CDCY002 by crossdressing.diogenes

Crossdressing Diogenes

Issue #2

We are back with Issue #2, looking back on Summer

Contents: •Main Article, Part 1 (What is Music?) •Thoughts: On expanding the scene •Event Reviews (Early summer) •Moneda launch •Event Reviews (Late Summer) •Rekodo Records •Main Article, Part 2 (What is Underground?) •Brace Yourself for Winter Many thanks to all the photographic contributors: Michalis Shammas, Mimis Theodisiou Yiannis Zouris, Vova Yuknow; and Iza, thank you so much for your significant contribution.

Cover Photo by Emiddio Vasquez

Hope you enjoy, love from Niko Mas

Manik Maik Productions with Barac. (Iza Galowska)

What is Music? People write books on the topic “what is music”. It’s a big question that has been debated since as early as Plato, who suggested that music was a kind of “abstract object”. These ideas were first discussed for political reasons, namely, should there be limitations on what music is allowed, based on music having the power to influence people’s behaviour. If music is an object, where does it exist? If music is not an object, how does it exist?; what kind of a thing is music? We know music is sound, and if you’ve study acoustics, you know that sound is patterns of changes in air pressure being perceived by the human ear and mind systems, but the point at which sound is transformed into music is mysterious. When thinking about “what kind of a thing music is”, we fi rst imagine the form it is usually presented in; works, pieces, tracks, songs, albums, jingles, hymns. While we can’t say that there is such a thing as a “consistent, homogenous global culture”, a signifi cant majority of global cultures perform music in this way, singing songs together or attending a concert where a musician performs “pieces” or “works”. In general, this is because, historically, music has been considered a form of “art”, and thus the standard presentation of “a music” has, for most of history, been expected to be consistent with other art forms.

This is especially true of Techno culture, too, we receive new music in the form of tracks, LPs, EPs released on Beatport, Sets on Soundcloud or Mixcloud – the music we consume is presented to us as a finished, individual thing – it’s not an object, but we treat it like one, and it is presented as one. The music itself can’t be touched or handled, it seems to just jump into existence when the notes are played in the right order, or when you put the needle on the record. Unlike a painting, such as the ‘Mona Lisa’, musical works exist more than one time, there isn’t one fixed copy in a gallery that you can go and see; there is no “original copy” which retains any sense of unique authority or “originality” compared to the copies.

Furthermore, because a musical work must be listened to through a speaker-system or via a musician performing the work, each time the music is played, it is going to be different. Every speaker system sounds different when put in different spaces; the file can be in different qualities; musicians always perform things differently to each other, and differently to the “composer”. Every time you hear a song, it is different, yet we maintain that there is a static identity for each work composed. To elaborate, if someone asked us, “do you know ‘Love Recycled 1’ by Solomun?”, something jumps into our minds; we might even start to hum the tune. Then you deconstruct it, ‘Love Recycled 1’ is a reinterpretation of that ‘Warren G’ track, with those famous acidic gospel chords, rearranged into the form we recognise as ‘House Music’. On the surface, this description is enough, but in terms of Philosophy it is unsatisfying. If we say that this track is a kind of “collage”, the next step in understanding what exactly the track is, would be to deconstruct the parts which the collage contains.

The chord sequence is a collection of notes played in a certain order, but it also must be played in a very specific way in order to become the song – the chords are played with a gospel keyboard with plenty of chorus, which has a medium decay and release. The musician also changes the way that set of notes is played in order to take advantage of the character of the instrument – gospel musicians know how to make the most of their organ or keys – it is not just a set of notes, it is a set of notes played in a very specific way. The question to ask yourself is: if you turned the FX off on that instrument, or if you changed the preset to a Grand Piano – would it still be that track?

This grey area is exactly what interests a large percentage of Music Philosophers – how much can you change a track until it is no longer recognisable as a version of the original; how much can you modulate a form until it loses its sense of identity.. This, in Academia, is called “Metaphysical Individuation”, and this is the area of Philosophy which has lead to the total destruction of what was once known as “The Western Musical Object”. It used to be commonplace to think of songs as complete and fixed, but these days it’s hard to sustain such an argument.

Musical works cannot be an object, no matter how much we commodify or treat them as if they are objects, because their identity is not bound to any unchangeable, static form. You can change musical forms a lot before they disconnect from the original. The song is more of an idea, more of a symbolic thing that people agree on – the identity of a musical work exists in a state of fluctuation.

Underground Aristo style (Niko Mas)

Symbols only work when people agree on them, that’s literally how they function and remain useful. We agree that a €1 coin is representative of €1 of economic wealth. We agree that red circular signs on the road mean “stop”. We agree that the word “Mountain” represents massive rock formations and that the word “Ocean” means massive bodies of water. Social agreement (Socio-constructivism) is really important to how we experience daily life, and something that only exists when agreed upon can be referred to as a “Social Construct”. We socially build an idea up to the point where it seems to exist of its own – yet, when people stop agreeing on it, the very existence of that thing is jeopardised. No single individual has the power to defuse a symbol on their own, because one person’s disagreement gets factored into an ocean of people who have agreed on it. Ultimately, if everyone in Cyprus decided stop-signs don’t mean stop, no one would stop at them anymore, and after just one new generation of drivers, those red circular signs would be obsolete, de-symbolised, or socially de-constructed out of existence.

Beautiful Pomos (Iza Galkowska)

If you take this logic, and apply it to “music”, things start to make a lot of sense. All the different covers and version of tracks and songs are different, but they are made to be symbolically representative of something else of which we have agreed. The identity of a track becomes a kind of symbol.

The sound may be a physical event, but the physical nature of the sound is abstracted into ‘a musical form’ during the process of reconstructing the sensory data into our subjective experiential reality (Perception). What we see, feel and experience can be imagined like an overlay.

In this sense, the song, is separate to the physical sound, like an overlay on top of physical reality. Just like with things like stop signs and the UN Logo, the actual physical shape or form gets ideas stapled onto it.

This is a central theme in Philosophy of Art and Art History as well, and while there are many examples, thought-experiments and writers who confront this subject, there is one in particular that address the topic in such a way that we can apply it to music.

Music then, is much like a symbol, it is a set of ideas stapled onto a physical form, in this case, ‘sound’. Somehow we turn something transient into some permanent in our minds - if you think of a famous pop song, like “I want to Break Free”, it seems like something fixed and unchangeable, everyone knows “it”, but that sense of permanence exists only in the mind - the “actual” song is far, far from static.

