Immortalized in Mia Hansen-Løve’s Eden, an ode to the height of the rave age, and cemented in the memories of merrymakers and art-lovers alike, MoMA PS1’s Warm Up series is music history. Over its 25-year run, the summer daytime party rendezvous has hosted the likes of Carl Craig, Solange, Arca, Richie Hawtin, Animal Collective, Cardi B, Honey Dijon, and Doss in the museum’s courtyard, often on stages or structures commissioned by local artists. “It’s nearly impossible to alter the basic formula for summer music within a contemporary arts context,” says Kari Rittenbach, assistant curator at MoMA PS1 and co-organizer of Warm Up. “We invented it!”
For this year’s edition, Rittenbach assembled a committee of New York-based creatives—Meriem Bennani, Patia Borja, Raúl de Nieves, Joni, and Mike Pollard—and invited them to nominate talent for the series. The result? “Perspectives [that] span cataclysmic noise, ethereal vocal hooks, pop beats, hard style sturm&drang, high-octane hardcore, and terrestrial bricolage—all unified by electronic production.” Legendary names like Frankie Bones and DJ Noir will share the booth with emerging voices in sonic experimentation like Pauli Cakes, Nudo, and Word of Command. To get you into shape for the month of parties, which starts tonight, CULTURED chatted with six of the performers, and asked Joni, Warm Up host committee member, to whip up a playlist to test your speakers with.
Frankie Bones, playing July 21
CULTURED: Walk us through how you got to where you are today.
Frankie Bones: I believe it's three things: love, passion, and devotion. I love music. Making it, playing it, and sharing it. I was fortunate to be involved with rave culture from the beginning back in 1988 and 1989, playing in London before it got popular in the U.S.
CULTURED: What other producers, musicians, DJs have inspired your work?
Bones: Most of my recent inspiration comes from our label, Southfirst Records, and the entire S1 collective in Williamsburg. We banded together earlier this year, with such gifted artists and producers like Adam Hadari and Graydon Fritzsching, and guys like Geoff and Luke holding it together in the back end. We’re tight.
CULTURED: Where do you listen to music or dance in New York?
Bones: Avant Gardner is killing it this season. There’s also Knockdown Center, Basement, and really anywhere there is a good party with a good crowd.
CULTURED: What are your predictions for how nightlife will change in the next five years?
Bones: 2023 is like 1923. We are going to have a five-year run, and things will be great. In 2029, the world will go through its next crisis, like 1929 saw the Great Depression. Be professional, make money, and try to enjoy yourself. Life is too short.
Word of Command, playing July 21
CULTURED: Walk us through how you got to where you are today.
Word of Command: I moved to New York in 2009 and started working for music venues as a graphic and web designer. I wanted to start my own party because I saw a lack of diversity in programming and the audience at techno and electronic events. I created FIST (Fun Is Still Transgressive) seven years ago, and a lot has evolved. I'm still learning.
CULTURED: How are you preparing for your Warm Up set?
Word of Command: This past weekend I repotted a bunch of plants, and I also watched the new Wham! documentary, which was very inspiring.
CULTURED: What’s on your song rotation this summer?
Word of Command: "It Must Change" by ANOHNI. It's a perfect summer song for me: soulful, seductive, and really sad.
CULTURED: What do you want to see more or less of in the New York nightlife ecosystem?
Word of Command: I'd like to see even more diverse lineups regarding sound and exploration in the club scene. There seems to be a sense of safety that some clubs tend to rely on when they book artists, and I think that gets a bit tedious or repetitive. I'd like to see a club do anonymous/mystery lineups, where you just go and enjoy the music without worrying who is playing that particular night. Also I'd like to see more inventive party themes– maybe a recreation of famous DJ sets or a renegade drum and bass party.
CULTURED: What song or album represents where you’re at in your life right now?
Word of Command: Lately I'd have to say my life has felt most like Stories From the City, Stories from the Sea by PJ Harvey.
CULTURED: What can we expect from you in the coming months?
Word of Command: More fun FISTs and some more touring around the U.S., as well as my continued residency on NTS. Coming to your ears soon!
Pauli Cakes, playing July 28
CULTURED: Walk us through how you got to where you are today
Pauli Cakes: It's a long walk, more like a marathon. I’ll write a memoir one day with all of the juicy details. I grew up in the Bronx, and music and nightlife has always been a huge part of my life. I feel like people who grow up in urban areas of New York City have a predisposition to being good DJs and tastemakers. I’ve been putting music together since I was a child, burning music compilations on CDs at the age of 8, but I got into DJing for crowds when I was around 18. I grew up around a lot of fearless and expressive individuals who’ve also paved the way for me.
