imai
Group Inou producer flies solo
One half of funky electronic-rap duo Group Inou, producer imai burned through a short but hot 20-minute set in a small booth near Cafe de Paris on the far reaches of the festival grounds at 4:00am Saturday morning. After Group Inou entered a (permanent?) hiatus this year, imai proceeded solo and still retains the feel and flavor of the duo’s trademark backing sound, juggling video-game sounding bleeps and blips while jerkily flailing around in a ball of energy.
Supporting a new solo album, imai crammed eight to ten bouncy original tracks into his set as a small crowd jumped and flailed around from start to finish, doing their best to mimic his awkward yet charming dance movements. Given the producer’s reputation, skill on the sampler, nonstop energy and fun factor, I must not have been the only one wondering why he was handed such an unpopular time slot and off-the-beaten-path spot to perform. Still, imai delivered on all levels and provided a small handful of die-hard festival goers who were still awake in the wee morning hours a chance to spread out and dance as if no one was watching.