In the 1920s, Michel Duchamp exhibited a controversial “art work”, known as “Fountain”. “Fountain”, literally, was a urinal, unaltered; and people hated it. It did however, reignite the questions ‘how is it art?’ and ‘how is it not art?’; what makes something “art”, and what makes something not qualify as “art”. Arthur Danto, as an example of a modern art philosopher, raised a further question: if we just accept that it is possible to argue that Duchamp’s “Fountain” is a work of art, the next question is to ask how an object can exist as both an artwork, and a toilet at the same time. Just like with music and songs, the “artwork” occupies the same space as the physical object, yet exists uniquely.

Many philosophers favour “Set Theory” as a means of understanding this human process of symbolically connecting variations on a theme into “sets”. Any given song or track or work, is paradoxically not a singular thing, rather it is a set of performances (including the performance of ‘playing a prerecorded track off a CD’) that we compile together under a single title.

In response to this it was proposed that the observer projects the “artness” onto it, an act which is invited by the way the object is framed by the artist. artist If we think about that “overlay” idea, it was proposed that “the art” exists as part of that projected overlay. This describes a two-way process, where a physical event or thing is given a secondary mode of existence when two people come into agreement. In other words, if you make something “look like a work of art”, that act may invite a person to perceptually engage with it as if it is supposed to be treated as an art work. There was an example where someone put a pair of glasses on the floor in an art exhibition space that they were visiting, and this person essentially “tricked” attendees into thinking the dropped glasses were legitimately part of the exhibit. While the intention of the event was cynical in nature, it makes exactly clear the phenomenon that lies beneath both the question of “what is art?” and what is music?”. People through their lives build some understanding of what this “art” thing is, from family, friends, teachers, or from exposure, and when something looks to them like an “art”, then in their subjective reality, the object is transformed into art, using the same psychological faculties that allow humans to create symbols. This same process lies behind “set theory” from before: when an artist presents a musical track as if it’s supposed to be, lets say “Redemption Song” by Bob Marley, by performing the same relative-pitch, harmonic and rhythmic patterns, and emulating the humanistic, expressive and performative characteristics associated with that song, it invites a listener to just assume that its supposed to be categorised with all the other versions of the song. At that point the listener is able to appreciate the artistry of the performance, by comparing what they are hearing to the other versions they have heard, and therefore experience the character of the variation and transformation. If it is argued that the existence of music is bound to the same psychological facilities that allow for symbolic associations, it leads neatly to the idea of “humanly organised sound”.

7 At one point in Academic history, Ethnomusicologists were debating a new definition of music, one which was liberally inclusive of all variations of what humans from different cultures call their music; humanly organised sound. It’s a good premise because it falls in line with the argument that music is something that is enabled by a capacity for symbolic association. It does, however, fail to differentiate between music and such things as poetry, speech, and funnily enough, building sites (or the sound coming out of one). Eventually, In 2011, Kania & Gracyk articulated the following definition for music based on an amalgamation of all of these arguments: Music is “any event intentionally produced or organised to be heard, and, either, to have some basic musical feature, such as pitch or rhythm, or to be listened to for such features”. It seems paradoxical that people must know what music is in order for music to exist, because it becomes a kind of “which came first?” problem, but we have already discussed the psychological and social mechanisms which allow for music to jump into existence exactly because people agree upon it existing. What the updated definition basically does is add what was said earlier about the presentation of music as if it is music, to “humanly organised sound”. The sound coming out of a building site, or birdsong, as far as this definition concerns, is not music, because it is not being presented as music - it’s hard to expect an audience to recognise something as music if it is not presented in the format that said audience has learned to expect. If you recorded the sound of a building site and re-performed at an ambient music event, for example, it would be recognisable, by virtue of its new context, as a piece of music to the observers, and in the subjective mind of the observer the form is transformed into ‘an abstract, musical object or event’. So, when a human hears something that they perceive to be music, they engage with it differently. There are different ways to process sensory input, and when a human perceives something as music, they listen to it differently, they process it differently. If a human hears something they identify as language, they process it with an interest in obtaining semantic information, so as to understand what it means. If a human hears a tiger roaring, it might not be so immediately interested in deciphering any semantic content within the physical sound, in favour of processing it with a focus on where the sound came from, how near it was, and how demonic is the source of the sound. These are different kinds of listening, and listening to music is its own unique form, primarily processing the sound for aesthetic and formal content; from this phenomenon we grant such things as texture, and timbre, and emotional characteristics, to sound. From here on we are totally in comfortable territory. Once a human can perceive such things as texture and emotional character in sound, those things can be categorised and archived, too. You can categorise all music that seems sad or soft, or all music that is electronic, all music by one composer/performer, so on so, and so on, and through our music culture, we’ve ended up with ideas like genres, which are again, just socially constructs. Genres are one easiest things to understand the fragile nature of social constructs, especially for Techno fans; It is within our culture to debate, needlessly, what genre a track is. Everyone has their own idea of what a genre is, in essence, and there is only really a “loose” agreement collectively. This is where you end up with such ideas as “the essence of Techno”, which is something that even established critics act as if is real. Everyone has ideas of what House music is, and for many it is more than just “a set of familiar rhythmic patterns or technical practices”, there is an essence within it, an inner symbolic character that defines it.

News from the ArtWorld:

AIR. AIR.

T he angel re s p o n s i b l e f o r t h e Cr o ssd r e ssin g Dio g e n e s lo g o stitchw ork has an exhi bi ti on i n Li ma s s ol. The e x h i b i t i o n r u n s t hr o u g h u n til Ja n u a r y 1 0 th , a n d yo u can fi nd i t i n the bassment of the Pla tei a I r oon M o n u m e n t o p p o site T h e a tr o Ria lto . Ch ris t o s Ky riakides w i l l be presenti ng some h i g hly ref ined e m b r o i d e r i e s , a cco m p a n ie d b y wo r ks fr o m M a rin a X enofontos. H ead dow n to there to f i n d out wh a t ’s g o i n g o n ; o r ju st to se e ch r isto s lo o kin g g o o d i n fi shnets. (https://w w w.faceb ook . c om/ eve n t s / 5 6 4 0 4 6 1 9 4 01 8 8 8 5 /) DriveDrive, and the organisers are from another planet. They are the kind of artists who seem to live in the future, ahead of the horizon, so I wont commit the injustice of trying to explain about, but it’s highly recommend to go there are check it out. If you’re looking for something new, interesting, developed, and inpirational, you can find it there: Old Town Nicosia, Sapfous 6.

