Jamie xx proved himself on the decks last night. Not that he needed to, we all know he can spin, but over the course of two hour-and-a-half-long sets Jamie spun a tasteful mix of dancehall reggae, funky disco, and his own popular singles.
The day was the second installment of Verboten’s 2015 StageONE festival series. Jamie was joined with a strong group of artists: Maya Jane Coles, Matador, Andhim, and more. Everyone brought their own little flavor to the mix with the common element of booming bass tying them together.
Jamie started his daytime set with some dancehall selections before moving into the type of housey music you might expect from the beat-making mastermind. He was careful to not give the crowd too much of what they wanted, saving tracks like “Loud Places” for the later gig. He did play “Gosh,” “Sleep Sound,” and the summer anthem “I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times) for a sun-drenched crowd.
Maya took the decks immediately after Jamie, and just before the sun really set on the Brooklyn attendees. Her blend of deep and acid house, matched with the oncoming fall of the night, opened the dance-floor up and allowed everyone to really let themselves get loose. Standout tracks like the vocal-led Purple Disco Machine remix of The Juan Maclean’s “A Simple Design” and the acid-meets-techy “Freak Beat” by Raffa FL.
Matador closed the StageONE portion out with a live set of his blitzing techno flavor. Anyone who stayed for the set was steeped well into their buzz, and it showed. For the first time all day, conversations took a back seat to dancing, and it turned into a little freak show out there on 50 Kent, in the best possible way.
If the daytime event was a celebration of the current pop landscape, then the after party was the opportunity for the DJs to get a little experimental. Jamie xx would go on to spin a completely different set, focusing this time of funky disco (Booker T, Hugh Masakela, Backyard Construction) and the avant-garde dance stylings by the likes of Four Tet, Bicep, and Jon Hopkins.
Maya Jane Coles took the stage as Nocturnal Sunshine for the first time on American soil, although you wouldn’t necessarily know it by her selection and the projected backdrop that read “Maya Jane Coles.” After a handful of housey selections, the young selector got a little experimental with some dubby garage and future bass tracks. Although she didn’t dive into a whole bunch from her debut self-titled LP under the moniker, it was still a very unique set, vastly different from the earlier selection.
Andhim followed up, marking the end of my evening, but not without a fight. The Berlin ‘super-house’ duo made some pretty great choices on the decks, including their own tracks and a Todd Terje remix. However, not even DJ Jesus himself could have kept me in that building at this point, as 8+ hours of dancing at two different venues was enough for this young chap. It was a phenomenal day though; Verboten did a fantastic job at producing two great parties and the DJs made sure to differentiate between sets which is greatly appreciated.
Verboten’s StageONE festival series continues on September 6th with Maceo Plex, David August (Live), DJ Tennis, DJ Koze, and more. Tickets are still available for that one.
Photo via @nathaliemary on Instagram
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