| No events |
7-8pm - LIZ REVISION: DJ set & presentation on Marketing, Branding & PR for DJs
8-9pm - ORVILLE KLINE from MIW: Intro to Digital DJing 101
9-10pm - JOSH "DOC" HELTON from MIW: Advanced Traktor
10pm-2am - Live Performance by Legendary DJ --- Loco Dice w/Martin Buttrich, Livo & Roby
Friday, March 12, 7-10pm
Spy Bar, 646 North Franklin Street
Sponsored by
NATIVE INSTRUMENTS
MUSIC INDUSTRY WORKSHOP
GUITAR CENTER
HOSTED SKY VODKA BAR FROM 7-8PM
DJs, producers, and music lovers join us for a FREE Digital DJ Workshop sponsored by Native Instruments, Music Industry Workshop, and Guitar Center. Witness the new age of digital DJ technology: Friday March 12th 7pm-10pm @ Spybar Chicago. Activities include a FREE Digital DJ Workshop, Networking Reception, and Live DJ Showcases.
{READ MORE}
Check out this free performance of Moldover at Risque this Saturday!
Known to 400,000 YouTube viewers as "The Godfather of Controllerism", MOLDOVER has become the inspiration for a new generation of musicians interested in moving “beyond the decks." Feb 18th, Chicago's Ableton user group will feature Moldover for a special edition user group session. Famous for building, hacking, and playing controllers with virtuosic skill, Moldover’s dynamic performances with his custom instruments are bringing new life into electronic music. Fusing hard rock with electronica, glitch edits, and frantic drum beats, Moldover’s signature style defies categorization. And with appearances on national television, coverage in major music publications, and countless live shows around the world, Moldover is in constant demand by people interested in this next evolution of music.
Moldover 9pm - 10pm ([SF] IDM / Glitch / Rock / Funk / OMG Controllerism Pioneer | Octamasher Inventor | Youtube Nerdstar)
Liz Revision 8pm - 9pm ([CHI] IDM / Glitch / Techno / LOL subVariant Recordings | Quantazelle | Fractalspin | CIEM)
Risqué. 3419 N. Clark (Sheffield & Clark, Wrigleyville, Chicago).
Hosted by Jona Neace 21+. Free. $2 Hamm's Cans
Jona Neace has been DJing for 15 years, sharing the bill with renowned acts like Dieselboy, Reid Speed, Grooverider, Roy Davis Jr., DJ Rush, Tony Rohr and more, and he's played notable festivals like Burning Man and Coachella. We're happy to have him a part of the subVariant crew, and he's given us an exclusive minimal techno mix called "The Luxury of Breathing" featuring tracks by artists like Mihalis Safras, Autistic, Camea, and Elon. Download or stream it from here, check out Jona's bio & mixes, and stay tuned for more awesomeness in the works.
From experimental blips to industrial and drum ‘n’ bass flavored bangers, to saccharine unabashed pop tendencies, Bit Shifter is a dynamic live presence, pushing as much output from his custom setup featuring Nintendo Game Boys outfitted with homebrewed cartridges and perhaps the maximum emotional output capable from eight puny bits of power. -NEW CITY CHICAGO ("Preview: 8bit Halloween featuring Bit Shifter/AI Lounge")
If an evening of off-the-radar music is up your alley, then our pick for one of Halloween weekend's most interesting events will pique your interest. 8bit Halloween at AI Lounge hosts one of the world's premiere 8bit electronic musicians, Josh Davis aka Bit Shifter. Playing his entire set out of a pair of Nintendo Game Boys, Davis pushes the boundaries of sonic experimentation. - CHICAGOIST ("Halloweek in Music")
Our friend + previous Dorkbot Chicago presenter Liz Revision is organizing an 8bit Halloween ft. Bit Shifter here in CHICAGO. DORKBOT CHICAGO. ("8bit Halloween ft. Bit Shifter CHICAGO")
*EDITOR'S PICK - Going.com
It’s all in celebration of a Halloweeen party Saturday night in Chicago, headlined by Josh Davis (BitShifter). Party ringleader Liz joins Josh on behalf of subVariant to represent the IDM-glitch-minimal-tech-house side of things, and Mr. Automatic (Front 312) and Onefiftyone (Chicago Workshop) will be joining in. If you’re in Chicago, this looks like the place to spend your Saturday.--CREATE DIGITAL MUSIC ("Happy Halloween: Exclusive Free Liz Revision Mix, Party in Chicago with Bit Shifter")
Shout-outs to our sponsoring friends:
Music Industry Workshop [The area's largest music industry training facility w/ Certified Ableton Trainers]
Transistor [Art | Electronics | Music | Books | awesome store on the north side]
Mac Specialist [Premier Apple Macintosh computer specialist with sales, service, training, consulting, networking and internet access in the Chicagoland area]
Fractalspin [The ultimate online geek boutique / techcessories destination]
Dreamdaze [Live visuals / electronic music]
Kumar McMillan / FarmDev [nerdery^64 / music]
Skewerz [Wicker Park - Hawaiian Fusion]
One of the premiere Game Boy-wielding 8Bit electronic musicians in the world is Josh Davis aka Bit Shifter, and subVariant and Front 312 are excited to have him perform at Ai Lounge on Halloween. Having played over 100 live shows armed with only two Nintendo Game Boys, and two home-brew aftermarket music programs, he has a dedicated following and has been known to ignite dance floors with his high energy live performances.
