Modeselektor at Fabric

Modeselektor at Fabric

23 October, 2009
by: Nuria

I'm at Fabric on a Thursday, unusual as that is, because German duo Modeselektor are headlining a special edition of Fabriclive. It's the London stop of a live tour that celebrates the release of 'Body Language Vol. 8' on Get Physical, their second official DJ mix. The last time they played the iconic club was just over a year ago, part of a Room Two double-bill with Ellen Allien, whose label Bpitch Control released their acclaimed 2007 album 'Happy Birthday!' I remember their set as both genre-blurring and crowd-riling.

Will Modeselektor's Gernot and Sebastian be on form again tonight? The reason these two guys are so popular is because their material is at once instantly recognisable yet completely unclassifiable. If you have preconceived ideas about what a Berlin-based techno outfit should sound like, discard them now. Modeselektor aren't part of any specific scene; indeed, they could simply be classified under the umbrella term 'electronica'. More specifically, though, they frequently fuse genres such as hip-hop and garage with techno, embracing hard-hitting beats and deep, reverberating bass – it's a direction I wish more producers would take.

When Gernot and Sebastian take to Room One's stage at half-eleven, following a fairly nondescript set of urban beats from Patchwork Pirates, the crowd – a mixture of British and European fans in their early- to mid-20s – roars in anticipation. The intro to 'Deboutonner' blares out, its various riffs ripping through an ascending beat. In true Modeselektor style, multiple sounds compete for space yet the result, while chunky, is not cacophonous.

As a stream of crowd-pleasers follow, I amusedly watch the guys bopping energetically behind their laptops, tweaking and manipulating. Involuntary dancing is always the mark of passionate DJs. Everything flows nicely until a weird Bjork remix interrupts the momentum. The proceeding track starts to animate but it takes the glitchy techno of 'Suckerpin' to restore the mood. It's a track so rich in layers it's almost overkill. Yet it works, whereas with artists like Boys Noize a similar reliance on being 'maximal', so to speak, can end up inducing a headache.

When they drop '2000007', a collaboration with French rappers TTC, it's clear a climax is approaching. It's on these urban-infused tracks that I feel Modeselektor's skills are most properly showcased – and they're the most danceable too. After a teasing pause, they surge into recent release 'Art & Cash', another winner. Afterwards, the crowd literally goes hyper for 'Hyper Hyper', a spectacularly quirky remake of the former hit by cheesy German Eurotrance group Scooter.

This would've have been a worthy finale, except in true live format there's an encore. The distorted electro-hip-hop track 'Dark Side of the Sun', featuring Berlin rap group Puppetmastaz, descends upon the room. It's Modeselektor's dance floor anthem par excellence, and unsurprisingly the crowd goes wild. Gernot and Sebastian exit the stage to an unrelenting chorus of applause.

My only critique of what has been an undoubtedly enjoyable set is that the transitions could have been tighter. The guys lend their material a live dimension by messing with the sound, tempo and structure, but they're not as cohesive as they are with their usual DJ sets. Still, it's hard to fault them when they're such natural performers. A DJ shouting 'London is in the house!' mid-set (in a thick German accent, no less) sounds like a cringe-worthy gimmick – but count on Modeselektor to make it endearing.

Supporting act Joker, hailed as one of the best dubstep DJs to emerge from Bristol's much-lauded scene, tones it down for the night's closing set, dishing up stupefying basslines and twitchy bleeps. If my bed could magically appear, I'd love to let the vibrations lull me to sleep. With this thought in mind, I decide to peace out.

Photo copyright: Amos Wong

Click here to read Lowri's review of Joker at the Rhythm Factory's Them.
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Nuria