Global Festivals’ Bubble Bursts
Malawi's Lake of Stars: Cancelled
30 British music festivals went bankrupt last year, the Independent newspaper noted last week, in a feature which asked the question ‘are our field days over?’
Citing ‘an increasing feeling that festivals have shifted too far from their original hippie-spirited ethos’, writer Lena Corner blamed corporate sponsors for diluting many events’ sense of ‘alternative reality’ while eFestivals guide chief Scott Williams identified a new breed of ‘festival tourists’ for doing the same thing.
“(The festival tourist) is someone who would never have dreamt of going to a festival 10 years ago,” he said.
“They saw that festivals were fashionable so they go out and buy all the right kit from the high street – Cath Kidston tent, Hunter wellies”.
“The popular festival bubble has burst,” he declared. (Independent: http://ind.pn/wuuhAu )
Cowell To Compete With ‘Superstar DJ’ Show
Producers for an upcoming European DJ talent show ‘Superstar DJ’ reacted angrily to the news that Simon Cowell’s Syco Entertainment is planning a rival DJ talent show, suggesting this week that the karaoke king’s version will be inauthentic.
Show creator Gilly Da Silva said she’d been working on her series’ concept for over 11 months and said her winner will need to have ‘proved he/she has the stamina and is prepared to fight tooth and nail to be come one of the world’s most in demand DJs.’
‘It takes a lot of commitment and hard-work to become a Superstar DJ, its all about branding yourself, building a strong following and obviously keeping the audience engaged,” she told Televisual News, “It’s not something that can be judged on a stage like X Factor.” http://bit.ly/xrOloh
London Mayor Moves Against Ministry
Click on the picture to sign Ministry's petition
Ministry Of Sound faced an uncertain future this week after the South London club warned that property developers and politicians are continuing to threaten their Elephant & Castle home.
Deadmau5 Supports Simon Cowell
Click to read Deadmau5's latest rant in full
Canadian rave star Deadmau5 predicted Simon Cowell’s X Factor superstar DJ show will ‘catapult the awareness of EDM through the roof’, in a lengthy diatribe posted on his blog.
“Theres just no way in hell im going to come out guns blazing with an attitude like “fuck this, this isnt real DJ’ing, or has nothing to do with anything and blah blah blah”, said Deadmau5, “And it sure seems that EDM has been deemed fashionable these days to warrant it’s own long overdue primetime slot to the masses.”
“Give the underdogs a shot, see what happens… and EVEN IF no massive worldwide careers busted out of it… well shit, sure would be entertaining to watch wouldnt it?” (Facebook: http://on.fb.me/yORx0z )
Turbo Recordings Tell The Truth
tiga; No longer wearing sunglasses at night (click for more)
Tiga’s label Turbo tackled the thorny issue of suspect superstar DJ feedback this week, with an unusually honest plug for Zoo Brazil’s new single New York.
“Zoo Brazil’s last Twin Turbo release received support from Crookers, Zombie Nation, Popof, Brodinski and Ewan Pearson,” said Turbo, “Also, someone downloaded it on behalf of Richie Hawtin.”
Chew The Fat Man Praises Tim Deluxe’s Message
Paul Arnold
London club promoter Paul Arnold chatted to Skrufff this week about moving his Chew The Fat parties to East London’s Xoyo and also revealed that he’d been particularly inspired by a recent Skrufff interview with Tim Deluxe in which Tim chatted candidly about the reality of life as an international DJ and club star.
“I really enjoyed the Tim Deluxe feature because it was fascinating and very truthful,” he said.
“I forwarded it to a few artists I manage who are in very similar situations. It’s so frustrating managing an artist who has such good opportunities but goes through those similar issues. This article has been a great help for them knowing it’s not just them,” said Paul.
