After his set at Electric Zoo, French Ed Banger artist Sebastian chatted with us about making music for the girls. Read on after the jump. Continue Reading

Newly reunited Gabriel & Dresden sat down before their set at Electric Zoo for a chat about what they learned in their time apart and the direction of electronic music in the United States. Read on after the jump.

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Before his set at Electric Zoo, John Digweed sat down to talk to us about his process as a musician and his thoughts on the electronic music movement in the United States. Read on after the jump.

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Immediately following Guti’s set at Electric Zoo, we sat down to chat with him about his experience touring and his journey as an artist from jazz and piano, through rock, to electronic music. Read on after the jump, and check out his new site for all things Guti HERE.

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Friday afternoon, Canada’s Egyptrixx sat down with us to chat about his experiences touring the festival circuit and what’s coming up next. Read on after the jump.

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Over the course of these past few summer months that are slowly but surely drawing to a close, I have been fascinated by, no, obsessed with what I see as the mass commercialization of electronic music, particularly in the United States. The industry is growing and changing more rapidly than I could ever have imaged possible if you’d consulted me a few years ago, and I have been deeply drawn into the analysis of the direction that electronic music is taking and the implications for the future of the movement. I, of course, have my opinions and biases concerning “pop” electronic music, but what I have been truly interested in is more concerned with the effect that this popularization has on the creative process of the artists, and on the experience of it live.

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This past Friday at Electric Zoo, we sat down briefly with renowned DJ, producer, and Ovum label head Josh Wink before his set at the Sunday School stage. Read on to see what he’s up to, after the jump…

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Festival season is officially upon us, and lot’s of events this year are looking to expand. This includes Made Event’s annual celebration of all things dance music, Electric Zoo, which has added a third day to their weekend extravaganza that will take Labor Day weekend, September 2-4, 2011. The line-up is as follows:

Friday, September 2

☛ Main Stage: Moby (DJ set), Benny Benassi, Rusko, Tiga, AN21 & Ma Vangeli

☛ Hilltop Arena: Richie Hawtin Presents Plastikman (Live), MSTRKRFT, Felguk, Gareth Emery, Markus Schultz, Robbie Rivera

☛ Carl Cox & Friends Take Over Sunday School: Carl Cox, Loco Dice, Joris Voorn & Nic Fanciulli (B2B), Victor Calderone

☛ Red Bull Music Academy Riverside: Crookers, Martin Solveig, Bart B More, Busy P, Feed Me, SebastiAn

Saturday, September 3

☛ Main Stage: David Guetta, Above & Beyond, Bloody Beetroots Death Crew 77, John Digweed, Sander Can Doorn, Sub Focus

☛ Hilltop Arena: Ferry Corsten, ATB, Andy Moor, Dirty South Joachim Garraud, Mat Zo, Sean Tyas & Simon Patterson (B2B), Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano

☛ Sunday School Grove: Luciano, Danny Tenaglia, Carl Craig, Chris Liebing, James Holden, Steve Bug

☛ Red Bull Music Academy Riverside: Skrillex, Super Smash Bros, 12th Planet, Beardyman, Kid Sister, Porter Robinson, Tommy Lee & DJ Aero

Sunday, September 4

☛ Main Stage: Armin Van Buuren, Afrojack, Chromeo, DJ Snoopadelic, Calvin Harris

☛ Hilltop Arena: Boys Noize, Diplo, Big Gigantic, Carte Blanche, Excision & Datsik, Fake Blood, Jack Beats, MiMOSA

☛ Sunday School Grove: Richie Hawtin, Dubfire, Gui Boratto, Guy Gerber, Ida Engberg, Nicolas Jaar (Live)

☛ Red Bull Music Academy Riverside: Infected Mushroom, Gabriel & Dresden, Arty, EDX, Hardwell, Kyau & Albert, Mark Knight

More artists TBA!

Payment Plans

Passes to the festival can be purchased HERE. This year, Electric Zoo is also offering a payment plan for those who would prefer to not pay the full sum all at once. This payment plan contains two options. The first payment option allows you to pay a 50% deposit of your order total upon purchase of the pass, plus service fees, with the remaining 50% automatically deducted from your card on August 1, 2011. The second option allows you to pay 30% of your order total plus service fees as your first payment, with the remaining total automatically deducted in equal payments on July 1st and August 1st 2011.

Dust Reduction

Electric Zoo will also be making efforts to reduce dust this year, as the dancing and frolicking of 25,000 pairs of feet coupled with the unusually dry summer took a toll last year, and by the end of the day, the grass had been trampled and a lot of dirt had been kicked up into the air.

Here’s a list of things they’ve put in place to reduce the dust:

• Flooring will be used in all of the tents. This means that where all that dancing is going on, the grass will be protected and dirt won’t be kicked up.
• Dirt service roads will be covered with flooring. As our crew travels in golf carts and other vehicles to get from place to place around the perimeter of the festival grounds, there’ll be far less dirt stirred up.
• Making use of existing pavement for high traffic areas, including the area directly in front of the main stage. The main stage will be moved back this year in order to create more space. This will mean that a large area directly in front of the main stage will now be situated on pavement rather than grass. So when you “tear up the dancefloor” in front of the main stage, you’ll no longer be tearing up grass and kicking up dirt at the same time

They’ve also hired lawn specialists to consult with and work with Randall’s Island Park to improve on the maintenance of the field and to get it as healthy as possible before Electric Zoo.

