed swiftly to Jungle. He played “Lost and Found,” “Them from Q” and other tunes. I really had a good time.
We finished the day with Helena Hauff, whom we saw and said hello to during Cybotron’s live. We danced until sunlight.
