Cashmere Cat & Ketel One Vodka: A Classy Night
What comes to mind when you think “premium vodka”? Unless you consider yourself a vodka connoisseur (and not just because you’ve drunk-cuddled one bottle or 10 at your local house party), you’re probably not capturing the scope of what that really means. The same likely goes for any event celebrating the aforementioned.
This weekend at Miami’s Art Basel 2014 in Wynwood, Ketel One Vodka threw a very classy bash, complete with great food, superb musical guests and of course, PLENTY of vodka. Held at SoHo Studios, the venue featured an indoor and outdoor area, with the entrance to the indoor marked with a positively huge light installation of the signature De Nolet windmill (pictured above). When I arrived the lights were down low and the sounds of Midnight Magic let us know exactly what kind of night it was going to be: A classy one.
Lining the far wall was a mural detailing Ketel One’s founders and history, and a neat little iPad quiz that would find you your perfect drink based on your personality. At the center of the room were a circle of bartenders serving free concoctions mixed and named for the nights musical acts. As the events hall filled throughout the night, it would be practically a half an hour wait just to get a drink, but hey, free drinks. servers walked around with plates of excellently prepared shrimp (possibly the best shrimp I’ve ever tasted) and other finger foods. With the lights low, the bass pumping through the floor and busy sounds of drinks being prepared, it really gave it a upscale party kind of vibe, a stark contrast from the loud colors, music and ambiance of the rest of art Basel taking place just outside. Not only was the music a real compliment to the lighting, but scattered throughout the venue were brilliant three-dimensional projection art pieces, such as the one in the video below.
After Midnight Magic finished their set, a couple DJs went on rotation (I particularly enjoyed Gabby Mejia’s set) then Cashmere Cat took the stage. While waiting for a drink earlier, I’d heard an out-of-towner remark to his friend that he was really looking forward to seeing him perform. Having a vague familiarity with the Norwegian producers music, I expected a set of his usual spirited, yet soft electronic music and was excited to hear that. What we got instead was a surprising mix of tracks from his “recent” EPs with a seemingly Miami-inspired sound to them. Not terrible by any stretch of the definition, I was struck with an immediate sense of “well, this is new and different” and the crowd seemed to agree. I watched a couple honest efforts to dance to the tempo but many unable to properly get into a groove, as Cashmere Cat rapidly switched from sample to sample, never keeping one rhythm for long. Compared to what we expected, this was a little jarring, but still interesting to listen to. Also to be taken into account was the relatively small size of the venue and the limit they seemed to insist upon for the volume of the set. I remember thinking to myself it would be just a bit more enjoyable if they would turn it up a bit. Still, it came to party and party it did. Next time Cashmere Cat is in town (and Ketel One Vodka for that matter), I’ll have a hard time keeping away.