Chicks On Speed live at Sonar 2000, Barcelona, Spain, 16 June 2000. Photo by Patricia Lewandowska.

At Sell-Out installation.

This installation is a visual representation of all the ways the group could choose to 'sell themselves'. The list begins with merchandising, record contracts, stickers, paper costumes, manifestos, boxes of CDs, graphic design, to mention but a few. Furthermore, the installation will be transformed at a certain time to allow a performance of "Eating".

Another live image.

Interview in Spanish

The press mouths off:

"By night Sonar moved out to the beachside Mar Bella Pavilion. The venues and programme were not so strong as the daytime offerings. [...] The cavernous space known as 'The Gates of Hell' had an architectural personality that was only satisfied when dancers were being punished with pounding beats. Acts like Chicks On Speed especially suffered. In fact, they were completely inadequate, neither knowing what to do with so much space, nor being impressive enough live to warrant the billing in the first place."

- Ben Borthwick, Sonar 2000 review @ The Wire #198, August 2000.

"In terms of sheer spectacle [Super_Collider]'s white-suited soul visionaries are matched only by Chicks On Speed the next night. Sonar's most hyped take advantage of of their top billing in front of 6,000 bemused Catalans by decorating the stage with video screens, life-size cut-outs and a portable house and even stop midway through to bring us an advertisement for a fake product called "Datablod". Is it art? Probably. Entertainment? Certainly. Completely out of control? Definitely."

- Piers Martin, Sonar 2000 review @ NME

"Sat in an ancient cloister, Alex, of lass group, Chicks On Speed, is buzzing, sulphate-like - although she's only been sipping gaspacho - remembering her and her girls' performance the night previous. 'It was a fuckin' rave,' she beams. Having expected a modest and subdued art crowd, to end up facing 5,000 whooped-up grinners evidently rocked her universe, and resulted in the Chicks, 'missing one costume change.' Shocking."

- Stuart Turnbull, Sleaze Nation Vol. 3 Issue 07, August 2000.

"Überraschungen waren hingegen abseits des Etablierten zu finden. Wie etwa im gefeierten Auftritt der Chicks On Speed, die mit ihrem anarchischem Disco-Pop in Spanien Kultstatus genießen. Am Freitag erklommen die drei in Papier gehüllten Berlinerinnen eine zum Kunstwerk verwandelte Bühne. Mit ihrem fröhlichen Dilettantismus - Bumm-Bumm-Beats aus der Konserve, wildes Rumgehopse und ein schriller, zumeist schief sitzender Gesang - begeisterten sie tausende von Fans."

- Katrin Meinke, Spiegel Online, 19 June 2000.

More:

Some Sonar 2K photographs, including CoS and many more, courtesy of Jon Whitney

Sonar 2K @ Musiques-Electroniques | Enoff | Video

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