Waking Life 2017

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  • I must admit to nursing a degree of skepticism in the immediate run-up to Waking Life festival. Roughly 15 hours before the first DJ was due on, I was hunting around Lisbon airport in vain for the shuttle coaches, which I eventually found by spotting a festival-ready group, rather than the promised signs. Due to road blockages caused by bushfires, the three-hour journey took 90 minutes longer than planned. Everyone was deposited on a dark road at 1:30 AM amid a general air of admin confusion and entry delays. None of this boded well for the coming four days. It later became apparent that the team behind Waking Life, which included co-curators Giegling and Berlin-based booking agency Solid AM, had put all their efforts into creating an otherworldly onsite experience. The level of aesthetic detail and artisanship made it clear that the festival was the product of people who have been taking notes at events for many years. From the high-quality outdoor rig, painless bar queues and soft surfaces underfoot, to the attention paid to space, lighting and ease of movement, it was a class act. There were also a number of quirky set pieces to sprawl across, gaze at or crawl into. These visual highlights—among them a spellbinding laser projection in the centre of the lake—added the perfect amount of whimsy and wonder.
    The first edition was unlucky to have punishing daytime temperatures of 40 degrees. Of the three official stages, the two with a focus on house and techno, Florestra and Outro Lado, had sand dance floors that kicked up a dry dust cloud that both Robag Wruhme and Dorisburg remarked on with concern. Artists given the mid-morning and mid-afternoon slots wilted under the searing sunshine, while Soundwalk Collective were forced to scuttle their equipment over to a nearby shady tree to avoid overheating. (Of course, adverse conditions can also bring out the best in people, so a special shout out to the generous angels who moved around each of the dance floors misting people's backs with cold water.) Other operational issues were more easily avoidable. The close proximity of the third stage, Praia, to the bigger, louder Florestra might have worked if Praia's crescent shape had been rotated 45 degrees to the left. Instead, its mouth was open to the sound bleed, which was particularly bad on Thursday and Friday, when Praia hosted an ambient set from Bryan Kasenic and an electronica showcase by Lisbon's Shhpuma Records. The latter turned out great, but it could only be enjoyed by standing as close as possible to the stage.
    At other points, the loose and relaxed atmosphere exposed a need for the more serious aspects of event management. Standout DJs Manamana harnessed the opening night's sense of excitement and anticipation at Outro Lado, weaving with confidence through deeper cuts and more disco-influenced moments. Meanwhile, at the nearby bar, one very wasted punter was losing his shit spectacularly, careening around puking and crawling on the ground, throwing handfuls of dirt and sand in his own face and yanking the bar's light bulbs out of their sockets with his bare hands. I looked around and couldn't seen any security, so I spoke with bar staff, but they too had no way of contacting anyone. After walking a couple of hundred metres, a solo guard reluctantly called for backup (which did eventually arrive). He assured me that the individual was already known to them, but that the festival managers had explicitly asked security to keep away from the bars and stages. Thankfully, this was an isolated incident and an uncharacteristic spike of aggression. The remainder of the weekend was peaceful, with revellers spending their days cooling off in the lake or dancing under the cover of shady trees. With a European crowd that skewed mid-to-late 20s, minimal techno and melodic house were received with endless enthusiasm. An early highlight was Sebastian Mullaert's gear-heavy live set, while Friday's lineup saw Ben UFO carve up the dance floor after a heartwarming performance by Kettenkarussell. Later, Kassem Mosse and Resom impressed with their deep and inky textures. Saturday's schedule didn't always run as advertised, but I managed to catch a few key sets. Patrick Russell's subtle mixing style belied the power of his bracing sound, while Sammy Dee leant on more traditional techno tropes. I also stumbled across a couple of bonus extras: an acoustic band performing at the unnamed fourth stage and an improvised experimental performance in the outdoor cinema. Sunday, the hottest day of all, featured Vlada expertly cooling off Outro Lado, before Och went more sinister for the twilight hours. While DJs at Praia hyped the crowds with an extended hip-hop session, elsewhere it was all about the melodies, with Robag Wruhme, Stimming, DJ Dustin and Lawrence among the highlights.
    The first year of any new festival is bound to include a few teething problems, and Waking Life was no exception. Hopefully, for next time, the organisers will strike a better balance between the artistic and logistical sides of the operation. As talk of people being taken ill began on the final day, it was mostly shrugged off as heat or exhaustion. The gross truth is that these kinds of nasty bugs will be transmitted more easily when you have people living, sleeping and raving in close proximity over consecutive days. I didn't sleep or shower onsite, I didn't use the free water tap and I waded into the lake only up to knee height, but I did eat and drink there, and the same bug that levelled so many hit me as I was leaving. On my initial commute to the festival I overheard two English men joking excitedly about the sense of suspense and mystery that had been created by the festival's esoteric promotion. They had no idea what to expect, and neither did I. Despite the stomach bug and other issues, it seems like people largely left Crato with a sense of having experienced something special. With a few tweaks here and there, Waking Life should grow from this year of mixed results into a festival with a long-term future. Photo credits / Jan Beddegenoodts Bernd Fink
RA