Tim Deluxe (click on the picture to read the interview in full)
Tiesto- I Am A Rockstar
Click on the picture to buy Led Zepp
William Conn from Las Vegas nightclub The Joint at Hard Rock praised Tiesto for being ‘our classic rock growing up’, in the official trailer for Tiesto’s new In The Booth series, this week declaring “He is your Led Zeppelin. He is your Bon Jovi. He is your U2.”
Speaking to the New York Times the same week, the Dutch trance-pop icon coincidentally agreed.
“DJs are the new rock stars,” he decreed, “We’ve been saying it for years, but now you can really see it.” http://nyti.ms/AnyYS8
Dubstep Dissed Yet Again
Perez Hilton; click to access
US gossip king Perez Hilton joined the growing list of high profile dubstep haters this week, Tweeting a five word declaration ‘Dubstep is officially dead, right?’
His dubstep dismissal coincided with a lengthy discourse on genres by superstar trance type Jono Grant from Above and Beyond, who chatting to Spinner magazine, launched a less overt attack on rivals jumping on the dubstep bandwagon.
“The weaker artists try to copy the successful ones, and try to make a record like someone else’s hit, and that’s just a very weak thing to do. We’d rather stick to our guns,” said Jono,
“The important thing is, who’s going to be left when the bubble bursts? Because it will burst at some point,” he predicted. (http://aol.it/A4iVr6 )
Dusty Kid Despairs at Cruise Ship Captain
Click for Dusty Kid's music
Sardinian tech superstar Dusty Kid joined the chorus of Italians condemning Costa Concordia cruise ship captain, Francesco Schettino, for abandoning ship before his passengers, after steering the giant ship onto rocks.
The cowardly captain attracted increasing vitriol after tape recordings emerged of him ignoring coast-guard Gregorio De Falco’s requests to get back on board after the captain slipped away before any of his ships 4.200 passengers and crew had been evacuated,
As Captain De Falco equivocated, Mr De Falco became increasing angry eventually ordering “Vado a bordo, cazzo”- get back on board, fucker’.
Sunday Times’ Berlin Sex & Drugs Shocker
Sunday Times video clip of 'decadent Berlin'
Hugely influential and usually respected British newspaper the Sunday Times published a hysterical ‘not safe for children’ expose on Berlin night life this week which suggested that ‘not since the 30s has Berlin experienced such decadence.’
Echoing the entertaining, if usually fictitious prose style pioneered by the Times’ notoriously sleazy deceased sister title the News Of the World, crack reporter Christopher Goodwin said‘ mass orgies’ involving hundreds of strangers are routine while ‘in every Berlin nightspot you openly see people snorting speed or cocaine’.
“I watched thousands of drugged up clubbers dancing in their own dreamscapes,” he continued, “and saw hundreds of anonymous bodies desperately clutching for flesh in the dark sex rooms”. Visions, he added, which left him ‘profoundly depressed’. (Sunday Times: http://thetim.es/wQ9tMb )
Apparently dreaming up his fantasy sex stories after a brief trip to Berlin’s (admittedly open-minded) fetish club the Kit Kat, Goodwin also claimed to have visited Berghain (‘Berlin’s most notorious club’) and ‘The Wilde Renate’ (known to Berliners as Salon Zur Wilden Renate, or more commonly ‘Renate’).
American Berlin scene DJ and journalist Beaner, a regular at ‘the Wilde Renate’ and resident at both KaterHolzig and (now closed) Bar 25, two of the other clubs prominently discussed by the Times, was puzzled.
Berghain's home page; clear proof of ubiquitous Berlin orgies (click for more; NOT SAFE FOR SUNDAY TIMES READERS)
“I actually skimmed through that article, a friend of mine from London sent it to me, in the context of another friend moving here. She asked me what I thought of it,” Beaner told Skrufff, chatting in a decidedly non-sexual, non -drug crazed, though down-at-heel chic bar three days later.
Clearly sex crazed KaterHolzig/ former Bar 25 resident Beaner; click for more
“To me it’s just the basic London journalism,” he shrugged, “You know, it’s using vague second hand non-facts to prove a story that you set out to write already.