CULTURED: What’s on your song rotation this summer? Why?
Cakes: One of my best friends and sisters, Fernielle Mary Mora, passed away in the beginning of July. As I’m mourning, I’ve been listening to songs that remind me of her to assist with the grieving process and to hold her spirit in light. She loved dance music, dembow, reggaeton, and sad girl witchy ballads like Stevie Nicks and Lana Del Rey. She specifically loved Nicki Minaj, Materialista, Ivy Queen, Nina Sky, Cardi B, and other baddie dance artists. When I first started DJing, she supported me a lot and she’d always be front and center dancing at my sets even when there would be small crowds. In honor of her name my sets are gonna give Uptown ass-shaking nostalgia.
CULTURED: What do you want to see more or less of in the New York nightlife ecosystem?
Cakes: I want to see more dancing, more sexy crowds, more vocal samples, more harm reduction, more native New Yorkers feeling welcome, more community care and support, more expression, more originality, more underground parties, more forest raves, more genre bending, more culture, more free water and food at the club, more variety, more clubs offering resources for community, more genre bending, more vocal samples, more fundragers, more love.
Less TikTok, less brand identity DJs and influencer culture, less cliques at the club, less overdoses, less techno/nightlife gentrification, less gatekeeping, less uniformity, less one genre DJs and parties, less exclusivity clauses, less corny, homogenized nightclubs, less tryna “make NYC Berlin,” less fighting, less fake safe spaces, less classism.
CULTURED: What song or album represents where you’re at in your life right now?
Cakes: “La Vida Es Un Carnaval” by Celia Cruz and "Sky" by Aaron Carl.
CULTURED: What can we expect from you in the coming months?
Cakes: I was recently appointed program coordinator of this amazing organization called PowrPlnt. I’ll be programming two to three free creative workshops a month both in Brooklyn and online. I’ve also been working on a vocal project called “Opium Angel” that I’ve been cooking up with my partner for the last three years, so stay tuned for that release.
Bergsonist, playing August 4
CULTURED: Walk us through how you got to where you are today.
Bergsonist: I officially started this project in 2015 after running my music blog, Bizaarbazaar, a few years prior. Since then, I’ve released EPs, remixes, albums… It’s surreal that music is my job. I still have to work on my practice, expand my knowledge, and build new work with inspiring people. I’m never satisfied with what I achieve.
CULTURED: What’s on your song rotation this summer?
Bergsonist: “Sans Logique” by Mylène Farmer. I’ve been diving into her music lately. Her music videos are so beautiful; some are short-films directed by renowned directors like [Luc] Besson.
CULTURED: What other producers, musicians, or DJs have inspired your work?
Bergsonist: It's an endless abyss of inspiration. At the moment, I’ve been really into the work of Éliane Radigue, Gerald Donald, G. Zifcak, Ryūichi Sakamoto, Mylène Farmer, and Depeche Mode. Regarding DJs, I’ve been really into Detroit In Effect / DJ Maaco’s mixes lately.
CULTURED: Where do you listen to music or dance in New York?
Bergsonist: For dancing, the top clubs for me are Bossa, Mood Ring, and Nowadays. Oh there’s also The Loft! For experimental music, I would recommend ISSUE Project Room, Roulette, Four One One, and Nina.
CULTURED: What song or album represents where you’re at in your life right now?
Bergsonist: async by Ryūichi Sakamoto. It elevates my soul and brings a sense of trust toward time and our existence.
CULTURED: What can we expect from you in the coming months?
Bergsonist: I’m planning to launch my label again, Bizaarbazaar, with a CD album release by G. Zifcak, but also I'd like to focus on my PUTF Podcast (I’m thinking about adding a video component to the episodes).
Jasmine Infiniti, playing August 18
CULTURED: Walk us through how you got to where you are today.
Jasmine Infiniti: As a DJ, I like to say it all started in the Bay Area, throwing parties with my friends. Those were my first moments DJing with a controller or CDJs. I've always been a music collector, from recording cassette tapes of songs off the radio to burning CDs with MP3s from Napster or Limewire. I suppose I've been messing around with DAWs for quite some time, at least since my first MacBook with Garageband. It has always been sort of experimental for me, just tweaking things and fumbling through effects, sounds, and loops. Even on Ableton, I pretty much do the same. I let my emotions guide me and the work starts to reveal itself. The track almost becomes a discovery rather than a creation.
