Caroline Polachek, Iggy Pop, Tokischa Close Out III Points 2023

After Friday's crowds and high humidity, Saturday at III Points felt like the complete opposite. The crowd size felt more manageable, while a cool breeze could be felt throughout the grounds. It was much appreciated, especially by those who had been partying since Thursday when the festival's satellite parties kicked off.

The Mind Melt stage saw early performances by UK duo Jockstrap, avant-pop chanteuse Caroline Polachek, and punk legend Iggy Pop. Unfortunately, save for Polachek, festival-goers seemed more interested in whatever was happening at the RC Cola stage. The crowd eventually returned for Grimes' Elf Tech Art Rave, but for anyone who has had the opportunity to see her perform live when she seemed more devoted to her synth-pop work, you'd know that her turn as an EDM DJ is a poor substitute and not at all indicative of Grimes' actual talent. Here's hoping she abandons the decks and gets back to performing soon.

Elsewhere, acts like MJ Nebreda and Tokischa made a strong case for III Points devoting more energy to programming Latin artists who actually make Latin-inspired music. Even Rosalía's turn as headliner last year proved that Miami is ready for a bilingual festival, and we're here for it.

Here are some of the highlights from the second and final day of III Points 2023. (Check out New Times' coverage of day one of III Points 2023 here.)

MJ Nebreda

Coming off the hype of her latest work, Arepa Mixtape, Miami's MJ Nebreda was in a pretty damn good mood while on stage. "Hola. Ready to dance? Ready to have fun? Huh-huh. Yes, bitch, yes!" What came next at the Sector 3 stage was Nebreda blessing the crowd with the sweet drip of reggaeton beats and lyrics and the steel wool of electronic music. Arepa Mixtape combines Nebreda's DJing credos with collaborative efforts from Miami's Nick León and INVT to bring in the ire of speedy percussions to get hips shaking all night long. Once you get past the irresistible hip-shaking and dig through the lyrics, there is a clear spotlight on the double standard between men singing about their sex lives while women get slighted by even mentioning S-E-X. "It's a natural inclination of mine," Nebreda explains to New Times after her set. "I was interested in exploring my sensuality and a feminine perspective, as opposed to a more male eye. Women like to feel hot, feel seen, and feel wanted." On the stage, Nebreda was accompanied by a DJ and two backup dancers as she sang and swayed, using each transition to be candid about what she was about and what we should be doing. "Put your money where your mouth is and support female producers," she proclaimed. The roughly 30-minute set brought bass more potent than some of the strictly electronic stages and ushered the ubiquitous dembow riddim (AKA "boom-ch-boom-chick"). A female reggaeton/electronic artist would've been dubbed a novelty or passed over altogether in past years. Nebreda and others are changing the game as we speak by bringing the same primal energy through a much-needed new lens. Grant Albert

Jockstrap

This electropop duo certainly knows how to make a lot of noise on stage. Georgia Ellery and Taylor Skye's confident and thunderous sound was evident when they kicked off their set with "Debra." Unfortunately, few people were there to witness it. (It would be a running theme at the Mind Melt stage throughout the evening.) Their just-after-sunset set was still appreciated by the few hundred gathered. By the time they closed out with the frenzy of "50/50," it was clear festival-goers had missed out on one of the weekend's most enjoyable sets. Jose D. Duran

Caroline Polachek

Caroline Polachek still hasn't achieved the kind of notoriety that her talent deserves. She is one of those experimental pop girlies who enjoys a devoted fanbase of alternative-minded women and gays. But on Saturday night at III Points, you might have believed Polachek was the biggest pop star in the world. First enjoying success as part of the band Chairlift — plucked out of obscurity thanks to an iPod commercial — she's more prolific than ever at 38 when most female pop singers are told they are too old for the industry. (Men, of course, don't face the same pressure to retire.) Polachek started her set with "Welcome to My Island," the opener from her critically acclaim album Desire, I Want to Turn Into You. Afterward, she ran through plenty of fan favorites from her current album and 2019's Pang. From Pitchfork's "Best Song of the Year" for 2021, "Bunny Is a Rider," to the I-recognize-that-song-from-TikTok "So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings," Polachek commanded the stage, slinking across and synchronizing her hand movements to the beat. On songs like "Sunset" and "Ocean of Tears," she flexed her vocal prowess, making you wonder if anyone can come close to her ability to hit notes and do sudden key changes. This is all to say, if you are not paying attention to Polachek, what are you doing? Jose D. Duran

