Conversation, Club and Concert
Celebrating electronic music, art, technology, and digital futurism, the London Electronic Arts Festival is set to take over East London’s Tobacco Dock between the 6th and 7th of March. Bringing the normally nocturnal world of electronic music to the fore, the event will shine a light on all aspects of the electronic music industry with a series of talks, masterclasses, and performances from an eclectic mix of both established and up-and-coming artists, producers, and DJs. Structured into two days of events, the organisers have lined up a series of talks, demonstrations, and discussion groups aimed at fans, enthusiasts, apprentices, and connoisseurs for the first.
Highlights to look forward to include a discussion with Bertie Cole and Pip Rush, founders of Arcadia, a company specialising in the construction of stages, sculptures and shows whose creations have been seen looming over the likes of Glastonbury Festival and BoomTown Fair. Purveyors of sensory blasting, boundary breaking immersive experiences, Cole and Rush are most famous for their ‘Spider’ stage, a fire spouting laser beaming creation straight out of the realms of science fiction with the capacity to entertain up to 45,000 people.
Another featured speaker will be Canadian DJ, record producer, remixer and radio presenter B. Traits, whose talk will focus on ideas she recently explored in BBC documentary ‘How Safe Are My Drugs?’, tackling the increasingly relevant topic of drug usage and distribution in the UK.
Ending the first day’s proceedings will be a very special live performance by Modeselektor, a Berlin based duo whose “inarguable grooves seem to emanate from every conceivable musical genre”; they will be supported by British house music pioneers 808 State and Kate Simko with her London Electronic Orchestra. Together, the three acts will set the stage for the final day of the festival, which will focus on music with some of the world’s most revered electronic artists lined up to play a set spanning in excess of ten hours.
Artists set to feature in the musical extravaganza will include the Pan-Pot crew and BEC, a London based DJ and designer who recently performed with the aforementioned at their extended set in Hackney’s ICan Studios. The ICan gig was dedicated to showcasing the biggest and best in underground music, and included Enzo Tedeschi, a DJ, music producer and record label owner who will also be performing on the second day. Although the event is set to finish at 22:30, the night will go on with LEAF promising to take over the capital’s biggest and best nightclubs and event spaces.