3. Moonlight Wonders
On the more lunar side, the remote little stage properly called
Mondstage was blasting tactical slow beats of industrial flavor via
Heap. The record mage and producer may be familiar as the founder of Vienna based record store
Discus Throwers. The imprint is known to host a variety of gems and instant classics – a direction backed by Heap’s work as a producer, previously released on
ESP Institute.
Right after, the live performance by
Geier aus Stahl extended the introspective wit to time travel dimensions, unleashing old school sounding minimalistic sequences marked by crunchy vocals of
SPK heritage. This thing could trigger a flood of memories for whomever spent their youth as a tape noise haze of 90s nostalgia.
On the Main stage the intensity increased, two sets later a cloud of holographic sparkles was hovering over the dancefloor thanks to these two guys who were giving away glitter and silver and golden gloves to complete the Sailor Moon transformation. There’s that point at a disco party when you arrive too late and you’re too dark so you can either choose to sit on the side or just go for it without overthinking it that much. Joining this senseless madness is a bit like falling in love – once you step in you can’t be judged by sober law, and the party is a whole lot different from within. Reminded me of what game studies likes to label as the ilinx state of space and time disruption. One couldn’t nerd around too much into the vortex about the DJ casting rare disco anthems, and whom the timetable described as
Afrika Bambaader. So he remained a mystery, especially that there’s almost no information anywhere online related to the name. Almost, since breaking down the alias takes us to
Bad Boy Baader, a mysterious figure who once reblogged a Disco Sigaretta track on a stellar disco Soundcloud profile.
Meanwhile, at the Mond satellite, we found
As Longitude setting up intricate gear and preparing for a very alert live set which showed how communication works ideally within a duo sonic team. The very much expected performance of
Eva Geist and
Laura Odl rolled into punk and spacey electronic rhythms and layered textures. Melodic lines morphed at organic pace feeling overwhelming and spontaneous.
Right after, a selector sporting a
Coil t-shirt – who goes by the name
El Tigre Sound – delivered probably the ultimate true and cult industrial old school in-depth mix of the festival. The vinyl selection showed striking coherence weaving experimental sounds into post punk gems such as The Sisterhood – “Rain from Heaven” or The Sound – “New Dark Age”. “The Heat”, Italian new wave obscurity from Faust’o sounded magnificent, as the whole mix kept a deep and mysterious vocal register. The set channeled the right amount of edge and nostalgia, and it was unexpected how an introspective utterance as such could create an overall unifying dancefloor experience. It’s the kind of mix to send to your post punk friends from the late nineties, who tried to laugh at your initiative of attending a forest disco festival. It’s also the kind of fluid audio story that can be heard over and over and kept somewhere on a mixtape with renaissance tarot artwork.
Sunday came with a glowing sunrise and highlights that made it unforgettable. Magic happened in the packed and minuscule tent where
Albion,
Sacha Mambo and your usual
Macadam Mambo allstars played possessed funk rhythms keeping the chord progression even and the dance pumping while shifting through zillions of brazen tracks. The tent was tiny and filled with dancers, people climbing on things and building a dynamic in such way that no one could sit down for a second, despite the minute space and the demanding all nigher. Exploring the dancier side of industrial and new wave, Sign Bit Zero label head
Killian Krings, hailing from Leipzig, kept the Mond stage on the reflective side.
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