Space Insomnia took place at Arcan in Ho Chi Minh City, with the original location retained for archive accuracy even though the venue has since closed. Space Insomnia followed the deliberately chaotic spirit of Mad Circus but replaced circus madness with a fluorescent trip through planets, stars and underground electronic music.
The concept invited the crowd to imagine Arcan as something removed from an ordinary nightclub for the night. Guests were encouraged to bring something shiny, glowing, fluorescent or suspiciously alien and become part of a venue transformed around a glow-in-the-dark space theme.
Space Insomnia was designed as another participatory event rather than a conventional night where the crowd simply watched the DJs. Clothing, light, colour and behaviour all became part of the visual identity, with the organisers encouraging dancers to embrace the cosmic theme and get lost somewhere between the dancefloor and the moon.
The music crossed House, Tech House, Bass Music and Techno, alongside the more unusual directions brought by individual members of the line-up. Yariuss, Foxy Tail, Valy Mo, Max Cleo and Goss supplied different approaches to underground electronic music, giving the night considerably more variety than a single-style club event.
Yaroslav Kuchin, also known as Yariuss, had returned to club performance after a twelve-year break and brought his own interpretation of House and Techno to Arcan. His earlier podcast for the venue had already established a suitably spacious musical direction, while Yariuss on SoundCloud provided listeners with another route into his recorded DJ work.
His appearance at Space Insomnia fitted naturally with an event built around atmosphere as much as straightforward dancefloor impact. Yariuss added a deeper electronic perspective to a programme that would later move through bass-heavy House, Techno and more eclectic selections.
DJ Foxy Tail, also known as Katya Iskra, had recently arrived from Cambodia and was already familiar to Arcan audiences through the earlier Mad Circus event. Her background as a dancer gave her an instinctive understanding of movement, and her sets were known for shifting unexpectedly between different areas of electronic music.
Before becoming a DJ, Katya had worked as a dancer for around fifteen years, with professional experience that included Japan, Italy and China. After leaving dance she remained drawn to music and performance, eventually moving towards DJing through after-parties in Chengdu before developing her skills with vinyl and CDJs.
By the period surrounding Space Insomnia, Foxy Tail had performed in Russia, Indonesia, India, Cambodia and Vietnam. Her preferred direction centred on Tech House while incorporating Tribal House, African rhythms and ethnic influences, giving her sets a distinctive percussive character.
She had also been connected with events and venues including Green Family Festival in Sochi, Spread the Light in Goa, Otres Corner Bar in Sihanoukville, Police Beach Open Air on Koh Rong and Arcan in Saigon. More of her selections can be heard through DJ Foxy Tail on Mixcloud, while her Facebook page documents another part of her activity.
French DJ and producer Valy Mo brought a different level of international production experience to the Space Insomnia line-up. His work crossed House and Bass Music, placing rhythm and energetic club production at the centre of his sets while drawing inspiration from artists including Chris Lake and Tchami.
Early recognition included support connected with Crystal Castles and Skrillex before his first EP appeared through Nest HQ, the platform associated with OWSLA. Valy Mo subsequently released music through outlets including OWSLA, UKF and Confession, establishing a catalogue that reached audiences considerably beyond his home scene.
His work also attracted support from radio, media and international DJs while his touring took him through France, wider Europe and Japan. The period surrounding Space Insomnia found him travelling in Asia and bringing his production-led club music into Arcan’s considerably more intimate underground setting.
At the time, Valy Mo had also released material through Confession, connecting his work with the label established by Tchami. His music can still be explored through Valy Mo on SoundCloud, Spotify, his Facebook page and Instagram.
Max Cleo provided a strong connection with Vietnam’s own underground electronic music community and had made underground dance music the primary direction of her DJ work. Her interpretation of the term centred on music that was fresh, new and energetic rather than simply defined by commercial visibility.
Her breakthrough period began with downtempo sessions in Saigon and Mui Ne before expanding into appearances alongside visiting international DJs. She went on to open for artists including Wally Lopez, Celeste Siam, Sebastien Gamboa, Andy Baxter and Timmy Vegas while developing a deeper presence within the local club circuit.
Max also became involved with Kenzo Trinh’s Tech to Ibiza events and established Melodica as her own signature club concept in Saigon. The night was developed around deeper underground electronic music and appeared at venues including Vasco’s and Broma before Max extended her activity into other locations.
Her performances later included The Observatory and the official Wally Lopez after-party at Last Call Club. She also marked two years behind the decks with an eight-hour solo set at Last Call, demonstrating the commitment she had developed since first taking up DJing.
Max subsequently took the Melodica concept further afield and performed across Vietnam, Thailand, Japan and other locations. Her archived sets remain available through Max Cleo on Mixcloud and SoundCloud, preserving part of the musical output connected with that period of her career.
Goss brought perhaps the broadest stylistic range of the night, with training through the HADRA Festival Association’s TRANCEMISSION programme and experience playing Psytrance, Hardtek, Raggatek, Acidcore, Tech House and Techno. His selections were built around unusual combinations and high-powered electronic music rather than a narrowly defined genre.
After returning to Saigon, where he had previously studied, Goss began developing what would become Arcan alongside his brother Flo. At the same time, his activity expanded across DJing, party organisation and the development of events aimed at the city’s alternative electronic music community.
Following touring activity in Vietnam and Cambodia, Goss worked as a resident DJ and organiser for Spirit Of Nature at MÁY CÀY. He also organised or performed at events across Ho Chi Minh City venues including Piu Piu, Last Call, Lighthouse and Broma, placing him within several strands of the city’s underground nightlife.
At Space Insomnia, his harder and more unpredictable selections provided another contrast to the House-focused areas of the line-up. Archived material connected with him and the venue can be explored through the Arcan Facebook page and Goss on Mixcloud.
Entry on the door was 100,000 VND, with a limited number of advance tickets announced separately ahead of the event. The deliberately accessible format helped make Space Insomnia as much about participation and atmosphere as the individual names appearing on the bill.
The night also illustrates the variety that existed within Ho Chi Minh City’s underground electronic music community during this period. Local residents, recently arrived regional artists and touring international producers could appear together on one bill, moving between House, Techno, Bass Music and more experimental club styles without forcing the event into a single musical category.
Arcan later became part of Ho Chi Minh City’s history of closed underground venues, making preserved event listings valuable records of the people, promoters and music active there. Scientific Sound Asia maintains that history alongside its current events, radio station, DJ agency and music news activity across Asia.
Space Insomnia captured a period when Arcan’s approach extended beyond simply putting DJs behind decks and opening the doors to a crowd. With Yariuss, Foxy Tail, Valy Mo, Max Cleo and Goss supplying the music, the event turned the club into a fluorescent meeting point for dancers, underground electronic music and the deliberately strange side of Saigon nightlife.
Date: Friday 20 July 2018, 12:00 AM