Tom Loftus of MSNBC.com says of Bit Shifter’s performance,“[B]y the time Davis jumped to his rave-up 'Parapersona Crash,' the walls started to shake and what little hesitation the audience may have had over dancing to a kiddy toy's 'bleeps' and 'bloops' vanished.”
“We booked him ...and I still think it's the most people that have been in the Tank at one time--hundreds and hundreds of people…” says Mike Rosenthal, Artistic Director of The Tank in NYC. “ Bitshifter just rocked the place--just blew us all away.”
Josh Davis says of the 8bit sound, “This is a really distinctive sound-set that anyone of our generation will have most likely been exposed to during childhood and as a consequence of that it became hardwired into our aesthetic sensibilities….but it was always off-limits creatively. So, people who grew up with 8bit and 16bit video game consoles--if they were musicians, they were able to dabble in just about *anything* else….”Liz Revision of subVariant will open by digitally spinning minimal tech-house, glitch, and IDM; Mr. Automatic from Front 312 brings electro, new wave, and acid house; and Onefiftyone from Chicago Workgroup plays nudisco.
Bit Shifter explores high-energy, low-bit music composed and performed on a Nintendo Game Boy. The result is an unapologetically fun foray into an evocative and distinctive sound-set, executed on a console generally misperceived as being technically limited. Made possibly by two home-brew Game Boy music-making programs, Nanoloop and Little Sound DJ, Bit Shifter's music adopts and subverts the playfulness inherent in the familiar Game Boy sound-set, repurposing it into the service of novel idioms. Based in New York City, Bit Shifter has performed over one hundred shows worldwide, having recently circumnavigated the planet in a 20-date world tour with fellow chiptune compatriot Nullsleep.
subVariant is a Chicago-based record label and events production company known for its both its innovative electronic music releases and creative packaging, as well as its edgy and boundary-pushing live events and music showcases. Front 312 has been promoting an eclectic night in Chicago for over a year featuring house, electro, new wave and industrial at Liar’s Club, although individually its members have been churning away in various underground electronic realms, and have collected a diverse group of dedicated followers. Together subV and 312 bring their diverse crowds together to experience Halloween in a cool downtown location with an excellent, creative and diverse lineup unique in Chicago for Halloween.
Tickets are $20 at the door, $15 presale at http://www.fractalspin.com/bitshifter, or $17 day off with an RSVP to http://chicago.going.com/bitshifter.
The first 30 people with presale tickets will get a free surprise treat bag featuring cool stuff from local businesses and online shops.
Ai Lounge is at 358 W. Ontario, Downtown Chicago. The night runs from 10pm – 3am. A late night sushi menu is also available, as is $10 valet parking.
AUDIO: “The World Has Turned and Left Me Here” vocal track from Bitshifter (Weezer Cover)
http://subvariant.com/media/Bitshifter-04TheWorldHasTurnedAndLeftMeHere.mp3
AUDIO: “Activation Theme” by Bitshifter (Original Instrumental)
http://www.8bitpeoples.com/mp3/get/370/8bp059-02-bit_shifter-activation_theme.mp3
VIDEO: “Bitshifter Interview”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BifjWTFAvMU
TEXT: “Interview with Bitshifter” (Longer, more technical interview)
http://www.chaoscontrol.com/?article=bitshifter
GOING (DISCOUNT LINK): http://chicago.going.com/bitshifter
PRESALE TIX: http://www.fractalspin.com/bitshifter
subVariant: http://www.subvariant.com
Liz Revision: http://www.lizrevision.com
Thanks to everyone who came out and either got art-nerdy or got their DnB on to Tara Grunwald towards the end of the night! Check out the pix from Regroup 1.
Thanks to everyone who came out and got into the rave node! Photos are here and videos are here. See you soon!
More videos
Get ready to re-live the heydey of electronic music in Chicago with Raver Rewind 2000 on Saturday September 19 at Ai Lounge. Four Chicago-based DJs who've experienced the scene firsthand back in the day will be playing records only from 1992-2000 for an authentic soundrack. Contemporary instruments like laptops, digital DJ gear, Monomes / APC, Lemurs are specifically prohibited as well.
What's not prohibited is getting into the "raver spirit" by dressing the part--phat pants, bright colors, ravey t-shirts, and bringing some PLUR and good vibes. For some of us who were there in the scene, it will be a night heavy on nostalgia, and will bring back the joy of hearing classic tracks that we remember fondly. For the newer recruits into the contemporary electronic music scene, it will be educational to hear the tracks, trends and products of available technology that influenced the kind of music being made today.
SPECIAL GUEST: Cesario Magnifique (Italso / electro / disco)
DOWNLOAD Cesario Magnifique's 1-hour mix: "Warp (Rave Mix)"
Popkan (Textone, subVariant) will focus heavily on old school house; Gianna Hardt (Forte Productions, ForTheMammas), a promoter uniquely familiar with of underground parties idolized and was influenced by DJs like Larry Heard, Farley Jackmaster Funk, and Julian Jumpin Perez. Tim Kasper (House of Godz) will bring his collection of vintage techno to throw down. Liz Revision (subVariant) hosts. Arrive early to nosh on Ai Restaurant’s AMAZING Japanese food & killer sushi. Valet is available for $10 all night. 358 W. Ontario, Chicago, 10pm-2am. 21+
