Perhaps the most deep-cut duo I’ve experienced. The thing is, with most DJs, I won’t have a layered exposition like I did with Motel Club at Bonnaroo, But there’s a sweet spot here…
Matt and Malachi are masters of their craft. It’s the synergetic flow, intuitive queues, and relatable excitement the two share that makes Motel Club quite the sacred space.
Festisia friend and life-force, CK, met these guys at a go-to San Francisco vinyl bar a while back and has been homies with them ever since. She onboarded them for our Festisia launch at this year’s Bonnaroo, and it was a surprisingly gracious pairing – an unpredictable weekend with an outstanding and unpredictable catalog.
I spoke with them briefly when they first arrived at the Festisia campsite, and I’d say classic music festivals aren’t their typical gig. Big burners, but even bigger Brooklyn heads, the festival Wook life wasn’t something in their daily regimen. However, the second they started spinning, no one would ever know. Transporting from their regular city frequencies to Bonnaroo was seamless, they were able to display and frame an energy that us festival goers didn’t realize we craved.
I had the privilege of not only getting to know their sonic praise but I was also enlightened by their curiosity and passion for performing and listening within new environments. To exchange wisdoms in music listening and music loving culture was different this time. It’s not like we shared similar backgrounds to have the sense of comfort in knowing what kind of environments we would enjoy together, but it was experimenting, symphonic analysis and interaction with one another that really made it golden. Especially the one night I dragged them to the festival grounds for Korn and a bit of Odesza. I witnessed sheer joy mixed with satirical laughs of nostalgia, all with open eyes and ears. I love to see fresh faces at festivals and share esoteric passions with the rest of the tens of thousands of people. That’s what it’s all about.
Check out Motel Club’s set here.
Motel Club’s Day One late-night set was especially intimate. We had intended for all of Plaza 5 to attend, but the truth is, we chose an hour where the Bonnaroovians like to play in the dark hours. That said, the few who attended our chilled circumference of toe tapping, head bobbing and weed smoking were part of a raw moment in time. One where our vulnerability was exposed to the healing of sound and slow BPMs. Throughout the set, the ten of us jammed out to their eclectic and worldly disco beats where we were able to ask questions, get to know one another, and learn the derivatives of the artists – which doesn’t happen often.
Motel Club rode with the Festisia tribe for the rest of the weekend. Their day sets were filled with edits familiar in foundation, but fresh and electrifying in execution. Our Sunday Robe Rage was a mysterious, playful one-of-a-kind morning, where Motel Club lured in the neighboring camps for us to mingle with. It’s truly special how the channels of sound can be an instant connection between strangers. But that’s only the tip of the iceberg.
Not only did I have an impactful time hanging out with them, but Festisia was able to open their eyes to a completely new universe of non-Burner festival culture, or a different subsidiary of humanity for that matter. Mutual impact is important, and to have the bridging of artists and listener is a wondrous magical experience. I look forward to future insights of admiring their smooth and delicate framework with CDJs and vinyl alike. Cheers.
– Rachel
I’d like to give a special shoutout to Plover Robes for making our Robe Rage able to happen. The Festisia crew has never looked flyer, and I felt like Marc Rebillet was right there with us. What a time!