PEPPER MACPHERSON.
HOUGHTON 25’
A Consensual Slap in the Face:
Off the back of a rather lengthy day at Fabric continuum and the discovery I was super into whatever the f*ck Harry McCanna was spinning at 11am, I woke up and decided it was probably time to give Houghton a go. As the thought of aging 25 became less of a thought and more of a suffocating reality, I did wonder whether my new found interest in the festival could be linked to the encroaching development of my frontal lobe.
After a-bit of research I came to the conclusion Houghton is the Mecca of dance music to house and techno heads, as well as where your favourite Dj goes to see their favourite Dj deliver they're best set on british soil consisting of tracks that will have both you & Shazam, lost for an ID.
Truthfully, I felt like a fraud, and when someone complained about the influx of new people destroying the festival's credibility this year, I slumped a little bit further back into my camp chair. I thought I understood everything about what I claimed to love so much - making Houghton the slap in the face I, and so many others, desperately needed.
Reptant - The Warehouse
The best set of the weekend took on the form of this two hour set by Reptant on Saturday night. As it was taking place on the only indoor stage, naturally I was adverse, but it only took 15 minutes for me to realise I didn’t care where his set was just as long as I saw all of it. Electro at its finest.
Bihn - Outburst
A perfect marrying of melodic uplifting 80’s synths and gritty electronica. As much as I enjoyed this closing set, I was constantly reminded I would never enjoy it quite as much as the European couple necking off in front of me. Although yes, it was THAT euphoric.
Nik Bartsch's Ronin - Pinters
Considering the amount of techno I had consumed over the weekend, this new classical/ funk performance held its own. The change of pace was something I felt as though everyone sat down needed profusely and when I asked the tall, quiet Dutch guy sitting next to me if he minded me smoking a cigarette he said: “well, it’s jazz?” followed by “we must all have one”. Now it wasn’t on the programme but that had to be one of the most effective community building workshops I've ever attended.
Lukas Wiglex & Dr Banana - Pavilion
The first dance of the friday brought us to Banana and Wigflex’s Pavilion b2b, in the blazing sun alongside the rest of the festival who seemed to have the exact same idea. Groovy house & New school garage that showed no sign of slowing down managed to keep a severely dehydrated crowd locked in for the full 2 hours.
Paranoid London - Deren Smart
If a breakbeat and an acid baseline had each other bent over somewhere after a few tequilas, it was probably at Paranoid London's set Saturday night. The duo brought an energy to their live performance that did nothing short of inspire & there was an undeniable feeling you were witnessing one of the great electronic duos to come out of the 90s, songs that feel larger than life but also completely uncommercial.
The more I let go of my line-up, the more I enjoyed myself & it was the sets of those I had never heard of before, which impacted me the most. So when I eventually let my headzier mates take the wheel, that is when I really started understanding where I was and why it was important.
Houghton reignited my interest in electronic music & reminded me that I know nothing at all.
Houghton Track Id’s | Spotify Playlist