Additional Information
Johnny Jewel, Misstress Barbara, Matias Aguayo, Ambassade, PAURRO, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Flore (back-to-back with Nahasah), and Jacques Greeene (back-to-back with Martin Bootyspoon) are among the artists scheduled for the Futurs Antérieurs event, taking place June 5th and 6th at the Society for Arts and Technology (SAT). Three decades of SAT have led to this expertise in combining cutting-edge digital research with the pure enjoyment of music and immersive audiovisual experiences. Alexandre Auché, the lead programmer of this event, which is both a commemoration of the past and a harbinger of the future, explains Futurs Antérieurs, which highlights the remarkable maturity achieved by the SAT team.
PAN M 360: So this program is both a look back at the SAT’s past and its vision of the future? If not, what is the primary motivation for this event?
Alexandre Auché : Yes, but without wanting to create a nostalgic event. The idea behind Futurs Antérieurs was rather to show how certain electronic aesthetics and cultures that marked the SAT continue to evolve today. Above all, we wanted to create an event that truly reflects the SAT, with a blend of music, experimentation, immersive experiences, and club culture.
PAN M 360: What were the objectives of the programming?
Alexandre Auché : The main objective was to create a truly immersive experience across the three floors of the SAT. We wanted people to be able to move seamlessly from one space to another, from one atmosphere to another, while maintaining an overall coherence.
We wanted to blend live performances, DJ sets, audiovisual projects, and installations, but also offer some more exclusive moments with artists presenting new projects or albums, such as Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Ambassade, and Hyd.
PAN M 360: It’s still a massive event, with two dozen performances on stage?
Alexandre Auché : Yes, absolutely. We’re activating practically the entire building at the same time, which is quite rare at the SAT. Exceptionally, there will be three spaces open simultaneously: Espace SAT, Satosphère, and Galerie SAT.
The main challenge was maintaining coherence between the different spaces. Each floor has its own energy and identity, but everything is designed so that the audience experiences it as a seamless journey, not just a succession of shows.
PAN M 360: What is the balance between discoveries and sure bets?
Alexandre Auché : There are artists who already have a long history in electronic music, like Misstress Barbara, Johnny Jewel, and Matias Aguayo, but what interested us most was bringing them together with more recent or unexpected projects.
The festival is largely based on this idea of balance between established artists and new forms, without compartmentalizing styles or formats.
PAN M 360: What are the local and international proportions?
Alexandre Auché : It was important to us that the Montreal scene be truly represented. Montreal has an extremely strong electronic and experimental scene, so we didn’t want it to be just “around” international artists.
We even dedicated an entire stage to local artists in the SAT Gallery, with projects that represent different facets of the current scene, both club-oriented and experimental.
PAN M 360: What are the highlights of June 5th?
Alexandre Auché :
Johnny Jewel
Johnny Jewel has a very cinematic approach to music and visuals. His A/V live show is likely to transform the space and create something quite hypnotic.
Misstress Barbara
Misstress Barbara has been a major figure on the Montreal and international scene for decades. The fact that she is also celebrating her 30-year career during the SAT’s 30th anniversary creates a beautiful parallel.
Matias Aguayo
Matias Aguayo always brings something very lively and unpredictable. There’s a freedom in his sets that works particularly well in a context like that of the SAT.
Ambassade
Ambassade develops a very strong work combining sound, image, and visual storytelling. It’s exactly the kind of hybrid project that makes sense in Futurs Antérieurs.
PAURRO
PAURRO perfectly represents this new generation of artists who navigate between ambient, experimental, and electronic dance music. His performance in the dome promises to be a truly unique and unforgettable experience.
PAN M 360: What are the highlights of June 6th?
Alexandre Auché :
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith creates very organic and sensory live performances. There is something both very soothing and very rich in the way she constructs sound.
Flore b2b Nahash
Flore has long championed a very open vision of electronic music, blending bass music with rhythmic experimentation. Her approach perfectly aligns with the spirit of the festival. Nahash is a French-Montreal artist who recently released an album on Flore’s label.
Jacques Greene b2b Martyn Bootyspoon
The back-to-back match between Jacques Greene and Martyn Bootyspoon in the Satosphere is likely to be one of the highlights of the weekend. They have different approaches to the club, but precisely because of that, they are very complementary.
PAN M 360: How did you come up with the visuals?
Alexandre Auché : The visuals were never conceived as mere decoration. We truly wanted the installations, lighting, and immersive content to contribute to the overall festival experience. Each space has its own distinct visual atmosphere.
The Aube collective will transform the SAT Space with light installations, while Skeletron.tv will present a cathode-ray tube installation in the SAT Gallery. In the dome, performances will be accompanied by the visual worlds of BunBun, Alex Vlair, SULFATION, and al11z, featuring immersive 360° VJing.
PAN M 360: What will happen with this masterclass with Flore? Who is participating?
Alexandre Auché : The masterclass with Flore also adds a more exchange-oriented and knowledge-sharing aspect to the festival, which has long been part of SAT’s DNA. It’s aimed at both emerging artists and people curious to understand the creative processes involved in electronic music and audiovisual practices.
