Additional Information
The SAT and Making Time, a popular niche festival in Philadelphia, are joining forces to celebrate the 25th anniversary of this event, which will be held this weekend in Philly. The Montreal edition will take place from Saturday, September 27 at 10 p.m. to Sunday, September 28 at 6 a.m.
Over the past few years, Making Time has presented a number of events at the SAT, but this upcoming one promises to be much more ambitious. A dozen internationally renowned artists and other local discoveries will take over the SAT’s three floors.
More specifically, we will be treated to performances by Ireland’s Maria Somerville (shoegaze), DJ Python, James K (deep house, Latin electro), Djrum (avant-garde, contemporary classical), Britain’s aya (multi-genre electro) and America’s Dave P (multi-genre), founder of Making Time. They will perform on the ground floor. Afro-British artist SHERELLE (footwork, ghetto-tech, gabber, etc.), Montreal artist Honeydrip (dub, dancehall, dubstep), and local duo Zillas on Acid (death disco, dub, etc.) will present their sets under the dome. In addition, a new lounge area will be set up on the second floor, where local artists CPR Annie, URA, and Myfanwy will perform.
In a spirit of collegiality. This program was designed by Dave P, the American mastermind behind Making Time, and Alexandre Auché, co-founder of PAN M 360 and senior member of the SAT, to whom we owe this program, which is intended as a celebration of its own eclecticism: shoegaze, electro, hip-hop, and cutting-edge techno.
To learn more and prepare for this entire night of Making Time, PAN M 360 spoke with Alexandre Auché.
photo: Alex Auché & Dave P
PAN M 360: Making Time, then. What led you to do this project? Tell me about the origins of your relationship with Making Time.
Alexandre Auché: Dave P has been the artistic director of Making Time events in Philadelphia for 25 years.
PAN M 360: How did you meet Dave P?
Alexandre Auché: I met him through friends on tour; I’m involved in much the same music scene as him. We bumped into each other several times in Barcelona, we saw each other in New York, we even saw each other at Coachella, and I ended up attending his festival in Philadelphia. I consider him a very good friend and I think he has great taste in music. For 25 years, Dave P has been hosting these kinds of events combining live rock and DJs; he’s always had a culture of mixing things up. Since his events in Philadelphia are so successful, there are a lot of artists I’ve booked in Montreal that he’s been able to book in Philadelphia.
PAN M 360: Making Time is a signature, then.
Alexandre Auché: Yes, Dave P decided to turn it into a festival three years ago. Before that, it was more of a series of events that he organized in clubs under the banner Making Time. It was even a radio show. He decided to create all this for his own enjoyment, to create the festival of his dreams, especially in North America where it’s more difficult to get this kind of lineup. It’s similar to Sonar or Primavera Sound, but without the scale.
PAN M 360: An American festival inspired by Europe, then?
Alexandre Auché: You could say that, but… David P’s idea was to bring all his favorite artists together in a rather magical location, Fort Mifflin, situated on the banks of a river, very close to Philadelphia airport. A magical, magnificent location. There are vaulted stone rooms inside and wetlands around it. In addition to the outdoor stages, the Making Time festival has set up a 200-seat experimental lounge, visual art installations, restaurant areas, natural wine bars, cocktail bars, and more.
PAN M 360: So, it inspired you, and ultimately you decided to create a Montreal counterpart, is that right?
Alexandre Auché: David P and I had worked together on three events prior to this one. I first invited them to participate in a project under the dome in February 2023. There was Dave P, Priori, and Claire Rousay, an experimental folk musician. It was a great mix. After that, I invited Dave P for New Year’s Eve while the SAT was undergoing renovations, and then he came back last year as a DJ. We talked about a bigger event at the SAT, a sort of mini-festival whose goal was to recreate the atmosphere of the Philadelphia festival at the SAT.
PAN M 360 : Comment reproduire à Montréal l’ambiance du Making Time de Philadelphie?
Alexandre Auché : Ce qu’on a gardé de Philadelphie, c’est l’esprit de plusieurs salles avec des ambiances complémentaires : l’espace SAT au rez-de-chaussée, le dôme, et on va ouvrir aussi notre espace galerie SAT en tant que lounge avec installation vidéo, éclairages et fauteuils. Pour l’occasion, l’habillage visuel de la SAT sera assuré par Klip Collective, en collaboration avec Bloom studio. Klip Collective est une part très importante de Making Time à Philadelphie, ayant fait toutes les installations vidéo/éclairages du festival, tant sur les scènes extérieures que dans les salles du fort. C’est une partie super importante de l’événement. Pour adapter l’événement à la SAT, Klip Collective fera donc une collaboration avec Bloom Studio.
PAN M 360: What do you consider to be your best catches? M
Alexandre Auché: I would say all of them, actually. I know it sounds a bit generic, but I’m really proud of this lineup. We had the opportunity to select quite a few different artists. We kept the cream of the crop from what was offered to us. We were very selective, so we’re very proud to have each artist. And that’s what’s great about it. The idea was really to mix genres. Not to be uniform. We’re not doing a techno night, we didn’t do a drum & bass night. We’re not doing a shoegaze rock night. We did all of that at the same time.
PAN M 360: Some examples?
Alexandre Auché: Maria Somerville has turned everyone’s world upside down. It’s a bit like the shoegaze revival, with everything that goes with it, everything we loved about that English scene back in the day. Luster, her new album, has received rave reviews internationally, as has James K on the deep house side. Friend is a magnificent album. Aya is coming with a completely crazy live set! I’m not going to compare her to Arca, but there’s something about her… Djrum is one of the most interesting artists in electronic music, mixing jazz, hip-hop, dubstep, and even experimental contemporary music. He’s capable of creating dancefloor hits as well as very sophisticated tracks. British producer SHERELLE is also excellent.
PAN M 360: It starts on Saturday evening at 10 p.m. and ends the next day at 6 a.m.
Alexandre Auché: In fact, we are taking advantage of this new legislation to be able to pursue the context a little further. But is the legislation weekly, is it always now, or? Yes, you have to request it. We have to request exemptions. From time to time, we get a 24-hour Saturday. We do this for very specific projects that we’ve really worked hard on.
PAN M 360: And you really worked hard on this MTL version of Making Time!
Alexandre Auché: I’m really thrilled with the lineup! I think it’s one of the strongest I’ve put together in my career since the MEG days. With an event like this, we encourage people to get out a little more, to see and hear things they don’t know, to feel the vibe of the night.
