one of my favorite actual 'bands' nowadays is sound tribe sector 9 aka sts9 aka sector 9. i've been a fan since a friend mentioned them a few years ago to me when i was a pretty dirty hippie. they mix live instruments with midi/computer electronics. they used to be much more instrumental and jazzy and funky, but in the past year or so they've really switched over to a more computerized approach to their live show, and i'm not really sure how i feel about it...summercamp is an early-summer music festival in central illinois. this was my first (and still only) camping festival experience, and it was tons of fun. this sts9 afternoon set was particularly fun. this band is the type that should be playing long late night sets, but here they get a 90 minute time slot before it gets dark, and in my opinion they play their set perfectly, moving quickly to give the audience as much music as they could. the set opens with a beautiful, inspired version of 'move my peeps.' i'm not that big on fan favorite 'lo swaga' anymore, but here it leads immediately into a funky 'aimlessly.' other old school jams are peppered throughout, including 'tap-in,' 'circus' and a cover of the boards of canada's 'roy g biv' played as the sun peeked out on an otherwise cloudy day, and 'kamuy.' after the classy 'kamuy,' the band ends the set with 'ehm,' a then-new song that is now indicative of their preference for live electronics; this early version has some very nice 'organic' touches--piano melodies, as well as some smooth sustained guitar tones--that accompany the glitchy effects.
at the time i was really impressed by this show--so much so that i couldn't enjoy the sounds of umphrey's mcgee later that night, or ever after for that matter--and i still think it holds up pretty well on tape. listen now!
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