(03.21.09) ANOTHER year has passed and it is time to get the body ready for three days of electronic punishment; Bloc Weekend is once again here. This year England’s premier electronic outing has transposed itself from the West coast of Norfolk to the South East and the town of Minehead some 61 miles from Bristol. The soviet style of 2008’s Pontins has been transformed into the more luxurious Butlins for Bloc 09. Rumours were rife that this year’s accommodation was incomparable to the eastern bloc tenements of Hemsby on Sea, but the rigmarole of wristbands and keycards has to be gone through before such confirmation can be obtained.
This year’s line-up adds to lasts, with some favourites returning and brand new entrants arriving. The likes of Ed DMX, Dynamix II and I-F return from past Bloc’s whilst fresh names such as Egyptian Lover, Heartbreak and Afrika Bambaata leap from the rows and columns of line up. It is fair to say that the headliners undoubtedly attracted further festivalites, with names like Future Sound of London, Aphex Twin and Carl Craig being firm favourites of thousands. But last Bloc was pretty special. Can Bloc 09 hold up to its forefathers?
It is relatively easy to get to Bristol from Belfast. Sadly the 15 plus mile away Belfast International Airport is the point of departure but the flights are at reasonable hours and prices, with the same to be said about the returns. A journey through winding roadways hugged by rolling hills, dotted with postcard towns and villages, brings the Bloc Weekender safely from Bristol airport to Minehead Butlins and immediately all is seeming a lot more effortless than last year’s excursion to the Norfolk coast.
Keycards and wristbands are secured with a modicum of effort and barely two cigarettes later the rumours of finer chalets are partially a reality. For the early booker a full kitchen and sitting, for later bookers (typist included), two bedded rooms and a bathroom awaited. But this is by no means a cause for despair. It’s a comfortable room, a place to have a drink or two before hitting the white peaks of the main complex that loom in the distance. Time it getting on, time to get in.
This year’s outing boasts five stages, two more than last. There are three main areas, the well sized RedBloc and TecBloc and the seriously mammoth CentreBloc. JakBloc is a smaller, more pub like, set up with SkyBloc being a small open air structure. The main complex is a towering tent-like structure, its innards resembling a shopping centre with its neon streams, fast food chains and throngs of people. Once the head has settled to these new pop-consumerist surroundings it is time for some music. The end of Qbert‘s slice attack is caught in the cavernous CentreBloc before Dynamix II take the stage. It is the first time this electro outfit has played live in the UK, and disappointment is refused entrance at the doors as layers of 
underworld vocoder electro pummelled the cave walls of CentreBloc. Dynamix II are no act to follow, but Future Sound of London look like they might be able to do it. Any FSOL fan’s eyes will bulge at the word live tacked to the acronym, but sadly live and lazy start with the same letter. As a screen descended some flickers came through the projector stream, a clammy image of FSOL met the audience. There had been whispers that a web based performance was on the cards, but this did not seem to cheer up any of the screen spectators. Bass and techno fell from the speakers, but an air of distain took over the Great Hall of Bloc Weekend. An exit to RedBloc is needed. The dubstep shenanigans of Rusko, live on stage and not via the interweb, crushes through a mob of condensed bodies. Dubstep, and its popularity, are undoubtedly more on show at Bloc 09 than its previous annual incarnation. The crowd surges with fast tracked drum and bass energy. As blood runs from earholes another look at Future Sound of London seems in order, but a similar lacklustre atmosphere in CentreBloc is found. It already seems that the day’s travel is catching up. Back to the Midwest motelesque chalets to regroup before heading in for the final battle of the night. RedBloc is the most isolated venue, but is a decent size. Inside Dissident DJ’s, not of the London electro disco label but of brutalized Bristol techno fame, rumbles out aggression. Time to call it a night.
Saturday arrives and its sore heads and dry mouths all round, but music awaits. The line-up has added on the previous nights, with Lee Scratch Perry starting out the day. Sadly lines have followed. Nevertheless, the Manchester based Rob Hall is soon to follow as is the acidified electro of the Netherlands man Cosmic Force. Once more the petrol pumps of chalet living call before 23:00hrs and Egyptian Lover drops.
23:15 and still no sign of the L.A. based Egyptian Lover. Time to try wheedle a lighter from someone.
“Hey, can I get a light. Ya enjoyin’ it man? Cheers.”
“Yeah, brwilliant. Jus saww that Egyptian guy in there. Great.”