DriveDrive:‘Phase 2’

C’est Demon ‘18 (Iza Galkowska)

The area of genres and essences is where “underground” comes into play. What people consider to be “underground” is really incoherent, and as we’re still talking about social constructs, when there is incoherent agreement, the very existence of the construct is vague. What is the essence of “Underground”? Unlike with things like “Minimalism”, there are very few dominant aesthetic or formal qualities which define “Underground”, so when we talk about “underground music”, it is harder to imagine how that might be. When you say “Minimal Techno”, it is fairly easy to think of a Techno track, and then imagine how it might be stripped down or refigured with a minimal visage. Yet with “Underground”, this same process is not so easy to imagine – not until we remember that culturally, “Underground” is a relative-term which sits oppositional to “Mainstream”.

Great Recent Sets:

Continues in Part 2

Osvaldo III - Live At Rave Impressive. Seriously impressive. Every year Osvaldo III’s hardware techno gets more refined. You can really tell that the time spent with the machines is enabling more sophisticated expression. It was a great set live, and the recording has been divided into 4 to mark the 2nd Dishonest release on the sublabel. Dishonest is geared to be really unique and special, and it’s a solid 2nd release, that feels very close to the ethos of the sublabel. Listen before going out or at an after. Get a copy on the Honest Electronics Bandcamp. Mohama Tajalof - Stargaze Set On Honest Electronics soundcloud you will also find the upload of Mohama Tajalof’s set at Stargaze. Really interesting and enjoyable ambient set, with space oddity synths with a vintage feel. It’s really up there in the ‘t.i.e.r’ tier (lol). Recommended for when you come home after KlubD. www.soundcloud.com/mohamatajalof/honest-electronics-stargaze-recording BillyD&Gustav - Rekodo Launch Groovy set, really suited the launch vibe, and made for a good recording too, worth listening to when you wake up on a sunday. As it was the launch of the record shop, it was a record only set, and it’s good if you like to watch experienced DJs mix records. Find it on the Rekodo Records facebook.

On expanding the Scene Thoughts:

There have been a few events this summer which, at first, seemed odd, but in retrospect, it all follows a pattern. I’m talking about Radio Slave at ‘Nautical Beach n’ Joy’; Alex Tomb @‘Ithaki’;Under the Starz at ‘Mazatos’; and Trap 4:Alan Backdrop at ‘Guaba’.At first, you might not think the artists match the venue, but there is a logic behind it. If you want to bring new people into the ‘scene’, what better to do than put Radio Slave to play in their ‘front room’. A lot of people go to Nautical and Guaba, and Ithaki, who might not have had any exposure to what we could call “underground music”, so why not bring someone with a lot of experience to showcase music of more acquired taste.

Alex Tomb @ Ithaki Afterhours @ Moni Beach,

28/05/18

Sunrise (Iza Galkowska)

(Iza Galkowska)

Alex Tomb was playing the after party of a more commercial Techno event at Moni beach, in the upper floor, overlooking the beach and the sea, and overlooking where the sun rises. A lot of the us came just as Alex Tomb was about to start, as there had been a beach party at Mazotos that night; so it still really had that after party feel, where you show up and all the usual suspects have respectively turned up from whatever party they were at earlier. Last few standing (Niko Mas)

The music was much more playful and cheesy than usual, very melodic, with tasteful vocals and those kind of synthesizer arpeggios that never grow boring. Sunrise was epic, although it absolutely melted the DJ, who was directly exposed to it for hours; thankfully the dance floor was very well shaded. It ended up being a little bit funny because the venue was desperate to close and Alex pushed it for hours over the end time, encore after encore. The venue’s cleaning team were literally cleaning around the last 20 people (sorry), who were still dancing to playful tracks by artists like Four Tet. Once again, by putting an “underground” artist at the end of a more commercial event, those who are left over may well be in the perfect position and mood to experience some different sounds. Damn, love a good after.

Exotica presents: Radio Slave Nautical Beach n’ Joy, 08/06/18

Full House (Vova Yuknow)

Full House (Vova Yuknnow)

Radio Slave with Exotica was a huge project for those involved. There was months and months of promotion; a short film; a DJ mix; posters; flyers; everything. Exotica have a lot of history and experience running events but this was a big investment for them. There have been so many off-radar parties in the last few years which have been powered by the Exotica soundsystem, and it is always very humble in nature, so this Radio Slave rave came across as going-all-in during the promotion and build up. They decorated the selected area in ‘Nautical’ with a huge ceiling of leaves, and dark red lights, and it looked demonic in there, very visually impactful and stimulating. The full sound-system was out, it’d been a while to see such a large system put to use. There were speakers towered up to the ceiling, and the subs were shaking the floor. Radio Slave was being supported by Aristodemos, Fantis and Alex Tomb, which is a really experienced line up; even though all of them play regularly, seeing them on the line up is comforting. As you might expect, the music was great, Aristodemos and Fantis warmed the room up over a few hours, building, gliding, building up more, gliding back down again. It seemed they were both trying to bring everyone into the Radio Slave “area”, whilst tempting Radio Slave himself into playing a more melodic set. When it eventually came to it, Radio Slave spent a while exploring different aspects of his sound, searching for a vibe that clicked with the Nautical crowd. It seems he found it because by the time it came for Alex Tomb to play, it was still a good number of people. It was a vivid night; strong colours; big crowd; the full Exotica sound system itself looked a bit demonic in its arrangement under the red lights. The opening of Alex Tomb’s set came with a sense of“okay,here we go, get ready”, but sadly was cut short after just a few hours because the venue was under pressure to cut off the sound. It was still good overall, lots of familiar faces blending in with a large audience, and because the beach is just 5 steps away from the dance floor, when it’s all over, you’re already at the ideal place to relax and take a rest. It would be interesting however, to hear how the organisers feel about it, after all it was a big investment, but i can imagine more time is needed before anyone has anything to say.

Trap: Chapter #4 Alan Backdrop @ Guaba,

25/08/18

Guaba. Everyone knows it. When you ask people about it, they usually roll their eyes. It’s a bit tacky but it’s always been there, and it’s always changing, but it plays commercial dance music which is, to regularly listeners of dance music, a very different experience and aesthetic. Putting BillyD, Alex Tomb and Alan Backdrop on the small beach stage in Guaba is weird. Given their music, it’s even stranger to think it would be a day time party. I don’t think anyone knew how it was gonna go down. But at the end of the day, what else is there to do on a Saturday day time, than go to the beach for some really good Techno. Alan Backdrop played really well, seemingly understanding quite well the context he was playing in, and playing into that effectively. What I mean is that he was aware that Guaba wasn’t somewhere appropriate for “real underground Deep Techno”, so he kept it reasonably accessible and interesting to the people who were at Guaba for their regular Saturday situation. It was fast, building up to 130-135bpm as the sun went down, and it was groovy and atmospheric. Towards the end it moved more into commercial territory, most likely because more people were arriving and he may have felt under pressure to play something the majority would like. Overall, it worked. It was surreal actually, with a healthy dose of absurdism; Darker and Hypnotic Techno surrounded by rainbows and bright coloured walls. The sound was thankfully supported by those infamous Cerwin Vega subwoofers, provided by he whodoesnt-even-need-to-be-named, because there are no subwoofers on that smaller stage. In general it was well supported too, a lot of the “underground scene” were there, and a lot from Nicosia and Larnaca, which is always a good sign. Even Ness was there. It would have been amazing if it could have just kept going after 9pm, but luckily Mesitis, Van Sim and Socrates were playing at Sousami just down the road, and the party kept going. The KlubD guys were great too that night, bravo.

