Photo: Smartbar
“A Strange Party” comes to Smartbar on the last night of February to fill the basement club with the syncopated rhythm of techno wizards. Skee Mask, Loidis, Max Watts, Kush Jones and Leesh, each a force in the electronic dance community, are on a North American tour bringing IDM in full force. From the genre’s controversial name, a pretentious critique of dance music, these producers demonstrate the wealth of sounds that flourish from emergent drum loops. On February 28, breakbeat fans rejoice as these storied musicians showcase their technical skills.
More than a year ago, Skee Mask and Leesh graced Chicago at Podlasie Club, playing to a packed dancefloor; the energy was unreal. For an evening, the Avondale bar transformed to feel more like a U.K. club. On the floor, an array of light beams reigned down from the ceiling, locking the DJs in an iridescent cage courtesy of designer Nix Campbell. The minimal beats propelled the floor and injected a fever in the air across the adjacent lounge. The music was lively but rather heady, showcasing production rather than mixing. It wasn’t the song transitions that elicited cheers but the deep cuts from Skee Mask’s discography.
Skee Mask emerged during the 2010s, experimenting with music DAWs while still in his teens, garnering the attention of Germany’s electronic community. Soon, his production found its way onto revered labels, sitting comfortably in the libraries of in-the-know fans ever since. The drums on his breakout album “Compro” are sparse but hold a formidable amount of emotion, changing shape with intoned velocity shifts.
Photo: Smartbar
Songs like “Via Sub Mids” wobbles in a glorious, shimmering pattern that breaks down with ambient synths and static, giving rise to the musical elements as hard drive characters. “Flyby VFR” uses effects to sink and echo melodies as snares spatter across the sonic field, almost sounding like jazz rather than techno. His beats have an anthropomorphic flow, with songs that feature a noticeable departure from drum machines but contain a reverence for minimal elements that cycle. They usually incorporate a vinyl timbre, even in digital format—even as Bryan Müller, the man behind Skee Mask, removed his library from Spotify.
Joining Skee Mask on the bill is Max Watts, a Detroit-based vinyl DJ who runs the label Limited Network. His sets are driving, frequently interrupted by Watts playing the mixer like an instrument, flicking faders on beat. This beat-juggling, an acquired taste, is more for laid-back listening than dancing to. These ostensibly cheap tricks are the sign of an extremely skilled rhythmic prowess, expanding the provenance for what it means to DJ. Loidis’ production is a light-forward throbbing techno, with iconic drum sounds that fall in tastefully fresh patterns. Rounding out the bill is Kush Jones, a New York-based visionary, who leads the party into still-deeper bass, plus Leesh, a Chicago-based DJ of Daisychain acclaim.
Expect to be stunned by the music and carried off into the night.
“A Strange Party,” featuring Skee Mask, Loidis, Max Watts, Kush Jones and Leesh, is at Smartbar, 3730 North Clark on February 28. Doors at 10pm. More information and advance tickets here.
