This year’s Halloween has been particularly frustrating for me, not just caused by the general annoyance that is the holiday falling on a Sunday. But for me it was even worse; my day job requires my attendance at 8am on Sunday mornings, so Saturday is off-limits too. This left Friday as my only viable Halloween party night, the night no one bloody else decided to go out. But clutched in my hand remained my beacon of hope, my last remaining light, my savior. Clasped in my sweaty hand was a ticket to something better than a fancy dress party or any other ghoulish themed nights. The key to my weekend was my ticket to Digitalism.
Not having released any new material since Idealism in 2007, (Kitsune Tabloid was a remix album, so it doesn’t count) and with the news of a new EP in the coming weeks, I was anxiously looking forward to some fresh new beats from the German outfit. With the likes of Magnets, Pogo and Digitalism in Cairo to live up to and improve on, this gig could be the voice that says ‘Fuck off Dubstep you blow-in, the real deal is back’.
Doors were at 11pm and I was there bang on time, not knowing when Digitalism would take the stage but firmly cementing the fact that I won’t miss a second. So I waited, and drank, and waited, and drank some more, occasionally going for a cigarette just to kill some time. At 00:45 the guys took the stage and immediately kicked into Magnets. Yes! The place exploded into a frenzy of sweaty dancing and strobe lights. They continued to bust out hits for a while and the crowd was lapping it up, but I was still waiting for the new stuff – something to completely blow the roof off the place. What I got was something quite a bit different, and altogether disappointing.
The gig seemed to slowly devolve into a DJ set expected from a resident at any mid-level, free entry venue. The guys on stage seemed to simply press play on every cliché standard dance track imaginable, with such unimaginative music culminating in an unchanged airing of Soulwax’s remix of The Gossip – Standing in the Way of Control. Would you ever expect this track to be the most memorable moment of a Digitalism gig? It was certainly the straw that broke the camels back for me, and capped off a truly forgettable night.
I am sure there were many unaffected guests who were basking in the Halloween festivities, enjoying a dress up and a dance, but I am also positive that I was not the only one there expecting a great show and was found wanting. If this gig is any indication of the direction they will take with new material, I will expect nothing more than a lethargic attempt at following the great Idealism. For me, the word that sums up Digitalism’s performance is lazy. Okay, I was guilty of having a bit of a dance while in attendance but for 25 clams I could have just gone up the road to The Oak and had 5 extra drinks. I leave you with a question I will continue to ask Digitalism until they live up to expectations; what the hell happened???