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arpz Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,267 posts Joined: Aug, 2012
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 06:04:33
I expect most of you have seen this on Facebook but the basic gist of it is that Thumpa posted about having the hump because everyone left before his set at Summer Gathering after watching Scott Brown. The initial post caught a bit of flak because a few people thought it was slating SB for anthem bashing.
SB posted a retort to it, showed his tracklist and it consisted of new stuff mixed in with anthems, like you'd probably expect.
It would be ridiculous for me to try and post the content of both threads, there's multiple comments from Olly and Scott mixed in amongst a few sycophants saying 'gnurrr Scott Brown U r legend', 'Who da fuk is fumpa?' but also some reasoned arguments too.
A lot of this is about 'ravers only want to hear anthems not new music' but I'm wondering whether it's more like, 'ravers want to hear straight up hardcore not freeform'. To be honest, and no disrespect and call me a knuckle dragging heathen if you like, but I don't really get excited by the prospect of hearing new freeform. I've listened to it before and it's alright and I feel a bit futuristic when I'm driving my spaceship down the M3 or whatever but I'd much rather whack on a set with loads of vocal hands in the air stuff. That doesn't necessarily mean it has to be old, it could be a load of tracks I've never heard before.
Vladel Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,514 posts Joined: Feb, 2008
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 06:13:51
Thumpa posted the finnbarr track he opened with (he'll probably slate me for this) and I'm not surprised people walked out. A lot of people liked it but I agree it's more to do with freeform than being new and it's general lack of popularity at the moment. Hardcore is a real niche genre at the moment and I think the freeform following is an even smaller faction and like myself, a lot of listeners find the modern style hard to relate to. I'm not slagging it off by any means and like gabba, I don't follow most of it but there is a selection I do enjoy. That opener struck me as dreary and folk who don't like freeform are going to walk out.
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remain calm do not be alarmed do not attempt to leave the dancefloor
jordesuvi Junior Member
United Kingdom
143 posts Joined: Feb, 2014
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 06:44:59
Part of the art of DJ'ing is feeling the room you're playing. Unless you're well known, you can't get away with playing whatever you want and still have the majority of the audience stick around after a headliner.
The mood has to be created, going from a headline DJ that's just been throwing down "bangers and anthems" to a lesser known DJ abruptly opening with some new unknown freeform track...
By all means I'm no world class DJ, but to follow an act like Scott Brown you'd need to open with something in the general theme of what he's been playing OR a track that is explosive and popular right now... something that would have an attendee go "wait, this sounds good! :o" and walk back inside.
Then once you've caught their attention after a few tracks you can proceed to start showing your taste-making skills.
arpz Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,267 posts Joined: Aug, 2012
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 07:36:48
Thumpa said that the people had left before he even got started so if there's no crowd to react to then it's obviously not going to be possible.
Let's assume that nothing he could've done would've got people in there for a minute. We have to bear in mind that he has been booked as a freeform DJ and would be doing a disservice to the genre (and presumably the promoter) if he completely gave up on the idea and just played an hour of raver baby remixes - And I'm sure he wouldn't want to do that anyway. So why did the people leave?
Since I haven't checked out any in a while, I decided to listen to freeform on my commute to work (~1 hour) and listened to Thumpa KTRA mix and the Summer gathering promo mix. It's generally thought that one of the hallmarks of hardcore music is happiness and not taking things too seriously, out of the two mixes I listened to there were probably about 3 tunes that I could honestly call 'happy' and that many again that I could say slanted towards 'vaguely optimistic' sounding. As far as I'm aware, freeform is positioned as 'serious hardcore'. I honestly think that there probably weren't enough people 'there for the freeform' and I think it's enough of a departure from 'standard hardcore' for people to not give it a chance. How many freeform acts were on? If you're relying on all the 'standard hardcore' heads to hang around to check it out on the off-chance that they might like it then I don't think it's ever going to work at a hardcore event - there doesn't seem to be enough of the typical elements that those people want - uplifting, singing, female vocals, happiness.
