DOCTOR PRATS
Getting the energy going early
The Thursday night slots at the Red Marquee offer a great opportunity for bands to leave a strong impression and generate fest-wide buzz, often leading to packed crowds for the rest of their gigs at Fuji Rock. This year, Spain’s Doctor Prats took advantage of primetime slotting — can’t ask for much of a better time than right after the annual crowd photo — and delivered a rollicking performance that positioned them to be one of the weekend’s big winners. The biggie-sized group brought plenty of energy to the tent, merging electric guitar chugs with a brass section, a chorus and muscle-growing drumming. On top of this musical hodgepodge were vocals emphasizing all-together-now singing — a lot of “ohs” and a lot of “ahs” — occasionally tagged out for a rapper to step in a hype the audience up more.
And that’s the key to Thursday night, when folks in Naeba are most primed to party. Doctor Prats kept the energy going at a good pace, shifting between singing, rapping and imitating the drop found in contemporary EDM songs — except translated through more traditional instruments rather than electronics. It was a clever tactical update for a good-times-sparking band, and it lead to a crowd hopping around and getting their hands in the air. And most intriguing of all, it was an abbreviated preview set, so who knows what Doctor Prats will get up to next.
