Electronica, and particularly minimal, has been engulfing Beijing in recent times, largely due to the enthusiasm of the Acupuncture crew. Their ambition knows no bounds, and in little over 12 months, this DJ/ Production outfit have served up some of the most progressive shows that Beijing has seen. We sent along our least techno-headed techno head to see if Acupuncture could transform him into someone who can tell Gui Boratto from Jazzanova, Jeff Mills from Jeff Lang. We were surprised at the results…
Despite their admirably extensive promotional campaign I, admittedly, did not expect much from the Acupuncture Records organized “Intro” Electronic Music Festival held in Beijing a week ago Saturday, May 23rd, given that I am not a raver and I wouldn’t even know how to rave to the minimal techno that Acupuncture advocates. However, on arrival, the music quickly became just a background soundtrack to a sun-blessed blue-sky day with 2500 other happy people simply enjoying having emerged unscathed from the Beijing winter into a pleasant summer day in a superb setting.
The organizers did well in choosing the outdoor square at Factory 751’s “D-Park” creative hub. Nestled amongst the recently renovated facades of the old Zhengdong Power Group Factory (built during Chairman Mao’s first Five-Year Plan) , the site was intimate and perfect for a small festival of this sort. If festival attendance had reached the wildly exuberant pre-event claims of the promoters – initially 20,000 and subsequently 10,000 pax – it would have been a massive disaster. Even with attendance bordering on 3000 in the early hours of the evening, the festival suffered under the strains of shortages of food, beer and water. Water was particularly scarce (and expensive!) throughout the day. A particular no-no for a festival of this sort – under a hot sun, involving people known to enjoy parties more under the influence of certain substances and therefore requiring a certain consumption of water….There is an argument for both sides from the promoter and also punter at the City Weekend review HERE, but whatever the promoter says about needing to break even, not having free water and plenty of it is dangerous bordering on criminal.
Likewise, from an organization standpoint, the main fault and main complaint of everyone attending was that there was no in-out policy. Once attendees had entered the main site, one was allowed to leave but re-entry was not permitted. However, apart from these several issues the festival was very well thought out and executed, especially for a first effort on the part of Acupuncture.
From a production standpoint, there could be no complaint. A tidy line array PA anchored an impressive elevated DJ booth with low-res LED displays for visuals. It was simple, but well done. The music, on the other hand, was simple and seemed to never be done. There was little variety between DJs and so the entire festival nearly turned into one long repetitive soundtrack. Although perhaps as a benefit to its repetitive nature, one could tune out and spend time chatting with friends or step away to answer a phone call and then come back to the music at any point, never having really missed a beat. To be fair there was a bit of progressive house being played when I arrived mid-afternoon, but the general criticisms from everyone on the music front was that this could not possibly be considered an electronic music festival without more sub-genres being represented.
All-in-all we must offer a hearty congratulations to Acupuncture and everyone involved in the event – we certainly know how difficult it is to pull something like that off, even if the event was shut down at 10 PM by the police (for heretofore unknown or undisclosed reasons) a full 6 hours before the advertised end-time. Somehow, perhaps the biggest slap-on-back must go to the benevolence of the higher powers, for granting such a perfect day and giving us all music to move to.