Check out our coverage of last year’s Electric Zoo HERE, and stay tuned for more information and updates from us as the event draws closer!

Ever since electronic music first began to take hold of ears, hearts, and feet all over the United States, Europe, and beyond in the 1980’s, the practice of experiencing electronic music as a collective as often been viewed as akin to a religious experience. The club is a church, the DJ a priest, the dancing masses the worshippers, and the beat the sermon. It is therefore only appropriate that Made Event’s 36-hour event during Miami Music Week be entitled Sunday School; a place where children go to learn the ways of religion in an informal setting. And aren’t we all just that – children refusing to grow up, coming together to worship the gospel of house and techno in the safe haven of like-minded revelers.

Sunday School: The Lost Weekend took place at the Ice Palace in downtown Miami, otherwise known as the middle of what seemed to be abandoned warehouse buildings, deserted train tracks, and the occasional highly suspicious looking figure hustling the street corners. But no matter, for once inside the outside walls of the event space that consisted of an outdoor area and two stages, all memory of the outside world simply melted away. Seven or so hours disappeared in the blink of an eye on Friday night, as bodies, minds, and hearts all moved in sync to the rhythm of the thundering basslines emanating from the stacks of Funktion One’s guarding the corners of the rooms.

At Stage 1, D.I.M., Tiga and Spank Rock all gave exhilarating performances, catering to those more interested in the electro and house end of the spectrum. It was however Boys Noize that truly stole the show, mixing old favorites from his Oi Oi Oi and Power albums with some of the seriously wicked acid that he’s been displaying a preference for lately. Next door at The Lobby, those more inclined toward straight techno were spoiled by an incredible live set from Gaiser, who reacted perfectly and intuitively to every shift in the audience, which at this point in the night was little more than a heaving, grinning, beat driving organism. Friday night peaked at around 4:30am, when Richie Hawtin stepped in and pushed it just that extra inch, carrying every single person in the place with him to the absolute brink of the human-meets-techno experience. His set was hard and loud, but the crowd was more than prepared for it, meeting his every manipulation of sound with one of the body. And that was only the first night.

It quickly became apparent that Sunday was best taken on as a marathon, not a sprint, given that the majority of the attendees had barely slept, eaten, or sat down for that matter, in a good three or four days. It was therefore incredibly well played on the part of Made Event to have both Victor Calderone and Luciano playing extended sets during the wee hours of the morning, allowing merrymakers who had not been home for quite some time (and who had no intention of going there) to take breaks in the cool morning grass without missing anything heartbreakingly crucial. That is not to say that these artists were anything less than extraordinary, with Luciano in particular delivering one hell of a set, packing the dancefloor of Stage 1 as night slowly began to turn into day.

With the hot Miami sun rising higher and higher, the music began to diversify a bit, moving away from the steady pace of the night’s techno toward more melody driven artists, some of whom even incorporated live instruments and vocals. Benoit & Sergio, tINI, and No Regular Play all delivered the perfect blend of deep house on the outdoor Terrance, providing an ideal soundtrack for the adjustment to the rays of the sun after the cool, dark night. Inside, Nicolas Jaar performed with a full live band, which provided just the right brief respite from the consistent 4×4 beat that otherwise permeated the space. Although focusing primarily on album material, Jaar and his band still kept the sound fresh, experimenting with live manipulations and synching the electronics with the live drum patterns. For those still on the techno train, Steve Bug and Better Lost Than Stupid kept the energy going well into the day, with The Lobby area in particular never emptying, despite the levels of heat and physical exertion.

In retrospect, the entire experience seems a bit unreal, in the way that such incredible and special events centered around the experience of one moment in time always do. After a good night’s sleep, a full meal, and reversion to regular life these experiences can begin to seem very far away. However, until we can return to Sunday School and lose another weekend in Miami next year, we can study the teachings of our musical priests in our own private lives. I know I for one never cease to worship the temple of electronic beats, even for one single day.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL PHOTO GALLERY.

I personally can’t imagine anything better than dancing under the hot Miami sun to beats from some of the greatest DJs and producers in the world. Add to this my never-ending desire to keep the party going, and I can’t imagine anything better than Made Event’s Sunday School. This 36 hour party at the Ice Palace will take place from this Friday March 25 through Sunday the 27. The line-up is beyond incredible, featuring some of the best house, techno, and electro artists of the moment from all over the world (see flyer below).

This is sure to be the party of the week, so don’t miss out on this incredible event. Tickets can be purchased HERE for either the entire 36 hours, the first 12 hours, or the last 24 hours, depending on your stamina. Check out shots from last year’s Sunday School HERE, and we’ll see you in Miami!