CULTURED: What’s on your song rotation this summer?
Infiniti: I'm a weirdo and a geek, and I'm trans and a queer kid from the Bronx. So I'm pretty eclectic in general. Besides just straight techno, which is always in my rotation, I have a few things that have been inspiring me: ‘90s electronic stuff from Livin' Joy, Jocelyn Enriquez, Angelina’s “Release Me.” I’m really into that freestyle adjacent stuff, but with acid and breakbeats.
CULTURED: Where do you listen to music or dance in New York?
Infiniti: It's summer in New York, and music and dancing are everywhere, but my staples are my staples. I've stumbled onto some cool parties, like one on this decked-out school bus fitted with CDJs by “Burners.” My go-tos are Bossa Nova Civic Club, Mood Ring, and I've actually been pleasantly surprised by some of the DJs at Happyfun Hideaway lately. In terms of sound, Nowadays is a fave. I’ve also found a few other cool places in Williamsburg and Greenpoint that have popped up on my radar. New York is back.
CULTURED: What song or album represents where you’re at in your life right now?
Infiniti: I've been listening to a lot of Jewel. LOL. I've been thinking about her story and how it comes across in her music, particularly her struggles with homelessness and survival. It resonates.
CULTURED: What can we expect from you in the coming months?
Infiniti: I've been working on a new album. It's very representative of my life right now. I'm listening to it and tweaking it daily in between digging for tracks and dealing with landlord drama. This album is going to be about intimacy, or the lack thereof.
Crystallmess, playing August 25
CULTURED: What’s on your song rotation this summer?
Crystallmess: This summer I definitely have HiTech’s DÉTWAT project on rotation. It's one of the most exciting projects I've heard in a while because it ushers ghettotech in a new era. These past few years I've seen a lot of co-opting of ghettotech from people that neither understand the ethos or live the lifestyle, so I'm happy to see Detroiters revisiting their own sound. Shout out to Omar-S for supporting the younger generation, that's what sets GOATs from the rest.
CULTURED: What other producers, musicians, DJs have inspired your work?
Crystallmess: Laurie Anderson, La Chat and Gangsta Boo, Kim Gordon, Kemistry & Storm, Douk Saga, Bernard Szajner, James Stinson, GH2TT0G0TH1K parties—most importantly Total Freedom and his way of flirting with horror. His DJiing always made me think about Dario Argento movies, Ashanti vocals, and White Label Classics in a blender and marinated.
CULTURED: Where do you listen to music or dance in Paris?
Crystallmess: There are a lot of good parties in Paris but clubs… not so much besides La Machine du Moulin Rouge. It's not so much about venues than it is about collectives, parties and DJs making the city poppin. Great parties like 1-800-BOOTY, P3, anything Paris-based Broodoo Ramses throws is fire, Headbutt and Filles de Blédards parties are also fun. I love going to Bourse de Commerce for the most on-point live music programming in the city.
CULTURED: What are your predictions for how nightlife will change in the next five years?
Crystallmess: I think it's going to get increasingly difficult to be a technical DJ without wanting to indulge into either the social capital circus or business techno tactics. On the other hand, I also can envision some positive developments. I do think that the democratization of sound systems will happen more as the technique to build them is getting more and more accessible. I expect to see a lot of club-focused collectives getting into sound engineering in that way.
CULTURED: What song or album represents where you’re at in your life right now?
Crystallmess: “Ghost Rider” by Suicide. I'm very admirative of how stripped down, powerful, and naturally contemporary this song is, and Suicide in general. I was born and still live in Paris. We are currently witnessing the extreme normalization of fascism on mainstream channels in France, which culminated in the death of a 17-year-old boy in the suburbs of Paris. He was shot dead by the police on camera, which set—rightfully so—unrest and riots. Contrary to the U.S. in 2020, there was no online collective outrage, long social media posts, or infographics from brands and institutions. No possibilities to raise funds for the family or legal funds for the rioters, no possibilities to demonstrate peacefully and legally. White supremacy guilt does NOT exist in France.
We live in a society of spectacle and an economy of attention. A graphic video of a cop shooting a teenager is always going to be the ultimate symbol of state violence but too often, in our grief, we limit our description of state violence to police brutality when the said state violence manifests itself in so many (in)visible ways. When I listen to “Ghost Rider,” I see myself on a motorcycle trying to dodge the traps that the state has laid down for me. I see myself in secrecy, a ghost, free at last, and the youth triumphing, annihilating fascism with panache.