Guaba, repurposed (Niko Mas)

Guaba Repurposed (Niko Mas)

Under the Stars Mazotos Party w/ Visitors from UK

14/08/2018

Unlike the fi rst three events in this section, this one is a kind of inversion of the concept. There have been a lot of off-radar events held at a particular spot at a beach in Mazotos, marked by a large, unfinished white house. There was little to no advertisement for these events, just a private facebook event page with nothing but a pair of co-ordinates and a message that said “bring water and warm clothes”; one of these seemingly random parties ended up being a candidates for the best rave of the summer. These events were low budget, with nothing but a relatively-small sound system and a flatpack IKEA gazebo to shade the DJ. Then all of a sudden, there was news that someone was bringing some old friends from London to play at Mazotos, which seemed weird given that everything at that location so far had been really barebones and underground, it didn’t seem like it was able to accommodate some kind of larger ordeal. Furthermore, the artists set to play seemed to be associated with commercial EDM and Garage, which meant that the party wasn’t really being thrown for the usual audience. When we arrived, we found there was a medium sized scaffold frame, with a DJ booth, a Bar, some thick material on the fl oor to dance on; there was even an entrance with an entrance fee. Furthermore it was full… like, there were 50 people already there at 9. Commercial EDM? entrance fees? people arriving at 9pm? It was not exactly what we had come to expect at the site. But if we think about the other 3 events in this section, and the logic of trying to bring people into the underground scene, it does makes sense to bring a new crowd to a site with a reputation for underground events and show them “how it is done” outside of a beach bar or a commercial club. Perhaps now new people will be asking “when can we go to another one of those more-off-radar parties randomly thrown on a beach?” If the newer crowd stayed until the end of the line up, they also had a chance to see one of the most beautiful and enjoyable aspects of rave culture: a good after party. A lot of the usual ravers were almost waiting around for it, when the music would dive underground, and take the party underground with it. Wednesday the 15th was a total blur, comprised of sleeping on the hot beach, waking up, DJing for a few hours, eating some corn on the cob and phasing out of reality again. One minute it was Tuesday night, watching people enjoy the space we’d been enjoying all summer, next minute it was Thursday. Aristodemos was still playing. These kind of experiments, different events could be the way to continue to attract people to the scene. A lot of people talk about a problem of education, in terms of how to show people what great music and a great music culture is about, and this could be one of the best ways to show them; invite people, meet people in the middle a bit.

sippinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; 40s (Niko Mas)

EVENT REVIEWS (EARLY SUMMER) Honest Electronics: The Gathering III 4 Events: Intro / Earthgaze / Stargaze / Rave 27/06/18 - 15/07/18

There are some amazing outdoor events on this island, from Low Society to Infected, Lotus Paradise and G. Parties. Yet, the Gathering is unique, and is growing every year. The Gathering III was true to it’s ethos. It was a lot of work, but it was done by friends and family, and it was humble in nature. The Intro was very suave, like a satirical classy wine-meeting at an art gallery before head out to the fields, and the aesthetic of the basement and the street outside made the whole affair feel very a bit ironic and punk. It was a strong testament to the talent on the island too, with one artist presenting a hand-made stringed instrument, with mechanisms and electronics – a work of art, truly, from the mathematics to the acoustic output. You can find more about this online, the instrument is called “The Kyklophono II”. There was a talk by the owners of the venue about how they realised their goals of opening and running this beautiful art space. There was graphic design art on display from the Founder of Honest Electronics, with the stunning large-scale final output of a highly developed project. This Zine was also launched at this event. There was also the presentation of a compilation album, and a performance of a newly released album on Honest Electronics by Arrbutus; an electronic musician playing live using synths like the Moog mother-32.

Afterhours (Michalis Shammas)

The outdoor events were well organised, with a good variation of local and visiting artists, good sound, and the vibe of the location was, as always, serene. The Gaze events could have been attended better, as it was mostly the core audience who came by, but by virtue of that, the vibe was electric and warm. It was a gathering of the Honest Electronics network, so many people had come back from places like Berlin; it was a reunion. That’s also the benefit of Kampia, it almost doesn’t matter what you do there, it’s just a nice place to hang out - even better when someone has gone to the trouble of putting up projector screens and an arsenal of pro audio equipment. It’s also a sign of a healthy scene that there are so many people who have invested time and effort into the instruments and hardware that the music we love is built with – so many musicians ready to perform. The visuals were really impressive at the Gaze events, that team really outdid themselves, if that kind of set up could have been employed to the rave stage somehow, it would have been stunning. Having said that, the view at the rave, that quintessential Kampia view, with 2 red sunsets, is a flawless backdrop of its own. The long-awaited rave event opened really well, Wonderwander delivered a really refined minimal set, which gave a really subtle momentum for the next performers (including some really refined live sets from Rat and Osvaldo III), who took that energy and ramped it up slowly, slowly, eventually meeting Raw Silver territory for a well-figured Deep Techno set. The international acts blended well into the scene, too, with Cyprus being small, with a limited number of DJs, throwing in some fresh sounds can be really effective; it was touching to see people from a place like Berlin coming to Cyprus for their first time and enjoying it here, and contributing to our humble cause. Arrbutus (Michalis Shammas)

Art of stage design (Iza Galkowska)

It was a good spread of artists across the distorted 24 hour timeframe, although there was a small mix up at the end in terms of who was actually playing last. Supposedly the original line up was Aristodemos, Georges D’andre then BillyD; Aristodemos would come on and start the “after party”, opening up the vortex so to speak; Georges’ music would have been really good at sunset, leaving the dancefloor with enough energy and momentum for BillyD to glide for hours and hours with those minimal flows. The last two ended up switching which meant that the line up would be Deep Underground House, then Minimal Techno, then back to House/ Disco, which is a big jump back and forth. Having said that, they were all really refined sets in of themselves, Aristodemos set was so fluid and well-timed that 4 hours passed like lightning, it was immaculate. Joralsky played the come down set after all was done, which felt appropriate in the context of this summer. Usually the Gathering goes on for days and days, but this year there was a pause for a few hours after what had been 2-3 days of music that weekend, but it only took until about 11am Monday for the music to come back on. I played for about 8 hours that day, and slowly, slowly, people woke up and came back to dance or relax, and other DJs joined in playing. This time the Gathering after party really started, and the music went for another week or more, with people going to work in the day, and hanging out at Kampia at night.

