Chicago’s Montrose Beach turned into a three-day nonstop dance party this past weekend for Wavefront Music Festival. Recently taking over the country’s festival scene by storm, the two-year-old event came in quite hot this year. With many additions and improvements, Wavefront has already established itself as one Chicago’s best summer music festivals. We have all the guys from Spybar to thank for their hard work!
I may be overreaching a little by saying the festival brought a little slice of Ibiza to the Midwest with the sandy shores of Lake Michigan and elite talent from around the world. Either way, the festival was fully equipped with the finest talent in deep house, techno, and nu-disco. Justice, Maya Jane Coles, Scuba, Hot Natured, and Dubfire are just a few of the artists who attended. Chicago natives like Derrick Carter, Bad Boy Bill, Frankie Knuckles, and Mark Farina also joined the bill this year, returning home to the city that added so much to the evolution of house music. What set the festival apart from its competition was the well thought musical programming that attracted a diverse lineup of veterans and a rather esoteric crowd of electronic music listeners. Beach in addition to quality underground music, what’s there not to love?
Montrose Beach is the city’s largest lake shore escape, which made it possible to host additional stages than it did the previous year. It was an easy festival to navigate, and attendees could always take a break from the crowd, at whatever point they wished. Six stages of artists kept the music rocking from noon until 10 p.m. The Wave stage in particular, was designed to stimulate a tidal wave that propelled water in the crowd at elated moments. The Cube stage placed the DJ booth inside a deck with designs that drifted at the same pace as the beat. This year they added a ferris wheel, Starship 2000, and a large blow up water slide. Although the stages were a bit close in proximity, I didn’t hear many complaints about it throughout the weekend.
The first day welcomed sounds from Tiefschwarz, Droog, and Martin Buttrich in the afternoon. As the day progressed, Venezuelan pair Fur Coat really got the party started with their heavy tribal bass over at the Oasis stage. Their song, “You and I,” was one of the top charted tracks last year and still one of my favorites this year. Maya Jane Coles certainly contributed her own massive waves to the beach at the Cube stage, which kept the crowds pumping in a nonstop groove. Israeli DJ Guy Gerber’s set followed hers as he used synthesizers to create techno rhythms before adding his signature washes of ambient sounds. Back at the Oasis stage, Life & Death label boss DJ Tennis treated us with a hypnotic set and even a new release on his label by Mind Against. NYC legend Danny Tenaglia and LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy were two of the closing acts, along with a live set from the French trio dOP. The three guys who make up dOP were indeed, well, dope. From the moogs and synths to the vocalist freestyling to the jazz Rhodes keyboard, this was one for the books on Friday.
Saturday highlights were at the Cube stage starting with Argentinian producer Guti. His deep knowledge of music theory shows in every set I’ve seen of his, adding a soulful element that other artists aren’t always capable of including in their own sets. After Guti, electronic producer Matthew Dear performed under his pseudonym Audion, playing a bass-busting minimalistic set. He always brings the most intelligent, futuristic beats in their purest form. Meanwhile, the Chicago Heritage Legends Stage had listeners getting down to some old school house from Derrick Carter and Mark Farina. If the sun wasn’t hot enough, Dubfire capped things off back at the Cube with a crushing set - no surprises there. Another closing act was Detroit techno veteran Seth Troxler who performed a stripped-down, yet soulful audio experience. However, it would have been a sin to Chicago house music if I didn’t go see legendary Frankie Knuckles perform. I headed over to see the Godfather of House Music as he was joined by Jamie Principle, presenting their duet “I’ll Take You There” live. With their turntables giving off quick tempo beats and gospel-inspired vocal samples, the two of them kept it super old school.
The final day of the festival was the hottest, even after the sun slipped behind the Chicago high-rise skyline. But that didn’t stop loyal festival goers from hitting the beach to hear some impeccable sounds one last time. It was without a doubt the most moving day, stacked with talented artists from locals to legends. Late in the afternoon, the Martinez Brothers had the Cube stage filled with dancers for their punchy tech-house set. The brothers, aged 23 and 20, are always in high spirits and bring the best energy to their decks. It’s hard not to fall for their style of mixing. Another one of my favorites from the weekend was Scuba, whose funky basslines and low-slung rhythms paraded out of the speakers, thick with sub. His subdued sea of bass soon had our feet moving through the sand. Some of the most anticipated acts of the weekend were the closing sets on Sunday, including Justice, Hot Natured, and Nicolas Jaar. Justice performed on the Wave stage, which had a noticeably rowdier crowd all day. The French duo included classics like “D.A.N.C.E.” and Run-DMC’s “It’s Tricky.”
Finally, the moment I had been looking forward to all weekend had arrived, the musical genius that is Nicolas Jaar took to the stage. His live show was remarkable. It featured an array of keyboards, synths, and his own vocals, embodying his sensual experiment into aural depth and groovy dance beats. Jaar’s music contains textures that subjectively have an emotional resonance. Especially admirable for me, was the way he never lost sight of the art in his performance, maintaining the same seductive vibe until the end. Fireworks displayed over the water as his set neared the end. My heart was racing at almost the same bpm he was playing, which was one of the coolest moments of the weekend. This was not a deep house or techno set; those terms don’t cover nearly enough ground. This was Nicolas Jaar.
While driving back home on Monday was a bit brutal, spending the July 4th weekend celebrating the birthday of our nation with a fine array of house and techno left me with a smile on my face. Sometimes all it takes is music, curated by the best, to bond our country on the most important ideal for which it stands - freedom of expression.