What I learned from DEMF 2010

Thank you, Movement Festival for teaching me some good lessons:

• Don't stay at the Marriot Ren Center its a cluster fuck, it's a maze and you WILL get lost on your way to the room, it feels more like an airport than a hotel. Basically its a shitty hotel masquerading as a nice hotel.
• Some cabs will try to hustle you. YOU MUST DEMAND THEM TO TURN THE METERS ON.
  
• Bring and umbrella or a poncho and rain boots in hand, this when it rains in Detroit it pours.
• Pay attention to time zones when setting dates on your cameras.
• Buy socks to throw away.
• Always always always plan on getting rained on.
• Some airlines do not allow for standby's. DELTA FUCK YOU!
• Beer is the best breakfast ever.
• Divide and conquer.
• Be there 20 minutes early to get a good spot to see shows with specific visuals.
• Don't climb tent scaffolding.
  
  
  

Movement 2010 Afterparty Picks - Round 2: Saturday

With the first official day of afterparties, the choices become a steeper hill to climb. For me however, there was already a clear winner early on.

My recommendation:
Centre Street Social @ The Carr Center for the Arts

Being dubbed "Berghain in a box" by some, if you're interested in hearing where Techno is going these days, this is the place to be. Headlining will be the much-adored Marcel Dettmann and Ben Klock, of Berghain (aka, epicenter of German techno) and Ostgut Ton fame, both exclusive to this event in Detroit. The icing on the cake? An exclusive closing set by none other than Daniel Bell, godfather of minimal techno. Somewhere between the 11pm - 9am timespan, Levon Vincent, a New York DJ/Producer garnering much recent acclaim, will also be playing. Rounding out the lineup will be sets from regional favorites from the likes of SanFran's Kontrol crew and Detroit's Beretta music, who along with Particle People and Humanaut helped put together this impressive show.

What's even more intriguing: the event is boasting the goal of having "the best sound system at any event outside of the festival." The promoters have even gone as far as posting the spec sheet for their soundsystem. I've never seen anybody do that before. Color me f***ing excited. (I guess that's no so much a color)

Ticketing and info here.

Oh, and if for some reason 9am is too early (I can't decide if that's ironic or not) for you to turn in, head on over to SHxT SHOW @ Tv Bar, which gets started late-night Saturday and continues through 'til Sunday at 10pm! More on this in round 3...

DEMF 2010: Guides to Movement

JQM 's Guide to Getting Down at DEMF - http://www.justqualitymusic.com/?p=2304

LWE’s Guide to Movement Detroit 2010 - http://www.littlewhiteearbuds.com/review/lwes-guide-to-movement-detroit-2010/

Ahoy, Matey! Your Guide to Winter Music Conference Boat Parties

If you're coming to Winter Music Conference, you have to get your pirate on. WMC Boat parties are a must to make your Miami experience complete, because there is nothing in the world like cruising the bay area by the beautiful skyline, listening to your favorite DJ and dancing on the waves.

DEMF 2009: Detroit Do's and Don'ts

A few bits of wisdom I'd like to pass on after my latest DEMF outing.

DO:

- Eat at Roast
Went here on the recommendation of Derek Plaslaiko as it being "The best restaurant in Detroit right now." Was very pleased. Probably one of the few upscale dining establishments you will find in downtown Detroit. Do yourself a favor though and get what they specialize in: Beef. Either one of their many steaks or their awesome Roast burger. Was disappointed with the boar. Their appetizers and oysters are great as well.

- Goto Slows BBQ
Might as well keep the meat train going once you've hit Roast. If you are looking for a mouthwatering pile of slow-cooked BBQ pulled-pork, go no further than Slows in Corktown. Their outdoor patio is great for chowing down on some amazing meat and classic BBQ sides. They also sport a pretty large craft-brew beer menu, which just adds to the awesomeness.


- Get your cabby's business card
Did you know cab drivers often have personal business cards? Neither did I. A lot of the guys in Detroit seem to though. So if you find a guy you like, ask him for his card. Nothing better than wanting to escape a party and actually having a number to dial to get picked up.


DON'T:

- Stay at the RenCen
Maybe they've been cutting back since GM went down the tubes, but this place was very disappointing. The allure of its very close proximity to Hart Plaza makes it hard to pass up, but once you tack on the extra 10 minutes it takes you to actually get into your room (through a maze of elevators and suspended walkways) after you get to the hotel, it's really not that convenient. Directly across the street is the Marriott Courtyard, which is by far a much better choice. At the same exact distance and price range as the RenCen, they also feature much more spacious rooms & bathrooms, nicer amenities, quicker travel in and out of the hotel, in-room refrigerators, and FREE INTERNET. The internet I paid for at RenCen was so f'ing slow! As if it wasn't bad enough feeling cheated since my tax dollars are already ostensibly paying to keep the damn building up.

- Forget to tell cabs to turn their meter on
Despite warnings, we learned this the hard way after some d-bag charged us $20 to go about one mile. If they refuse to turn the meter on, demand a price up front, and if you don't like it, get the hell outta there.

- Tell the drunk homeless guy demanding to be your "tour guide" that you don't need his help because you are just going to the liquor store.
This one is pretty self-explanatory. I really don't know what I was thinking.


- Reuben