Mohama with love (Michalis Shammas)

Summer Serendipity Festival

Claudio PRC and Ness coming back to Cyprus as The Godsplanet was big news. Claudio’s music in particular was a big deal in the history of the Cypriot Techno scene. Claudio & Ness are like old favourites from an era that has passed, when KlubD was filled with the hypnotic deep techno associated with artists like Donato Dozzy and Giorgio Gigli.

Governor’s Beach, 22/06/18

Thinking about it, the whole situation was a little bizarre, in a wonderful way. The serendipity festival was mostly geared towards psychedelic music, the stage set up for that sound was stunning, and the majority of attendees were over that side. So for this kind of event to go to the effort of booking The Godsplanet seems a bit too good to be true. In terms of underground music, putting records out on labels like“semantica”and“prologue”is a big thing, and it’s always nice to have some of these names pass by, especially when it is seemingly out of the blue. Governor’s Beach is a bit brutal, the stone flooring is an immaculate white, and the sun is relentless, but the shaded dance floors were well-positioned, and helped the party go on for as long as it could after The Godsplanet finished. The music was really good too; dark, hypnotic, deep. Claudio, wearing all black head to toe, seemed to stand like a statue at the decks, totally in the zone, taking us through different spaces and atmospheres. The line up could have been rearranged a bit, perhaps BillyD after The Godsplanet, followed by Atesh & Argy K, but as said before, it was more of a psychedelic party and Techno fans were lucky to be so well accommodated. Although it also makes sense that, if people who really love their psychedelic music, wanted to listen to Techno for a change, would probably see the appeal in this style of Deep Techno. Harmonious Booking. Claudio PRC, BillyD & the last dancers (Mimis Theodosiou)

A story from Pafos

After the Gathering - Rave on July 14th, I began to think about what was coming next for Crossdressing Diogenes. It was clear to me that I wanted to continue to build a clear image of what is happening in Underground and Rave culture on the island - the first issue provided a brief history, so the second should begin to drop into the kind of philosophical ideas that will be important in deconstructing the scene. In Academia, the first phase of any research or writing, is the challenge of “defining your research area” - who exactly are you studying, and how do you definitively separate what you are studying and what you aren’t. Given this, it seemed almost logical to bring up the question of “What is music” or more specifically, what is “Underground music”. I posted something on Instagram about this, and quickly it became a joke to ask me “is this Underground? What about this?”.

Fast forward another week, to August 5th, and a friend called me up and said lets go to Paphos;“Aristos is there” - which is more or less code for “there is a party there”. This summer has had a lot of “off-radar events” in places like mazotos, but even those would have some kind of internet presence, maybe an event page with some co-ordinates. This one was different however, it had zero online presence, it was virtually invisible, with no clues as to what was going on, or what music was playing.“Whatever, let’s go and find out”, we said, and we drove off on our trip to a Dam in Paphos, stopping to pick up a friend in Limassol who had also caught word. Upon arrival, there was loads of very-familiar faces. About 10-15 regulars from the Honest Electronics side of things, who had all been there since the night before - this invisible gathering was already on day 2. I’m pretty sure the party had finished, and they were just curious to see if they could rally enough interest to justify staying another night; it worked. Half way through the day, someone arrived with a huge box of exotic fruits; starfruit, dragonfruit, cherry guavas, and passionfruit. More and more people were arriving, having finally caught word of the gathering, and everyone stood around a table, mesmerised by the colourful fruit. It was either a happy accident or a stroke of genius, because the food provided a common ground, and a kind of sensual group activity. With this simple basket of fruit, the vibe came alive. Aristodemos was digging deep into his record collection, Joralksy also played, and he had been on fire all summer, another set from him that went down a treat. Things kind of descended into one of those hazey, lucid affairs - it was like “how did this end up happening, you wake up in the morning with no plans and 16 hours later you’re tripping in Pafos”. In the midsts of the night, one wise figure walked towards me through the small crowd, and out of nowhere hit me with that same elusive question: “so you were asking what underground means.. i think this might be it…” Followed by: “…do you have music with you? would you like to play later?”

Excursion (Niko Mas)

Moneda Publishing House Labels are somewhat lacking in Cyprus. There is Honest Electronics, Karmak Records, Capparis Spinosa, but in general, there are a lot of musicians sitting on good productions, there are a lot of artists sitting on interesting art, with limited places to present it. The artist known as Joralsky or Osvaldo III has captured a lot of attention in the last two years, demonstrating a lot of flexibility as a conceptual artist as well as an underground DJ. When someone like this makes a label, it’s worth paying attention. The label is more geared towards artistic or conceptual work (opposed to dance floor tracks), but given that the many of the people involved have their roots in raving, i think we can all find a point where we relate to it and enjoy it. The border between experimental electronic music and techno can often be blurred, an artist like Ricardo Villalobos can, at one point, create a work like “Dexter”,whilst also producing works like “Fizheuer zieheuer” - One is dance floor gold, the other is 40 minutes of, well… - Raving and the Arts have more in common than a lot of people think. The label is called “moneda”,Spanish for coin or capital, and it reveals one of the more important conceptual axioms of the project: Trading, marketplaces, exchanges of value, and an interesting approach to thinking about how we as a modern society create items or works of value, and how they are distributed and monetised. For example, there is an idea floating that Moneda releases will be accessible via obtaining (by whatever means) a “Moneda token”. This challenges the mainstream paradigm by offering an alternative way of accessing the works via a “new currency” which works differently to purely economic currency.

