Through a twist of fate, Seattle techno fans owe a huge debt to Top
40 hiphop. For much of the last decade, local techno notable Kris
Moon has made ends meet DJing for the masses at Fremont’s Ballroom,
using the free time from that job to indulge his electronic leanings.
Now, after months of planning, Moon’s leaving not only the Ballroom but
Seattle, heading for a quiet Montana cabin that’s spitting distance
from the middle of nowhere.
Moon is best known as a DJ/performer, flying the techno flag since back in the day at nights like the now-defunct ROBO.trash and
turning heads with his dubby live sets, but he’s been busy behind the
scenes as well. Along with a circle of collaborators, Moon is a founder
of the Laptop Battle; a creator of Division, the
ever-growing regional techno-centric mailing list; and is curator of
SLUG (the Seattle Live Users Group, a series of workshops for
sharing tips for Ableton Live, the de facto standard software program
for live electronic-music performance). He’s also served as Decibel
Festival‘s educational director for the last three years.
So why would Kris Moon leave Seattle? Unknown to most, Moon has been
making trips to the cabin regularly, minus this impending trip’s
permanence (he plans to stay for at least a year). These getaways
provide a distraction-free environment for Moon to work on his various
ideas with the added bonus of the natural setting.
“It’s like a hiatus,” Moon says of the impending move. “It’s
where I get my spiritual recharge. I go out there every year, and
I’ve always wanted to do all four seasons. The last time I was up there
for an extended period was in 2002, and after I came back I came up
with the Laptop Battle. The material I came up with then still shows up
in my live sets.”
His plan for the next year involves a strict focus on his own music.
He’s working with two newly launched labels, Peloton Musique and
Think 2wice Records, both for dubby techno productions and his
newer hipster-friendly club remixes. “I’m relying on those guys for my
a cappellas, since I’ll be completely out of the loop,” he jokes
Moon’s absence doesn’t mean the end of his various projects. He’s
already planning a trip back to Seattle for the regional Laptop Battle
(this year’s national finals in Atlanta will be the first held outside
Seattle), and he’s handing the reins of SLUG over to one of its regular
attendees (“at this point I’ve shared all my tips and tricks”).
Moon is quick to allay concerns about his move and what it means.
“People have been worried, but there’s electricity, there’s running
water [in the cabin],” he says. “I’m in a pretty unique
position—no kids, no huge responsibilities. It’s been a lifelong
dream to spend an extended amount of time there, so now that I’ve got
the opportunity, I just have to do it. My plan is to come back to
Seattle, but who knows how things will go after a year at the cabin.”
Kris Moon plays his official going-away party at Krakt on
Saturday, March 8, 10 pm–2 am, $10, 21+, with NYC’s Derek
Plaslaiko. He’ll also be DJing at Serious Business on March 22 at
Lo_Fi.