A lot of hard work, but ultimately a great experience 
Liam & i have been working on getting an a.v set together all week with 3 am finishes most nights. Hard work but necessary as we were both using new technologies, and obviously wanted the launch to be something special, not least because Quantic was also on the bill (after a chance call from Adam asking if we could fit him and his new film into the night)
What was interesting to learn on a personal note (once again) that pre planned sets aren’t suited to djing. Its was essential that Liam knew exactly what was played so he could create video clips and an av set to accompany (for our first one at least), but we both learnt that there is only so much planning that works in this environment.
After watching the Transition in Tradition filming, Paul our guest percussionist played an inspired solo set while we plugged the cd decks back in (as they were obscuring the screen) and then we launched into our 1st cinephonic set. The set was a real pleasure building up through all kinds of music, from the opening track (Bombay by A R Rahman) through Tipper, Thievery Corporation, Kruder & Dorfmeister, into some funk, swing, and then Quantic style rolling house tracks.
The response was just as i’d hoped up until one of the swing hop tracks. It was here when the dancefloor went from everyone up to some people getting a beer. Normally as a dj you wouldn’t think twice about switching it up or back, into something that works, but as we had a set plan, there was no way out. It was the first time i’d had this experience for a while, and is best accustomed to taking the wrong bag of records out. I’m always a bit overly critical if the floor doesn’t stay remain full/build up, and people said positive things afterwards, but iwas reminded that some styles of music just work better played end to end.
Reason i say that is because, Quantic and B+ plugged in, and just put on some great records. There was no mixing, just selecting, and the floor responded to the records it liked. For certain styles of music you need to be free to play, and the crowd will groove to the parts they like and that’s what they did. While it was a new experience for me and liam as a partnership, it reminded me that 5 days working out how to fit various genres of more difficult records together is not normally as productive as it can feel. That said there’s nothing that beats a proper dj set using the equipment and scratchig it up in terms of really setting a crowd off.
Nevertheless i have great memories of the night, and feel lucky to have been reminded of something i learnt so long ago. Paul’s Cole’s (free control) percussion was inspiring, and we were also joined by the equally inspiring Tony Coleman from The Lab who not only vjed with Quantic, but also recorded the whole set, and has even edited and uploaded a section while the rest flies its way over via carrier postmen.
I’ll be posting the full audio and hopefully sections of video as soon as it arrives, and i’ll leave you with the opening 10 minutes of our Av set courtesy of Tea.
Cinephonic @ the Hare and Hounds from theLAB on Vimeo.
Here’s the full tracklisting of our set
Cinephonic Av Set #1 – Marc Reck & Vj Blendstate
1. Bombay – A.R Rahman
2. Biotech – Tabla Beat Science
3. Speechless – Count Basic
4. Cat People – Amon Tobin
5. Dead Pixels – Tipper
6. Bug Powder Dust (Kruder Mix) – Bomb The Bass
7. Lebonese Blond – Thievery Corporation.
8. The State of The Union – Thievery Corporation
9. Life In the Rain – Quantic
10. Bitte Drehn – Dublex Inc
11. Enter the Haggis – The Haggis Horns
12. Magic Afternoon – Parov Stellar
13. Wanna Go Home – Angry Rabbit Productions
14. 34 – Angry Rabbit Productions
15. Zuzukus People – Up Bustle & Out
16. Get A Move On – Mr Scruff
17. Belleville Rendevous – Ben Charest
18. Hip Hip Chin Chin (Maxim Illion Mix) – Club Del Belugas
19. A Pomba Girou – Zero Db
20 Sabor Feat Tempo – Quantic
21. On the One Three – Zero Db
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A video by Jack Brabant of the Event
A video by The Lab of the start of Marc Reck & Liam Blendstate’s Set
Cinephonic @ the Hare and Hounds from theLAB