‘Nana’ at Moneda Launch (Yiannis Zouris)

Jimmy & Emi at the after (Anastasia Dolisay)

Bravo Elektroniki (Yiannis Zouris)

Setting up (Niko Mas)

If, for example, the coins were inexpensive, but rare, the value of the item becomes interesting because it’s “power” as an objectified form of value draws more from cultural/social value than economic - you had to be in the right place at the right time to get one. Secondarily, over time the “Moneda token” becomes infinitely more valuable than the money used to acquire one, as more and more work and events are presented, it’s like taking a gamble that what is to come in the future will make your investment in the coin more and more “fruitful”.It’s a really exciting idea and no matter what the label eventually decide to do, it’s worth keeping an eye on, as it might be a chance to be involved in a really counter-cultural social project with the added reward of music and performances. The launch was very well played. It was hosted in an old market square, and the performers each had their own little island, each looking like a kind of strange dystopian futurist froutaria; like, in stead of going out to buy tomatoes and onions, you were to head down to the Moneda market place every Wednesday morning to stock-up on some conceptual art being reeled off en-masse on handmade gadgets and modulars. The sound system was quadrophonic (very cool) and encouraged the audience to reposition themselves in terms of stage-audience paradigms. This is something Joralksy has explored before in other projects; inverting or repositioning the artist in an attempt to reposition the audience and impact their engagement. We sat in the middle, with the musicians around us, encircling us, not just a stage with some seats opposite. In this way, it was tempting to not look at the performer at all, and simply stare vacantly into the stars while sound comes at you from all sides. The music was a taster or a showcase of what to expect in terms of releases: from the beautiful chaos of náná, to the unique and highly-evolved performative sound art of Elektroniki. There was plenty of field recordings at play, plenty of alternative/extended sound technics (such as Emiddio’s use of an amplified copper sheet on which coins were tossed and spun). It was also impressive that, amongst the wide variation of performance styles, there was a really high consistency of quality. There was plenty of field recordings at play, plenty of alternative/extended sound technics (such as Emiddio’s use of an amplified copper sheet on which coins were tossed and spun). It was also impressive that, amongst the wide variation of perAfter this, people headed to the space next to kala kathoumena for the after party, which again explored another dimension of the Moneda project. If all these strands can continue to be held together conceptually, the label can grow into something very unique and special.

Grun (Yiannis Zouris)

EVENT REVIEWS: Late Summer

Escape to Paradise Pomos,

10-12/08/2018

Pomos has the Kampia factor. It’s such a stunning place, with a really peaceful atmosphere, any excuse to make the journey from Nicosia would be worth it. The sea and sky at Pomos are so deeply colourful, with the sunset casting seemingly impossible shades of purple, pink and peach for all to see.

Pomos Sunset (Iza Galkowska)

This was a simple festival, hosted by Sobamonk and +4; it had a small camping area, a shaded dance area full of trees and rosemary, a great food-bar area and best of all, good toilets. The music on the Saturday in particular was excellent, a mix up between people from many groups (Square, KlubD, Alternadiva, Honest Electronics), and they kept it minimal and flowing, the line up was really well set. Daotis and Motif were really impressive, Gustav le bon played a good selection. Sobamonk was a treat to listen to, and especially interesting when he played b2b with BRB. As with most summertime raves in Cyprus, even the most well planned events fizzle into a kind of hazy gathering due to the heat, humidity and that beach-side-induced drowsiness. The DJs started playing 5 way back to back, until the town mayor or something asked them to shut the sound down. The location felt great but it was also really close to a lot of houses so it wasn’t so surprising that police came by. Yet, as per usual, when the sound was shut down, everybody just went to the beach. It was perfect too.. a night of really good music then a walk down to the beach to relax, swim, trip out. No one seemed to care at all, the mood wasn’t killed, and when you have paradise beach and that dragon’s cave right next door, there’s really nothing to complain about; that’s one of the beautiful things about Cypriot parties. It’s the same with Kampia, when the world you create together in a party fades out, at least you crash-land somewhere beautiful, warm and, in the right places, truly peaceful. Pingers on the beach (Iza Galkowska)

Van Sim (Iza Galkowska)

Ela milto (Iza Galkowska)

Amazing summer from Daoutis (Iza Galkowska)

Space Troopers Kannavia,

01/09/18

“Flow” (Iza Galkowska)

Sometimes even Underground fans can have fun with a little bit of luxury, and we had that at the space troopers event hosted by Square. The party had a sci-fi vibe throughout the promotion, with a great video to match (think satirical lightsabre battle), but it wasn’t a particularly pervasive theme, the aesthetic and vibe of the event was totally dominated by the natural beauty of the area, and the stunning, modern, minimal villa; there’s no need to do much decorating when the place already looks amazing. The villa in Kannavia was super minimal, a large glass room connected with a cubic, white building, and the backdrop was nothing but a shimmering mountain vista; you couldn’t see anything but mountains, and felt really cut off from the world. It matched the music; minimal structures set in an organic backdrop. The line up was amazing, absoutely packed pull of talent; BillyD & HXOS, Ina, Alex Tomb, PLUSone, Daotis & Motif, and more.

As said before, Daotis & Motif have been on amazing form this year, every set has been a really high-standard. BillyD & HXOS are another outstanding duo, and they played a quality morning set, followed by a thrilling, positive set from Ina whilst people swam in the pool under the sun. It was actually one of the best parties all year, even though it was capped at 150 people, everyone there was really into the music and the event so the vibe was alive. The villa was probably expensive to rent but it was really worth it. It’s also one of those events which was inclusive of many circles, not just one group of organisers or DJs, but many; honest electronics, alternadiva, square, and KlubD all had representation on the bill. Rent a nice villa, put some speakers by the pool; done. Very fun. More of this. Thank You!

New Releases! Capparis Spinoza set for a January release of 3 original tracks by Alex Tomb, and a Remix from an international Guest who recently played in Cyprus. The EP will be announced on the facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/capparisspinosamusic/, along with all the details for how to get a copy. Honest Electronics also just released some work by ‘Panayotis’, named ‘Sunset Superzoom’, with 2 tracks, alongside a really special video. You can listen to it on the SoundCloud of “Moskalus”, https://soundcloud.com/moskalus/panayotis-sunset-superzoom-honest-electronics Working on something? Let us know, we’d love to listen. (@C.D.CY)

Dishonest:RAVE Honest Electronics back at it again in their waterside Fortress

Kampia, 22/09/18

Mastery (Niko Mas)

Another Rave at Kampia, representing the fl ip-side of the Honest/Dishonest Electronics duality. Situated on that emblematic hillside, overlooking the waters, the scaffold enclosure was decorated subtly in line with the Dishonest theme. This time the ceiling was made of ripped black textiles, with symbols and letters scrawled all over. Some words reads “Protection Spell”; sweet gesture, without pushing the aesthetic too far into psychedelic territory. It actually felt kinda punk. The line up had everyone talking. It was different, with some contrasting acts; but it was deliberate, and semi-experimental (in terms of how the line up can create an overall “teleology”), and the result was interesting and unique. There was Jungle, Deep Techno, Minimal Techno, Live Hardware Techno - and for a change, zero Disco/House music. There was enough contrast between the music played at the Gathering to the music at Dishonest for it to succeed in achieving a unique identity - the same place, and a similar set up, but defi nitely not a repeat, it was it’s own party.

