Movement Music Festival 2017: Eight Performances

Movement’s still holdin’ it down. Barely….. The crowd has become far less flamboyant and far more sedate. There’s rarely new blood on stage and too many DJs play the same thing they were playing in 2004. The automation of the art of the DJ is oh so painfully audible but that does absolutely nothing to stop every single one of ’em from believing they deserve just as much credit for performing “live” as a REAL musician. (Yeah, we said it.) Worst of all, the air of woefully misguided elitism exuded by attendees and artists alike is often palpable. For the first time since the festival’s second year, 2001, we here at I♥DM made the executive decision to NOT attend Movement/DEMF/Fuse-In/Whatever for all three days of the event. Why? Because we understand Techno, and it breaks our heart to see its sad demise unfold before our eyes, all too often engendered by the very progenitors we worshiped once upon a time. Yet despite all that….. we still had a good time. Consider us completely un-surprised that the best performance of our single day at Movement 2017 was a fully live band. ‘Thundercat’ also known as Stephen Bruner stole the show. Stagemates Justin Brown (drums) and Dennis Hamm (keyboards) are masters of their craft just as much as Bruner himself, and honestly, if we were one of them we’d consider insisting Mr. ‘Thundercat’ come up with a new band name that more completely reflects their virtuosic contributions. Other standouts, in our opinion: Barclay Crenshaw (aka Claude VonStroke), whose sound continues to evolve in a sea of stagnation, East Coast House master Kerri Chandler, and the spazzmodic delivery of LA’s ‘Gaslamp Killer’ otherwise known as William Benjamin Bensussen. Enjoy all of their vids and others below. You’re welcome. ~I♥DM