Attention all techno kids; we have an important message for you.
Do not adjust your sets because for the first time ever musical artist Krankbrother will be hosting a multi-sensory festival within some of the Capital’s most iconic modern and Brutalist buildings.
Each unique space will play host to boundary-breaking events designed to examine and celebrate the relationship between experimental electronic music and its urban surroundings.
London has a booming electronic music scene, but Krankbrother – aka brothers Danny and Kieran Clancy – want to dig deeper.
By providing an aspiring setting, they hope to give more underrepresented genres, such as ambient, drone, leftfield, electronic and techno, a bigger amphitheatre to be heard. In short they want people to take their music seriously.
Many entertainers now identify as visual and sound artists at the same time. And to celebrate this, artists will perform unique compositions alongside commissioned lighting and visual pieces throughout the festival.
Re-Textured, which will run from 28-31 March, has pledged to challenge music lovers while giving partygoers a bold, new concept of what art, music and architecture can be.
Here are some of the top picks from the Re-Textured bill.
180 the Strand
This Brutalist building has become one of the best pop-up art venues in the City, and has hosted the likes of London Fashion Week, the Strange Days: Memories of the Future, installations and the much-loved Wes Anderson exhibition.
Soon it will become the home to hundreds of ravers – but only for the first night of the festival. From 7pm until 12am, the huge space will be filled with the music of Demdike Stare, Michael England, Lee Gamble and Puce Mary in one long night of music, light and architecture.
E1 London
E1 London (formerly Studio Spaces) is a newly refurbished event space in the heart of East London with one of the best sound systems in the world. It opened its doors on NYE 2017 with an intense 27-hour party and is one of just a few event spaces left in London with a 7am license; and boy does Re-Textured take advantage of that.
For two nights shows run from 10pm-7am (yes, these hours are causing us some slight anxiety, too). Thankfully, they have a huge chill out room inside too, so you won’t be expected to actively dance for nine-hours straight. Aurora Halal, Krankbrother, Dr Rubinstein, Karen Gwyer, B2B and DJ Nobu are just some of the impressive acts poised to take the stage at E1.
Village Underground
One of Shoreditch’s coolest venues, Village Underground, will be hosting a whole heap of artists for Re-Textured. And because this is the festival that never sleeps, artists will be playing through the night – until 6am to be exact.
Expect to listen to the likes of Giant Swan Machine Woman (yes, that’s a real name), Jan Jelinek, Anastasia Kristensen, and Object Blue over the course of the four days. And, with this spot being located in Shoreditch, ravers are spoilt for choice when it comes to late-night food cravings or early morning brunch options. It’s a win:win.
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Immerse yourself in sound and light at this late-night event headlined by music producer and artist Fatima Al Qadiri. She will be performing boundary-pushing bass tracks in her London live debut of latest EP Shaneera – the name of the artist’s “evil extreme femme alter ego”.
Fatima is interested in exploring the experience of war, memory, Western perceptions of other cultures, and sociocultural identity through her work – so don’t expect a typical gig. She will be ably supported by Aïsha Devi, who will perform a live transcendental set to a pretty epic light show.
Meanwhile, ambient house pioneers The Orb will be celebrating their 30-year anniversary at the Southbank Centre the night after with a set of both their greatest hits and new music.
The Silver Building
This Brutalist building is little-known to most Londoners and, even though it’s a little out of the way in Silvertown, it’s definitely worth a trek to. By day it’s a co-working space full of creatives, but as the sun goes down it will soon fill with nightcrawlers. Look out for Caterina Barbieri, Ruben Spini, Shackleton, and Silvia Kastel as they hit the decks and work some specially-curated visual art installations into their sets.