For example, we have seen Aristodemos play his beautiful House sets many times, and while they are always unique and well constructed, it was fun to experience, not just a different music but a different DJ style. You can’t really play Jungle sets with the same logic as a House set, so naturally the DJ has to take a different approach to usual - for anyone interested in the Art of DJing, Aristodemos’ Jungle set was fascinating. You can just stand there, bopping lightly from side to side and stare at the mixer, and watch him literally throwing bass lines into the mix.

Milton Fields played a fluid and consistent set, for sure one of the best I’ve seen from them. As always, the essence was there, but this time the flow was really consistent, making for a refined set with some classic tracks blending with other rare or special selections: Thank you (Iza Galkowska)

Solid Blake, the artist from Denmark who was set to play a Jungle set, wasn’t really able to elaborate fully due to some technical problems, which ironically only affected Solid Blake and Raw Silver; the rented generator cut out only during the set’s of the founder, and the international guest. There is even more irony because Aristo’s new, bright red generator was out for repairs, hence the rental: the Ferrari was in the shop.

DIY but pure gold (Iza Galkowska)

Alex Tomb started at around 6:30, it had been a really cold night, and the sun was about to peak above the mountain any minute. The set was clever, Alex really held back at the start, it was a testament to restraint - it really felt as thought he was waiting for the sun to appear, for the warmth to regenerate the crowd, to release the tension. After 10-12hours of music, it was a good time to drop really low and build a new wave as the sun arose. The production of the event was top, the sound system was rearranged slightly compared to the July rave - a 2x2 pair of small tweeters were moved forward into the crowd, helping to create a consistently full frequency balance throughout the dancefloor area. Also, the subwoofers were split up, instead of operating in pairs; practice makes perfect, and this sound system is starting to get really, really comfortable at this site. The quality of these events is even more impressive when you spend a lot of time at the site during the building and set up, and see that it’s a genuine collective effort. People who have been raving together for years, giving their time and money to create something beautiful. Amazing way to wrap up Summer. Bravo sou. (Iza Galkowska)

REKODO.

RECORDSHOP LAUNCH

As if bursting from nowhere, we now have a record shop in Nicosia with good Techno. Everyone knows Ola DJ, especially the local DJs of Cyprus, and it has seemingly always had that room full of records for sale. That space has now been renamed and reformatted, by none other than Van Sim, into Rekodo Records, and the whole thing is good news. Rekodo records will be the only record store in Nicosia which actively supplies music that is in sync with our underground electronic music scene, at this time. It’s going to be helpful to have a new selection of imports coming in, being organised by someone who is at the heart of what’s going on right now. It’s another sign of a developing scene, evidence that projects are being organised and pulled off; spaces are being acquired, which is an important part of expanding a network, such as a music scene. It’s also going to be a good way to assist fans in connecting with music that they’re hearing around Cyprus now. If someone is enjoying the music at KlubD lately, and wants to know how to get into that music more, there’ now the option of going to Rekodo and listening to what one of the organisers is importing. They have also started regular live streams, where a DJ comes and plays live on facebook, but also people go down to the store to hang out while the DJ plays. It’s a great idea for promoting community and bringing people in to support the record store; There is even an espresso machine. On the facebook and Instagram pages, you can keep up to date with what is being imported and when events are coming up. Most importantly, however, is how good the logo is. Solid logo.

Find Ola DJ & Rekodo Records next to each other at 11 Katsoni, Nicosia

Launch Night (Iza Galkowska)

Essence of the Gathering (Demetris Shammas)

There is a history to the term “underground”, with strong social and political connotations. There are two main strands which are arguably interlinked: On one hand ‘Underground culture’ represents ‘secretive activities of a subversive nature’, and on the other, it refers to a kind of social movement which explores alternative lifestyles, artistic expression, and so on. The connection between these two strands is that, in many ways, and for many people, these “underground lifestyles” are in themselves subversive, and in many cases, analogous of those “secretive activities”. Think about raving, they are secretive, and for many of us they salutogenically satisfy some deep inner desire to subvert the dominant cultural norms. In the first case, you can imagine times of revolution, of revolutionaries meeting in secretive places; warehouses, basements, abandonned structures - anywhere ideal for a rave basically. These historical aspects become relevant to the arts in a really interesting way, because there is a direct connect between what you might call “underground aesthetics” and this history of subservive underground activies. If we imagine these warehouses, and think about the dust, the darkness, the dereliction; they might seem like the ‘worst kind of places’. Yet, when positive or cathartic experiences are had in such a place, these ‘negative aspects’ are totally inverted, and they begin to become representative of that positivity or that liberatory feeling. In this sense, darkness and decay are absolved of their antipathy and consecrated into beauty.

WHAT IS UNDERGROUND? Main Article (Part 2)

Detroit Techno is a prime example. The city was dark and desolate, most of the people were in poverty. If you described the aesthetic and formal qualities of Techno from this time, you could say it was often mechanical, rough, chaotic, dark, dirty – and perhaps someone from this era may also use these words to describe their lives. To some people, the idea of music being rough, mechanical or dark may be feel wrong, or unenjoyable, but this is an example of cultural relativity. In what you might call the “canon of rave culture”, it is held that raves were an important sanctuary for marginalised communities, where, in these secretive, underground places, social liberation was experienced. This kind of experience completely inverts the aestheticism of dirty rooms and stomping techno. In many ways, art explores beauty indepth, and thus ones perception of what is beautiful plays a big role in their taste in art and the kind of artistic output and expression they have. It’s natural for an artist who find beauty in the dirt to create works of art that aesthetically mimic that dirtiness. So the very sound of the music, the whole aesthetic is directly influenced by the physical aesthetic of the environments where liberatory or cathartic experiences are had. Moving away from the sentimental and political aspects, there are more pragmatic ways of analysing the mainstream-underground dichotomy: While Underground has all these connotations and symbolic associations with the above, the term primarily exists as an antithesis to “Mainstream”. The concept of mainstream suggests that there is a dominant set of ideals that the majority of a society share, from ethics to tastes. In terms of music, mainstream refers to what is most easily accessible, most relatable, most marketable – it’s a relatively restricted scope for a few reasons. Interestingly, the dominant majority in terms of music audiences, consists of those who are not “musically trained”, or are not regular concert or rave attendees, or are not invested into music financially or emotionally.

