John Selway @ Club La Feria, Santiago, Chile. 5/09/2008

New York's John Selway is once again moving to the fore in the electronic music scene. He garnered much acclaim for his highly successful collaborations with Christian Smith, the duo released their album The Coming Storm on Sino records with the single 'Transit Time' getting a lot of playtime with the bigger names in techno. The past few months have seen releases on Dubfire's Sci+Tech, Adam Beyer's Drumcode and Steve Lawer's Viva Music.

I was delighted to discover this listing on arriving in Chile. I was, once again, treated to high quality techno in an intimate South American venue. Can life get much better? Club La Feria is located in what appears to be a residential area in Barrio Bellavista in Santiago's Centro. It is only when you walk in through the front gate that the hum of a bass drum becomes audible. The club itself is spread over two levels with the obligatory balcony looking over the dance floor. It has played host to many big names in the past such as Richie Hawtin, Ricardo Villalobos and Luciano. The latter two having strong ties to Chile and, therefore, I can imagine they were particularly raucous affairs.

John Selway arrived on stage at about 2.30am and played a very enjoyable and tough techno set until closing time at 5.30am(Irish legislators take note). DJing using Serato Scratch he gave all in attendance a proper exhibition of the more traditional/industrial side of techno. Think Drumcode and Intec. I am beginning to sense a huge resurgence in this side of things. That is absolutely fine with me. The crowd in attendance where, as always, friendly to, and inquisitive as to who, the stranger in their midst was. It was a great way to start my last weekend in South America.

John Selway is currently touring heavily around the world so I would expect him to make a visit to Irish shores in the foreseeable future. His latest remixes are available to sample on his MySpace page listed below.

http://www.myspace.com/selwaymusic

MySpace page for his collaborations with Christian Smith:
http://www.myspace.com/smithandselway

Ewan Pearson Speaks

Ewan Pearson has been writing short pieces for Germany's Groove magazine for the past couple of months. The brief was that it shouldn't be about records or the lifestyle of a DJ but more thoughtful or insightful. He has made some very interesting points and observations in his bi-monthly guest column to date. Covering topics from MP3 blogging to ears and general observations about the electronic music scene. His June 2008 piece has a particular resonance for me as it covers the notion of travelling in another country without a command of the native language. It's something I've been struggling with, but slowly managing over the past three months. I have really enjoyed the insights and opinions of one the scenes leading lights. I'm sure you will find something that strikes a cord with you too.

Ewan has posted his bi-monthly guest columns here. Check it out.

http://www.ewanpearson.com
http://www.ewanpearson.com/enthusiasm/
http://www.myspace.com/ewanpearson

Ewan's remix of The Foals - 'Olympic Airways' is available to sample on his MySpace page.

La Bomba de Tiempo - Buenos Aires

La Bomba de Tiempo is an improvised drum show under the direction of conductor, Santiago Vazquez. Every Monday the percussionists put on one of Buenos Aires' most electrifying spectacles. Completely improvised, two shows are never the same as the drummers adjust their rhythms and intensity at the sight of a nod or a hand signal from Senor Vazquez. Regular special guests and collaborators serve to expand the possibilites even further. Djs, guitarist and all manners of other performers have joined the drum troupe to create one-off musical pieces. The results are very impressive. The crowd is literally whipped into a frenzy as the rhythms slowly build up over long periods. The tension and sense of excitement grows to extreme levels before the drummers unlease a wave of fury as they attempt to break holes in their instruments using limbs, sticks and I'm pretty sure I saw someone headbutting a set of bongos at one point.
Every Monday the college crowd and a good portion of the city's visitors descend on the Centro Cultural at Konex to start the evening. Any visit to the Argentinian capital is not complete without witnessing these percussionists at their improvised best. You can sample some of their work on their myspace page.

http://www.myspace.com/labombadetiempopercusion
http://www.labombadetiempo.blogspot.com/