I got back to my car and headed down to the Holocene just under 10min away...
...and arrived there just before 11:00 AM. I had a double concert night, the first time I've ever attempted this in the past six years of being a solo concert attendee. Peruvian producer/DJ Sofia Kourtesis was performing a DJ set late in Portland, someone I have wanted to see since I listened to her spectacular debut record
Madres from last year.
The event had already begun at 9:00 PM and would last until closing time at 1:30 AM. I learned as I questioned the employees at the door for ID check that I wasn't late for the headliner. She was just about ready to perform her set; she had to catch three flights to get to Portland though and was likely exhausted. I went in with the understanding that having my copy of
Madres be signed might be a longshot.
Anish Kumar
Anish was the second artist on this list as part of a double bill, and must have been DJing for close to two hours already. Fun deep house selections.
With ~25min into the set and having relocated to the main stage floor, I saw Sofia somewhat hidden on the stairs separating the floor and DJ booth, out of sight from most of the crowd in preparation. I pulled out my LP jacket of
Madres out from my bag, and asked her to sign it after getting her attention. She was more than happy to and seemed really excited with me asking. After asking for my name and taking my silver Sharpie, she opened the gatefold and wrote a message on the four indented lines in the gatefold presumably in Spanish, with me using my phone light to aid in writing. She handed my items back to me and gave me a hug without me even asking. I thanked her and mentioned that I was very excited to see her perform momentarily.
Kumar performed for about ~40min in the time I arrived in total before Sofia took control of the decks.
Sofia Kourtesis
She wasted no time getting ready, initiating her set with the second track on
Madres (but the first song on the LP tracklist!) "Si Te Portas Bonito." Electric energy from the crowd, even if the video doesn't totally sell it from my perspective:
Her set lasted for just over two hours. In total, she performed three songs from
Madres, a few from her EPs, and several cuts in the deep house realm, including a cut from the new Caribou record! Nice timing as I couldn't see Caribou this year due to work schedule conflict.
She didn't shy away from some familiar house remixes, either!
She killed it. Even though the BPM of the set remained roughly static, the energy never relented with plenty of switchups to keep the audience hyped. No merch, as expected for a DJ event.
Post show
Stayed to the 1:30 AM closing time, even though I had work later that day. A few of us and I wanted to chat with Sofia before security kicked us out at ~1:45 AM after the venue lights came back on. A pair of concertgoers handed over CDs for her to sign. She was a sweetheart and was interested in everything we wanted to ask. She was also deeply concerned about us when she brought up an implication about the results of the USA election, hoping that we would all be safe from what's to come. All of those talking to her, including me, responded by saying that the work begins now and that we will do what we can in our power to help not only the vulnerable, but also each other. On this night,
all of us concertgoers agreed that we needed her music and fervor tonight as our escapism from the grim reality.
A few people requested some photos with Sofia. As I pulled out my phone to request the same, she immediately threw her arms around me without her or I saying a word
I thanked her again for the absolutely amazing night and wished for her quick return to Portland
Absolutely zero traffic getting home, and I couldn't wait to check out Sofia's signed message in the gatefold.
The inside:
| Original message | Translation per Google Translate (as I can't read Spanish) |
"Mi querido Markus
Muchio i amo gracias
por tu opovo
te mondo mucho
amor y esperanza
Sofia <3"
| My dear Markus
I love you so much
thank you for your support
I love you a lot
love and hope
Sofia <3 |
If that is truly accurate then...um...
One of top5 favorite shows this year. Easily. Deep house is hitting harder for me as an amateur DJ and feels more like home the older I get.
Madres was one of my top10 last year and it still is now, reflecting one year later.
P.S.: I've added Sofia's EPs to my wantlist, Santa! They are absolutely excellent and would be infinitely useful in a DJ set.
