Photo: Lucy Bridger
Pitchfork Music Festival Paris kicked off with a blistering start, courtesy of Mogwai, James Blake, Jon Hopkins, The War On Drugs, How To Dress Well and more last night (Thursday 30 October, 2014).
Taking place at the stunning Grande Halle De La Villette in Paris, 2014's edition of the alternative music showcase began with Ought, charming the French capital with their inventive take on post-punk, an alt-rock exercise in tension and release, where the menace of The Fall and PiL meets the twisted anthemics of Pavement.
Across the hall, they were immediately followed by How To Dress Well.
"Turn that shit off," ordered a good-humoured Tom Krell, instructing for the lights to be turned down low for a short but oh-so-sweet meander through his velvet-smooth electro-pop noir meets cheese-free R&B. Giving a shout out to his 'mentor' Beck who was watching the stream at home, How To Dress Well, Krell shone as one an incredibly compelling presence in his own right. The city of romance may have found its new Casanova.
An epic genre-crossing onslaught from The Notwist came next, before huge swathes gathered to see The War On Drugs for the sheer ecstasy of what they are as a live experience. The near flawless Americana-tinged dream rock of Lost In The Dream is given the space in needs to breathe live on stage, and the warming embrace of 'Red Eyes' married all present in song - a fittingly unforgettable celebration of one of the true success stories of 2014.
It was Mogwai of course, who received the warmest welcome of the evening - one fit for heroes. Opening with 'Heard About You Last Night' before the brooding perfection of 'I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead', the daddies of post-rock sent Paris into a deep trance, before painting a full spectrum of sound with classics 'Hunted By A Freak' and 'Mogwai Fear Satan', punctuated by 'Remurdered' and 'Mexican Grand Prix' to render a whole world of their own in glorious widescreen. It was bloody brilliant.
The evening was then brought to climactic close by two very different takes of electronica, from Mercury nominee Jon Hopkins and last year's Mercury winner James Blake - one injecting new life and imagination into an inimitable and cinematic form of dance music, and the latter weaving a dizzying tapestry of sound, building up the basic elements into a truly monolithic achievement in sound.
Pitchfork Paris continues this evening with sets from Future Islands, Chvrches, St Vincent, Belle & Sebastian and many more.
Stream all of the action live here
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Below: Beautiful photos from Pitchfork Paris Day One
