Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on March 2010

Photo by James Hadfield

“Louder!” shouts one punter. A few minutes later, a couple of Japanese guys head to the front. “You need to turn up volume!” one of them says. It’s proving to be one of those nights for Echospace. Though the DJs bookending their live set sound absolutely thumping (obviously the sound issues that Eleven had on its opening night have been resolved—and then some), the duo of Rod Modell and Stephen Hitchell struggle to muster anything more pulverizing than a light slap around the face.

Photos by James Hadfield

Of course, “pulverizing” isn’t a word you’d associate with Echospace’s recorded output. Their 2007 album The Coldest Season was one of the best techno LPs of the past decade, a lush, immersive work that picked up where ’90s dub-techno imprints Basic Channel and Chain Reaction left off, yet never seemed like a redundant rehash. It was also very much made for headphones, and the duo felt an understandable urge to beef things up for their live set, which they’ve been touring on-off for a couple of years now. Out of necessity, the mountain of analog gear used on record is absent, replaced by a couple of laptops and digital boxes. Tonight, Modell seems to be laying down most of the tracks (he barely moves for the entire set), while Hitchell bops around, adding effects and occasionally killing the bass or hollering to the crowd.

What’s missing is any real dynamic. Echospace’s live set seems to be caught in an awkward ground: it isn’t as hypnotic as their recordings, but nor does it have enough ebb and flow to get the crowd revved up. After an hour or so in which the duo only occasionally hit their stride, it ends, quite literally, with a shrug. Too bad.