- Over the past few years, Parisian outfit Open Minded has built a solid reputation within France's counter-cultural sphere, developing an influential online platform while throwing some excellent parties. Whereas most club promoters invest a lot of time and resources into developing a strong and distinctive musical identity, Open Minded has kept a looser approach, alternating between big-room artists (The Black Madonna, Octave One), underground favourites (Hashman Deejay, Matrixxman) and cult French rap acts (Grems, Disiz). That said, they have developed a certain taste for gritty house and techno, and Friday's party at La Machine Du Moulin Rouge featured some of the sound's best known names. Synth wiz Xosar played live, joined by DJs Low Jack and I-F, who was billed for a closing acid set.
Entering La Machine, I was immediately puzzled by the layout in the main room. On a typical night, the booth sits onstage, at the end of the cavernous central hall. But this time, it had been set up midway across the room, so that dancers were free to use the stage as an additional dance floor. This wasn't without its flaws—the sound onstage was far from perfect—but you were closer to the DJs and circulating the venue was a lot easier.
L.I.E.S.-affiliated producer Low Jack was on top form when I hit the floor around 2 AM, oscillating between heady techno oddities and the occasional lo-fi house jam. The crowd were in an enthusiastic mood by the time Xosar appeared, applauding her rapturously as she teased her opening chords. (I hadn't realised how popular she was in Paris until then.) Her set, though brilliant, took me by surprise, with more of a focus on atmosphere and texture (and less on hard-hitting rhythms) than when I'd last seen her. On reflection, maybe she should've been billed earlier in the night, though the audience's cheery reaction suggested otherwise.
When I heard that I-F had been booked to play acid, I was worried his selections might be less colourful than usual. But he delivered an outstanding set that leaned heavily on '90s Italo and stomping house, settling quickly into his stride at around the 130 BPM mark. This ravey, frantic pace continued until the early hours.
Despite some minor issues with the soundsystem, Friday night was a brilliant example of how to curate a party. The atmosphere was electric and completely unpretentious, helped by the clever positioning of the DJ booth and the close rapport between the artists. I hadn't experienced such a relaxed and, well, open-minded vibe at La Machine in a very long time.
Photo credit /
Rémy Golinelli