“Ya sure man?”
“Yeah.”
“Nah, that’s not him man. Egyptian Lover is a big burly guy.”
“What?!? You sure?”
Many Bloc Weekenders seemed to arrive at Minehead with little but a taste for dubstep in their mouths, but they are a seriously friendly bunch and refreshingly willing to give any music a go.
On return the Lover is on stage, sitting behind the decks morphing Kraftwerk‘s “Tour De France” into a sexified cycle. It wasn’t long before the big man was working the mike, introducing the crowd to “My 808” before taking centre stage like only the Barry White of the electro house scene knows how to. After the big man of electro finished another big man of electronics entered the fray, the legendary Aphex Twin. Now it seemed that some hadn’t realised that Aphex Twin does not play live, having broken the news to two crestfallen Texans (then again you have to wonder about travelling halfway across the globe without looking at the flyer, plus these two hadn’t heard of Detroit techno; enough said.) Yet, the Twin, with Hecker, put on a lively show of acid, electro, techno and filthified electronics that has the crowd in a frenzy. Ed Chamberlain follows with his own brand of electro grease but a stroll is in order as the masked visage of Redshape is looming in TecBloc. The crimson clad artist churns out dubby techno, transforming the air of the venue into a claggy soup of beat and bass. The sound of the secret scarlet spectre, a split of deep house and Detroit techno, sent the room into a den of sweat whilst the night swam by. In true Bloc form, speaker volume and waning hours began to pickle minds across the camp (as did other things.) A brief look into the smallest indoor venue, JakBloc, is closely followed by a trip to bed as the sun meets weary ruddy eyes.
Saturday morning, or afternoon, smiles to cracked lids and it seems unbelievable that the last day of this three day long festival has already arrived. Thankfully, for the disco and dubstep lovers alike, Saturday’s line up is the cream of the weekender. Miami cheese has descended over Butlins and those with the right attire don wigs, sequenced skits and shady shirts. CentreBloc is transformed into all things disco, for a time, with dubstep descending on RedBloc. As ever, time is zipping past and by 18:00 Ed DMX has taken centre stage and CentreBloc armed with a pair of technics and a bag of electro. One of the high points of the weekend, perhaps at the too early hour of seven o’clock, follows: I-F. The self confessed disco don of The Netherlands does not disappoint, dropping obsessively catchy disco and italo bombs on a boogie down crowd whilst Windowlicker dancers prance on the stage (nah too pretty but fun.) The Hague mixmaster is followed by the aged italo star, Alexander Robotnick whose attempt to up the anti of I-F‘s set just creates a banging pit. In RedBloc, or outside RedBloc, a sea of dubstep zealots line to see Skream and Benga. 21:00 ticks over and Heartbreak take the stage, a two man italo and electro inspired outfit with a recent outing on Lex Records. RedBloc stole most of the crowd, but not the energy as the team of Ali Renault and Sebastian Muravchik pour power-packed analogica and showmanship from the stage. Metro Area are to follow but supposedly have missed their flights, but the fill-in does well whilst Altern8 blaze dancefloor stompers in RedBloc. Afrika Bambataa take control of CentreBloc, churning out electro classics blended with some cheese to produce an interesting atmosphere. The night goes on and the hours slip into one another before, perhaps, the daddy of Detroit takes the stage: Carl Craig. A varied set follows, with perhaps too much techno and not enough innovation; but nevertheless some wonders fall from the speaker cones. The wee hours roll in and the clock is well into 3am before weary weekenders exit bleary eyed in disbelieve that Bloc 09 is over. Talk of parties circulate in a last ditch effort to keep the weekend alive, but few materialise. Eyes close on another Bloc.
Bloc Weekend is establishing itself as the electronic music festival of Europe. The over represented Irish contingency of 2008 was diluted this year by Germans, French, Belgians, Spaniards and a host of other continentals in the 5000 strong Bloc army. The teething pains of the past seem to have been removed, though being strong-armed out of CentreBloc for the last minutes of Carl Craig by NGP Events Security was far from appreciated! Bloc is building on its reputation as an alternative festival. Bloc is not a mud covered, flower painted and acoustic driven festival; it is a modern, multifaceted event that covers a gamut of genres which in turn attracts a spectrum of characters from across the globe. Roll out 2010, but be warned; it may take a few days to get over it.
For more information about Bloc Weekend visit their website at blocweekend.com.
