Aces of base

>> Montreal minimal act Crackhaus gives
techno a swift kick in the pants

by RAF KATIGBAK

Call it what you will: minimal tech, micro house, digital disco. Either way, one listen to the deep minimal turtle-neck-breaking jack of Crackhaus’s first single “40oz Funk” (off the Montreal Smoked Meat CD compilation) and it’s clear that they expertly ride the line between the experimental spirit of digital sound processing and the undeniable appeal of dancefloor euphoria. Add to that their engaging and energetic live performances, and you’ve got a great blend of heady tech and future funk. “We want to put the fun and spontaneity back into experimental techno,” explains Steve Beaupre, .5 of the Montreal minimal duo. “We’re not afraid to make mistakes.”

Like any good techno act, Crackhaus believe that the interaction between crowd and performer is perhaps most important. Their performance this weekend at the Autumn Resound event is set to take that relationship a step further. “At the show the audience will have access to a microphone and they’ll be invited to speak (or scream) into it. The recorded sounds will be immediately processed and integrated into the live set,” explains Scott Monteith (aka Deadbeat), the other half of Crackhaus.

“The great thing about this set-up is that if the people are freaking out and getting excited, then the music itself will reflect that,” he continues. “There’s been an emphasis on live performance over the last couple of years, but it’s been completely misguided. Some artists are so focused on the ‘liveness’ of their set that that the music suffers as a result. Somewhere along the way they lost sight of having fun.”

As it turns out, the idea of focusing on the “fun” aspect of their set wasn’t a deliberate reaction to the admittedly staid and sterile guy-staring-at-his-laptop aesthetic currently de rigeur amongst other laptop performers. “We have massive respect for artists who have the guts to get on stage to present their work,” Beaupre says. “We just also saw a necessity for minimal techno with a bit more balls and interaction.” To which Monteith adds, “For us, in the end, it’s all about having fun.” :

With Naw, Granny Ark and Tobias aka Saibot, at le SAT, Saturday, Sept. 28, 9pm,
$10 in advance/$12 at the door

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