Golion New Member
Sweden
27 posts Joined: Apr, 2016
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 08:49:27
I think it's a pretty safe guess that alot of people came mostly to hear Kutski and Scott Brown and those are not the most easy acts to follow. I have played oldschool gabber right after Dj Dione once and The Sickest Squad once at partys here in Sweden and let me tell you it's not easy playing a more niche genre righ after the headliner is done. The positive thing about the smaller genres is that the people who like them REALLY like them. I wonder if there were more acts playing freeform? If not maybe that part of the scene did?t show up for 1 dj only?
wong Advanced Member
United Kingdom
2,991 posts Joined: Feb, 2006
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 09:10:00
I was there, and i was one of those that walked straight out, because i wanted to watch BK in the forest. Was nothing against thumpa i just really enjoy BK's hard house sets. Also andy c was on half hour after thumpa started, people were using that half hour to get drinks, go for a piss or just have a breather on the grass . Scotts set was the set of the weekend for me tho
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intensify the treatment
ViolonC Average Member
Germany
243 posts Joined: Sep, 2014
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 11:55:16
Haven't really followed the thing but from the start it seemed like "making something out of nothing". People probably needed a break and didn't plan to listen to a less known DJ in the first place. It was a hard spot to follow up to regardless of what you were up to.
Thumpa keeps pushing new music which is a good thing but i don't think that's the main issue here so it would be better to leave it and carry on.
Triquatra Moderator
United Kingdom
12,635 posts Joined: Nov, 2003
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 12:15:24
I don't think thumpa "had a hump" about it. He said it was disheartening.
I think it just comes down to a mix of crowd the venue has attracted, and the fact that near everyone buggers off for a smoke and rest their legs after being tired and shagged out after a Scott Brown set.
If you turn the tables on the crowd, I've been to a few nights where I've seen top tier DJs playing classic sets to near empty dance floors with a handful ravers who were either massively dedicated or so pilled off their face they'd stumbled into "the wrong room" and couldn't be arsed to leave. Those DJs were *well* seasoned, but still they looked like their cat had died. Whole vibe of those rooms had kinda made me question whether it was really worth traveling 500 miles to see a hero look lonely, and to hear music I love fall on...well, barely any ears in a big echoy room.
Thumpa doesn't need any advice, he 100% knows what he's doing. I'd argue that there would have been little to keep the majority of same people on the floor after a Scott Brown set short of having having an encore from the man himself.
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 14:05:48
Scott Brown is a music scene within a scene, The Legend.
Thumpa is the Louis Walsh of Hardcore err i mean Freeform, way above his station and thinks his great, and everyone should love him.
Alert moderatorEdited by - Bring Me Round To Love on 2016/08/03 14:09:44
Samination Advanced Member
Sweden
13,073 posts Joined: Jul, 2004
195 hardcore releases
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 14:22:25
quote:Originally posted by Bring Me Round To Love:
Scott Brown is a music scene within a scene, The Legend.
Thumpa is the Louis Walsh of Hardcore err i mean Freeform, way above his station and thinks his great, and everyone should love him.
Well I can agree a little that he can act like he's the king of the world, but he does help push most styles of Freeform out.
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Samination, Swedish Hardcore DJ
Happy, UK Hardcore, Freeform, Makina and Gabber http://samination.se/ ---------------------------------------------
Cyrax Advanced Member
United Kingdom
623 posts Joined: May, 2012
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 20:03:46
I think it's normal for people at festivals to plan their sets and go from arena to arena at certain times to make sure they catch their favourites DJ's, people do enjoy Freeform as when I've played at hardcore raves and there's only been 1 room, people have stayed at danced just as normal!
*yes they have no choice but they all seemed to enjoy it*
The drunken scotsman Advanced Member
United Kingdom
1,486 posts Joined: Dec, 2011
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 20:24:59
Wasn't there but I would've done the same as everyone else and pissed off if I had been. Nothing personal, I just don't like free form and never have. Plus I'm an old **** now and raving for more than 1 hour at a time is out of the question ;-)
warped_candykid Advanced Member
United States
3,934 posts Joined: Jan, 2004
Posted - 2016/08/03 : 22:33:11
I don't see why your set would be focused on entirely new stuff anyways. There's nothing for people to connect to. You gotta have some oldie goldies thrown in there.
Thumpa / Scott Brown thing from Facebook
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Posted - 2016/08/03 : 06:04:33
