Monday 4th May 2009 @ Start The Bus, Bristol
With Support From: Samiyam, Rekordah

Aside from audio-visual wonder Weapon of Choice, the Bristol music scene suffers from a distinct lack of eye-candy to match some of the tip-top aural stimulation that the city enjoys. Spotting this, and squeezing neatly into the gap, comes Pattern, a new night hosted by Start The Bus that aims to fuse live visuals and exciting sets from cutting edge musicians, all in the homely format of a pre-11pm gig.

Who better then to headline the launch night of such an event but Warp Records master Flying Lotus, whose abstract audio soundscapes and quirky beats lend themselves brilliantly to visual exploration. Blending hip-hop with more organic, jazz-inspired progressions, FlyLo (as his fans affectionately abbreviate him) has become one of the most sought after producers of recent months and the breathtaking 2008 album, Los Angeles, immediately became an essential record on every beat-loving hipster’s wind-down playlist. No reviewer can fail to mention his connection to the Coltrane dynasty (his great-aunt is the late pianist Alice Coltrane) if for nothing but interest’s sake, but the hazy ambience, experimental production and purposely messy quality of his lop-sided beats speak masses of his musical heritage.

The brave creatures that powered through the thick and painful fog of a bank holiday weekend hangover were rewarded with an increasingly energetic live performance from FlyLo, laced with refashioned album favourites and affectionate reworkings of many a track by top Bristol producer Joker. Playing to a sea of bobbing caps, disk spinning from DJs Nemo and Vespertine, the distorted sounds of Pollen coordinator Rekordah and the hip-hop beats of fellow L.A. dweller Samiyam prepared the way for FlyLo’s headline set. Like a medallion-clad engerizer bunny, Samiyam’s hip-hop heavy set turned too-cool-to-dance scenesters into bouncing devotees. All was accompanied by undulating visuals from Vector Meldrew, which were projected on to two above-stage screens and an exciting arrangement of white cones in one of Start The Bus’s many darkened nooks.

With such a strong double act of Flying Lotus and Samiyam, Pattern.one was always going to be a successful affair. More could have been made of the visuals but despite this and grumbles about the less than mind-blowing sound system, the guys at Pattern have proved that they can book quality acts and innovatively blur gig/club distinctions to provide top producers with an opportunity to showcase their live work. And all, as promised, in time for a bed and a mug of Horlicks.

www.flying-lotus.com

Laura Snoad