- A revered and enduring pillar of the French rave scene, Astropolis Festival has aged gracefully since its inception in Brittany in 1995. The event, which started as an annual all-nighter, has now expanded to include a booking agency and record label. The original party still happens once a year at Château De Keriolet, a 19th-century castle that's been home to the crew's legendary raves since the beginning, and the team also runs a series of offshoot events across the Brest area. The newest of these, a winter spin-off called Astropolis L'Hiver, launched in 2012 as a two-night festival. Last weekend was its sixth edition.
Early on Friday evening, guests were treated to a screening of a documentary that tracked the genesis and evolution of the festival through its protagonist, hardcore legend-turned-techno mainstay Manu Le Malin (AKA The Driver). The air was heavy with emotion, as a lot of the story's key players were watching on from the crowd. The film served as a reminder of the vital role Brittany played in the heyday of French rave culture, a role that it continues to play to this day by spearheading the country's free-party scene.
The festival got off to an elegant start on Friday night at La Carène, with Fatima Yamaha performing to a lively and diverse crowd. The production on the cavernous main stage—all geometrical structures and psychedelic video mapping—was excellent, and it spoke to the organiser's eye for detail. Yamaha's synthy beats sounded nice, though they were maybe a touch too dramatic for that time of the evening.
The vibe in room two was very different. In an attempt to make the space as cosy and homely as possible, a sofa had been placed onstage next to a vast array of turntables, synths and drum machines. Huge, crimson pendant lamps hung over the dance floor. The Raheem Experience, a new project from Mad Rey, Neue Grafik and LB, were given free rein over the six-hour session. All three performed separately (Mad Rey and LB DJed, Neue Grafik played live), though the highlight was when they teamed up for a six-handed set that combined deconstructed jazz loops with frantic house rhythms. Spontaneous and bold, they sounded much more than the sum of their parts. The music, a radical take on jazz and club music with hints of hip-hop and disco, was reminiscent of Theo Parrish's more danceable works.
On the main stage, FunkinEven's hard-hitting, ravey selections provided the kind of soundtrack that the Breton crowd relishes. Students and forty-somethings danced side by side in a loose and careless atmosphere, encouraging the Apron boss to venture into acid and techno. The night's headline performance saw Robert Hood perform as Floorplan alongside his daughter, Lyric. Those expecting the Detroit veteran to play his older productions will have been disappointed, as the pair mixed recent Floorplan hits in a slightly flat succession of vocals and timely drops. More thrills were to be found in room two, where Mad Rey closed the night in style with his erratic mix of funk and house bangers.
Astropolis makes a point of booking a number of local acts for their Winter festival. On Saturday, a crowd of hungover ravers and cheerful families converged in La Passerelle, a splendid two-story gallery in a quiet neighbourhood of Brest. Diggers roamed sleepily through a vinyl market, while children were given their first taste of modern club culture at a strictly under-12s party called L'Astroboum. As I sipped an ice-cold beer, face-painted kids ran about and their parents nodded their heads to low-key experimental beats. It was a delightful way to spend a cloudy afternoon.
The second night at La Carène was a tribute to the festival's love of dark dance music. After some early stress involving DJ Stingray's last-minute cancellation, Helena Hauff and The Driver restored order with a blast of vicious, hypnotic rhythms. Hauff hit the decks around 1 AM, blending a heavy edit of hardcore French rap into a slice of gloomy EBM. In room two, DJs from the Turc Mécanique label mixed straight-up punk tunes with industrial techno. Just across the street from La Carène, at an unpretentious club with an impeccable soundsystem called La Suite, a Body & Soul party was raging. Pink lights and disco balls adorned the club's otherwise minimalistic interior. Joe Claussell, Danny Krivit and François K played for seven hours, showcasing their singular skill for bringing a dance floor together.
As I was leaving La Suite on Sunday morning, I noticed a continuous stream of ravers marching in the direction of the city's docks, the location for the city's infamous and unofficial afterparties. The specifics of the venue and lineup were hot topics of discussion among the crowd. I didn't know it then, but the celebrations would carry on informally for another 24 hours, which is some indication of why Astropolis remains so firmly embedded in the heart of French ravers. I'd wager that few festivals in the world have such a dedicated and passionate audience.
Photo credit /
Julio Ificada - Lead, Film, The Raheem Experience, L'Astroboum
Gratuitpourlesfilles - Body & Soul
Astropolis makes a point of booking a number of local acts for their Winter festival. On Saturday, a crowd of hungover ravers and cheerful families converged in La Passerelle, a splendid two-story gallery in a quiet neighbourhood of Brest. Diggers roamed sleepily through a vinyl market, while children were given their first taste of modern club culture at a strictly under-12s party called L'Astroboum. As I sipped an ice-cold beer, face-painted kids ran about and their parents nodded their heads to low-key experimental beats. It was a delightful way to spend a cloudy afternoon. The second night at La Carène was a tribute to the festival's love of dark dance music. After some early stress involving DJ Stingray's last-minute cancellation, Helena Hauff and The Driver restored order with a blast of vicious, hypnotic rhythms. Hauff hit the decks around 1 AM, blending a heavy edit of hardcore French rap into a slice of gloomy EBM. In room two, DJs from the Turc Mécanique label mixed straight-up punk tunes with industrial techno. Just across the street from La Carène, at an unpretentious club with an impeccable soundsystem called La Suite, a Body & Soul party was raging. Pink lights and disco balls adorned the club's otherwise minimalistic interior. Joe Claussell, Danny Krivit and François K played for seven hours, showcasing their singular skill for bringing a dance floor together.
As I was leaving La Suite on Sunday morning, I noticed a continuous stream of ravers marching in the direction of the city's docks, the location for the city's infamous and unofficial afterparties. The specifics of the venue and lineup were hot topics of discussion among the crowd. I didn't know it then, but the celebrations would carry on informally for another 24 hours, which is some indication of why Astropolis remains so firmly embedded in the heart of French ravers. I'd wager that few festivals in the world have such a dedicated and passionate audience. Photo credit / Julio Ificada - Lead, Film, The Raheem Experience, L'Astroboum Gratuitpourlesfilles - Body & Soul