With his groundbreaking CNTRL: Beyond EDM tour in the books, Richie Hawtin takes a moment to look back at its Midwestern home stretch with a video recap. The techno legend recounts playing with friends like Gaiser and Kevin Saunderson, as well as the tour’s impact on young attendees and global onlookers.
“I think we’ve planted seeds and the energy has been dispersed. We’re at the end of chapter one of the CNTRL EDM tour,” says Hawtin at the video’s conclusion. “Where it goes next? Who knows? Let’s hope it continues to evolve and remain as vibrant as it always has been.”
Today is Thanksgiving. It’s a time to give thanks for good health, good friends, good family, and, of course, good music. We thought we’d take the time to pay tribute to our favorite parts of dance music culture on this day of thanks, not only for the guys who slave over turntables while we get to party, but for the dance music scene in general and its constantly expanding fanbase. This one’s for the EDM acts that put their heart and soul into it, the clubs that go all out every night of the week, and the people who live and breathe house music. It’s the least we can do.
Asked for observations at the dawn of the CNTRL: Beyond EDM Tour, Ean Golden does not hesitate.
“Roughly 70 percent of the people at the seminars say they want to be producers,” DJ Tech Tools‘ founder says, grinning broadly. “Fewer people want to be DJs. It’s a paradigm shift in terms of what people want to be.”
It’s the same sea change that made this tour a reality. Conceived by minimal techno legend Richie Hawtin (aka Plastikman), his M-nus Records artists Loco Dice and Paco Osuna, and Golden, CNTRL is as much an educational roadshow as it is a concert tour. Each of the 17 North American shows is preceded by a college-campus seminar, featuring an artist panel discussing music technology and the past and future of dance music. The events are saturated in social media coverage, allowing dance music fans around the globe to tune in and learn.
Electronic music kingpins Richie Hawtin and Loco Dice are embarking on a fifteen city US and Canada tour that plans to spread the message of dance music across numerous music venues and college campuses alike. The tour, called CNTRL: Beyond EDM, combines the educational side of college lectures with an evening of electronic music by Richie Hawtin, Loco Dice, and their touring guest DJs.
