Photos and written by Bang Ho
I had no plans to go to Levitation as I was scheduled to be out of town during the fest, but as fate would have it –the stars aligned and I was able to attend Saturday which had an extremely stacked line up. I made it out late but just in time for Peter Hook and the Light’s set to start at 6 only to find the rain came down just over the Far Out Lounge, delaying the start by about 52 minutes. Hooky came out and got the crowd fired up immediately, quipping that having a band from Sheffield and Manchester on the same bill was inviting rain and launching into a Joy Division laden set with heavier punk/rock songs to start and finally finishing with classics Transmission, Ceremony, and Love Will Tear Us Apart.
Somehow I was never familiar with Cabaret Voltaire. Thankfully, I had plenty of friends at the show that educated me before their set and I was properly hyped by the time they took the stage. Would I have enjoyed the band going in blind? Absolutely, but being able to understand that this was most likely a once in a lifetime opportunity to catch this legendary band from Sheffield opened my eyes to how so much of my favorite band’s influences originated right here with this band. The whole set was a living history written in sound –while I was dancing in my little corner, I immediately thought this song sounds so much like so and so band. Funny enough, about twenty seconds into the next song, I had to correct myself and say hold on they sound more like another band and this continued a few times through their set. If you can, catch them on this farewell tour while you can.
After those two amazing sets, I needed a break to sit and rehydrate with some water while I waited for Molchat Doma’s set. During the set change, I was scrolling on my phone when my ears perked up and I started actively listening to the band that was playing on the stage on the other side of the grounds. I sighed as I immediately knew my short lived rest was over and booked it over to the stage to catch the show and find out who was on. I thought the night was going to be just established acts that I had seen several times, but here was another band that was new to me, Automatic. The crowd was pulled in tight, no room to get to the front as the trio wove a together a set filled with prominent bass lines surrounded by dreamy sustained synths. If you took riot girl music and paired it with new wave/shoegaze and pumped up the tempo, you’d have the fun dance party that is Automatic.
Now, I’ve been blessed to have seen Molchat Doma at Cruel World Fest three years ago, but getting to see them so much closer this time was smashing. Closing out the night filled with legends is no small feat, and the Belarusian trio did it in true post punk form with dark synths, electronic drum beats, airy guitars, and chilling deep baritone Russian vocals that command your feet to feel and experience the experience. The aural experience and vibe was a beautiful mixture of dark doom melancholic goth celebration. The singer, Egor Shkutko’s vocals style from almost speaking to singing, sometimes bordering chanting. While the lyrics were in Russian, there was nothing lost in translation as the trio performed mirthfully on stage with Egor showcasing dance moves that did all the necessary translating. It’s beyond refreshing when you can tell indubitably, that a band on stage is having the time of their life.
