'Dance Buenos Aires, Dance' Day 2
Author: Ryan Gawn
Monday, February 14, 2005
Costa Salguero, Buenos Aires, Argentina
10th & 11th December 2004
Day Two - The Closing Party
Kicking off at an early 4pm, the second day brought 22,000 buzzed and enthusiastic fans to the port-side Costa Salguero complex by the Rio de la Plata. 4 huge air-conditioned dancefloors awaited revelers, as well as stalls, flamethrowers and jugglers. With energy drinks, Heineken and sushi in abundance, the fans had high expectations after months of publicity, pre-parties and buildup - they were not disappointed. Armed with necklaces listing each arena's lineup, many moved from room to room, eager to hear their favourite DJ, or even listen to something new. NY Producer Jim Welch was impressed with the fact that huge quantities of fans would move between rooms, searching out their DJs in an educated and dedicated manner.
The HOUSE room was host to up and coming Peruvian team Vich & Berger. Berger commented on his set (which included a roof-raising acapella from Iio's "Rapture") and the warm response he received from the local crowd:
"I'm not really sure if they were really knowledgeable about the music that I play, but at least I got a really good response. The people were dancing, smiling, they're really nice & courteous compared to New York. They seem really loyal to the DJ here. I spoke to Zabiela, and he told me that I had to come down here - the people are really friendly, and the response was overwhelming. Usually it's a challenge for me to motivate the people, but the people here are really open-minded, and it's just taught me that music is the best form of communication, no matter what language you speak. People here are devoted to the music. They want to be there, they want to dance, they don't care. You can play a track from 2001, and they'll dance to it - they're not like nerds - they will dance to anything."
Locals Elio Riso and Luis Callegari took over, as well as international heavyweights such as Bad Boy Bill, Danny Rampling (who also played at Buenos Aires' first ever Creamfields), Acquaviva, Smoking Jo and Pete Tong. He treated the masses to a typical Tong set, with remixes of Guy Gerber's "Stoppage Time" and Eric Prydz' "Call on me" leaving no doubt that a more popular touch was present at the SAMC. Acquaviva, having gained a lot of fans from his performance on the previous day's panel, took over from Tong, playing a less commercial set which went down a storm. The US's Green Velvet finished off the lineup, playing to an exhausted but up-for-it crowd.
Only a few metres away, Room 2/3 hosted the PROGRESSIVE / TRANCE lineup of mainly international talent such as Lucien Foort, Way Out West (the only group to play "live" using instruments that evening) and well-known Argentina-fan Nick Warren. Full to the brim at 8pm, there was notable Argentine talent in Room 2/3 consisted of Aldo Haydar and Javier Bussola, the latter playing an amazing set which paved the way for Tall Paul. Many agreed that the best lineup was to be found in this arena, and few were disappointed. Brit Judge Jules certainly did not disappoint, with his set being one of the best of the night. It was predictable Jules - hard, deep and thumping trance, which was warmly received by the steaming Argentines who rarely see him in South America. Ferry Corsten, who is becoming a bit of a regular here in Buenos Aires, closed the night with an amazing 3 hour set which left the crowd chanting for more after his trademark "Rock your body rock". An interview with the legendary Dutchman can be found here (LINK). As far as visuals go, things were quite disappointing - despite the previous day's discussions concerning the increasing popularity and promising future of video technology in clubs, Room 2/3's VJ had left by 2am leaving things to the computer. Nevertheless, the amazing lighting effects in all 4 rooms made up for this.
Videos aside, Room 4 (TECH HOUSE) showcased the South American talent. Tags