- What do hippies, Japan, ski resorts, and experimental techno have in common? At first look, not very much, but with the growing reputation of Japan's Labyrinth festival there exists an expanding community of listeners worldwide that is learning to make sense of such combinations. The festival exists at an intersection between its roots in the now-gone psytrance scene, the forefront of the modern techno movement and a growing and changing group of artists and attendees. I use "community" sparingly but intentionally, because, even as a novice Labyrinth-goer, it is obvious that this is an event devoted to steering a disparate group of people down the same road to a revelatory end. In the words of Peter Van Hoesen, the two stars of Labyrinth are the crowd and the sound system, and no better way can be found to succinctly simplify the complex and overwhelming experience it is for all involved.
Even from the beginning, this year's edition had the makings of an epic. Morphosis, Silent Servant, and Kangding Ray had been slated to open the festival, and with all making their Labyrinth debuts, the first day was primed for a speedy start. Unfortunately it was slowed by heavy, driving rain—hardly ideal for the many people setting up camp—and after each pause the precipitation seemed to begin again even harder until it finally wore itself out sometime during Kangding Ray's set. Probably hardest hit by the rain (besides the crowd) was Morphosis, whose outward bound hardware explorations make for provocative listening in more comfortable circumstances, but definitely had a damper on them here. He didn't let it slow him down too much, but the arrival of Silent Servant onstage and the serious techno he brought did a lot to animate the soggy crowd and keep the dance floor filled in spite of conditions. It was my first time seeing Kangding Ray play, and his futuristic collision of techno, avant-garde electronics and the kitchen sink lived up to hearsay and proved to be the highlight of the night by summing up everything that had come before under slightly drier conditions.
Waking up to daylight and my first real look at the setting and festival grounds was another shake to an already-shaken system. After walking around a bit prior to the start of the music and checking out the Native American-themed décor, Van Hoesen and friends assembled onstage in four matching costumes that replicated the cover of Kraftwerk's The Man Machine. PVH's set was a good fit for his dress and alternated between harsh ambient, cheeky '80s sounds from Yellow Magic Orchestra and others and slow electro that gradually woke the crowd and had many sitting on their camping chairs by the end. Rather than a gentle shake, Appleblim's debut at the festival delivered a slap in the face and immediately took the music in a different direction with techno, tech house and even full blown classic dubstep from Digital Myztikz that filled the floor and caused spirited dancing by his 1 PM finish. Next was Fred P, and with the crowd now ready for a steady beat, he realized his perfect position and took the reins to move things into an intensely focused frame for the evening's sets.
The New York-based artist finished to sustained applause and many congratulations, and with Tobias Freund set to follow, the tone he had crafted gradually moved more towards the experimental. Freund's solo hardware set began with techno that didn't necessarily do much to distinguish itself, but once he ably reproduced some of his album tracks and loosened up a bit, his personality came out fully for a standout second half. It didn't really end because he was simply joined by Atom TM onstage for a virtuosic and boundary-pushing performance that combined playfulness and improvisation with unsurpassed skill and musicality. Nothing could have prepared the crowd for Function, though. Even after repeated appearances here, the sustained brutality of the first two hours combined with the raw, old school moments took no prisoners and seared ears through the Funktion One stacks. By the time he moved through DJ Rolando's "Jaguar" into a coda composed mainly of Sandwell District material, the rowdy crowd was ready for a break, and Donato Dozzy and Neel's ensuing live debut administered the right medicine with a soothing 90 minutes of ambient techno composed specially for the festival.
Hiyoshi and resident So's short appearances that opened the final day did little to make an impression, and it took until the festival's penultimate set by Dozzy to get something of substance. While he didn't manage the cosmic tone that distinguishes his best work, Dozzy still ably steered his devoted Labyrinth following into the waiting arms of PVH with house and lighter psychedelic techno fare. PVH clearly wasn't holding back, though. After leading off with "Man or Mistress" from Levon Vincent a few minutes in, he hit high point after high point, even managing to spin New Order later on. Intense rain did nothing to deter the dancers, and after several encores it finally came to an end almost 45 minutes after schedule. In spite of severe weather, the scientifically precise musical programming, deliberate progression of music (especially on the second day) and breathtaking sets delivered by many of the principles made Labyrinth 2011 play like a highlight reel of the best in techno for 2011. With the focus set so precisely, it is difficult to say where the road leads from here, but the unique combination of setting, audience, sound and music certainly gives this event a bright future for years to come.