XRC aesthetic (Niko Mas)

This isn’t intended to be a judgemental analysis, it’s just that being so heavily invested in music in many situations is a kind of exceptional privilege, especially historically. Providing music for this audience has quite a limited scope, as any minor deviation away from simple, traditional or easily-accessible music is one step too much for someone who’s only engagement with music is on the car-journey to work, via a commercial radio station. Without some kind of social experience with Techno music, it may be really hard to see the beauty of it; many people get into Techno precisely because their mate took them to a rave. There is a cliche quotation thrown around from Frank Zappa, along the lines of “mainstream throws itself at you from all directions; you have to go and find underground”. This basically says the same thing, underground is an acquired taste, it takes some form of effort to get to a point of understanding. A sociologist may even call this “social privilege”, in that, in order to understand, you require some privileged knowledge or social status, not privilege in the sense of wealth or upperclass, but in the sense of access to something uncommon and advantageous. Some people might go through their whole lives having no real idea where to even begin finding an off-radar rave, whereas another person may be friends with someone who starts organising raves and has easy access to experience one. That’s a form of privilege. So in a way, underground music is the result of these subversive or exploratory social movements; so when someone next describes something as “commercial Techno”, the main point their often trying to make is that the aesthetic and purposeness of the music or the event has nothing to do with ‘underground-ism’, or the legacy of Techno and the culture surrounding it. there may be no strict musicological definition of Underground music, but there is a vivid, vivid essence connecting to the history.

See you next time, Niko Mas

Embroidery by Christos Kyriakides

Brace yourself for winter Colazione Industrial Area, 21/10/2018

Colazione falls under Trap, one of Tomb’s projects; it roughly translate to breakfast. If Trap can act as an entrance to the scene for new people, Colazione is what to look for when you ask “okay, i’m interested, now show me something”. It’s an curious one. Day time party on a sunday, in a warehouse. No photos, no announcements, no line ups. It’s also been placed just too late to act as an after party to KlubD, which might’ve been a Berlin-style move. It’s quite bold really, to insist that you have to come and find out who is playing, but the whole ethos in itself is really romantic. “Don’t worry, trust me, it’ll be worth your time. Sleep after KlubD, and come down to Colazione for breakfast”. In the end, it worked, it was great; Daotis played an amazing set, and the international guest was “Esse”; great booking, very talented artist. It’s a sign of a healthy scene that so many people are just so up for a Techno party that you can fill a warehouse at 6pm on a Sunday without any real idea whos playing, just a lot faith in the organisers.

Next Colazione is coming January 6th. Get the details from facebook. com/trap.nicosia. Believe me, it’s gonna be a pleasant surprise. Also don’t miss the upload of the second colazione out now on trap. nicosia soundcloud.

Light formations (Michalis Shammas)

KlubD Opens for Season 11 Great. If ‘Dishonest’ was the end of the Summer season, KlubD opening was the beginning of Winter. It’s the Home of Techno for many of us. Whatever dimension everyone disappeared to during summer, everyone comes back to the dancefloor at D. The House was full for the opening, Omar was a nice booking, a really punk DJ. I also have to say that Ciprian was amazing, such a good flow, and Socrates made a great intro to him. He had the confidence to let the needle run off of A1 and straight onto A2 a few times, which, again, was just so punk. The music had a gritty aesthetic and a good flow. DJ Masda came back for the 11th anniversary party, a super talented DJ who is becoming something like royalty here in Cyprus, along with names like Anestie Gomez and Claudio PRC; artists who people here love, and who seem to like coming here. Masda is one of the minds behind Cabaret Records, an amazing label with connections to Techno giants such as Perlon through artists like Binh - a really relevant act in terms of connecting with the rest of the Techno universe. From the first months, it seems like the organisers at D are continuing into the Electro/Techno aesthetic, which they have been exploring during their residency at the club, whilst continuing to leave space for variety, such as the Trap event. Previous organisers of KlubD have each developed a unique aesthetic, like with Alex Tomb and Janis Plasmatik, bringing artists and the sound which reflect their take on good underground techno. In a romantic sense, we’re all going on a journey together through a curated selection. If a good DJ set creates a narrative out of well-ordered tracks, a good season creates a narrative out of well ordered sets. It’s this time of year where you can really appreciate KlubD, as it really holds it down for the scene. Look at this statement from Patrick Siech after Trap

DJ Masda @ 11th Anniversary (Iza Galkowska)

“The gig you wish you had every weekend! intimate club, great sound, and the best crowd and promotors. Big thanks to KlubD and the Trap team” -Patrick Siech

XRC Collectiva Presents

When talented artists come here and have this experience in our home, it’s something to be proud of.

Industrial Area, 24/11/2018

Absolutely amazing. This is how you throw a rave. The warehouse was spot on, the modifications were perfect, the lighting, the line up. There was so much essence to this, it really captured that infamous 90s spirit and aesthetic. All the acts played well, Androula at the start was a really good mood-setter. Isel tapped into a different side of his sound, which was really tasteful in context of the party; it was heavy, rhythmic, and technically impressive. Another visitor from Chile came, playing as Visonia; a darker, more complex persona of Nicholas Estany. Eugeen Skull continues to impress this summer, another really solid set, vocalising over the top of driving rhythms. It’s hard to maintain distinctive aesthetic identities across multiple aliases, but it’s very clear the difference between Eugeen Skull and Milton Feels for example, which is really intelligent work. Regressverbot was so good; played for hours, beginning with quintessential and interesting Acid House music, and later moving into the more post-punk influenced sounds he is also known for. It was so important to have someone who gets the essence of the movements relating to post-punk, the new romantics and Dark Wave, to come here and show us their interpretation of it. Once the team figures out how to make the best of the acoustic situation in the warehouse, there is a really bright (or dark i guess) future in that venue.

XRC 9am burnout (Niko Mas)

KlubD, 01/12/2018

Trap Chapter #5 was nice and simple, but excelled because of it. A deep Techno night in the heart of the city, something slightly different from this year’s 90s, Electro-influenced Techno identity that the current team at KlubD are creating.

Generally speaking, Trap’s aims are clear, seeking to provide well-timed, well-selected bookings. There is not much of this ‘Berlin’ sound going around in Cyprus lately so Trap’s existence sits well in the landscape. Tomb’s Set was great, with a subtle swing behind the Deep Techno elements, giving it the slightest of House Groove; very fun. Patrick Siech was so excited and nervous when he landed here, which was really greatsometimes people can act like their gigs in Cyprus are a gig in “nowhere”, but this artist was really grounded and understood that, even though we are small, we really care about our raves and parties, and our subculture. Looks like Trap could continue to develop into a staple part of Nicosia’s Techno scene, lets see where this goes.

Final Note. We’re always looking for new releases, new sets, photos, art, events; Let us know! Thanks to your support, Crossdressing Diogenes is set to expand and collaborate in 2019, watch this space. See you all at Discosucks, and at our new home @ Home4Cooperation.

EMPLOY QUEERS Crossdressing Diogenes is a Fanzine about Underground culture and Electronic Music in Cyprus.