Iggy Pop

Before Polachek ran off stage for her set, she told the crowd, "Up next is — and I can't believe I'm saying this — Iggy Pop!" She definitely understood the magnitude of Pop's legacy as a musician. Unfortunately, the crowd at III Points did not, giving the punk legend the ultimate form of disrespect by not showing up to the stage. I'm terrible at crowd estimations, but it felt like more people were in the crowd from Polachek's set than Pop's. But the 76-year-old paid no mind; he jerked and flayed across the stage, putting to shame anyone younger who was complaining their body hurting after two days of partying. Though he probably knows people were there to hear classics from his catalogue, both solo and as part of the Stooges, he wasn't afraid to throw in new material, like "Modern Day Rip Off" from his latest album, Every Loser. But he did deliver classics like "The Passenger" and "Lust for Life." Though the fans in attendance showed him love by thrashing about in front of the stage, I can't shake the feeling that III Points might take this as a sign to abandon live music. (Grimes' mediocre EDM set right after was well attended.) That would be a culturally disastrous move for the city. We already have one dance-music festival — the city doesn't need two. Here's hoping I'm wrong. Jose D. Duran

Daphni

After Friday's set as Caribou, Canadian producer Dan Snaith acted as much as a DJ as he did a tour guide during his set at S3quenc3. One minute, we were off the Ibiza shores listening to the sleekest, sexiest basslines known to man. Another minute, Snaith brought us to the UK, where those early bass days felt within reach. Hell, for good measure, we made pitstops in Detroit, Chicago, and Berlin — all within an hour's time. The crowd, sweat-filled, starry-eyed, and locked in the groove, took the utmost care to keep in synch with Snaith's breakneck transitions that sprawled all areas of the spectrum. A prime example was Snaith spinning hard-hitting techno, cutting it with a lo-fi house melody, and then picking up the pace just when you developed a false sense of security. It seemed almost hilarious to think Snaith was playing the serene synth-pop of Caribou last night. Thirty-plus years in the making, Snaith's hands have never stayed still. Grant Albert

Tokischa

Dembow is the sound of the moment. Unfortunately, it's being appropriated at such a warped speed by non-Black artists that in a few years, it will be surprising if anyone remembers that the riddim originated in Jamaica and the genre was pioneered by Afro-Dominican artists. Luckily, Afro-Dominican rapper Tokischa might be the genre's most visible act right now. She kicked off her raunchy-as-fuck set with a video, crowning herself as Popola Presidente (Pussy President), after which she directly launched into her Treintisiete 3730 collaboration, "Sistema de Patio." The Sector 3 stage was quickly transformed into the biggest perreo the festival has ever seen. In fact, Tokischa pulled in one of the largest crowds that the stage had seen all weekend, with the audience spilling onto the adjacent street because of the lack of space. This is perhaps a sign that III Points should seriously consider bulking up on Spanish-language artists. If there is any city that could support a bilingual festival, it's Miami, and it's dumbfounding that no one has organized one yet. And though Tokischa knows English very well, she never bothered to address the crowd in anything but her native Spanish — and everyone ate it up. She ran through her catalogue of music, including both her Rosalía collaborations "Linda" and "La Combi Versace," her controversial track "Perra" with J Balvin, and the Marshmello-produced "Estilazo." Toward the end of her set, she brought her fellow countrywoman Natti Natasha onstage to duet the remix of Natasha's "No Pare." In the end, Tokischa's set was the most politically charged, sexually liberating, and queerest of the entire weekend. ¡Viva la Popola Presidente! Jose D. Duran

Joy Orbinson

Earlier this year, Joy Orbison (AKA Peter O'Grady) unlocked his vault and released some heavily requested tracks from over a decade. Each track decreases the heart rate and could be played during a nice night. But the DJ can separate himself from the producer because O'Grady was not at III Points to give the audience his chill productions. Oh no, Orbinson read the room to provide proper rave music from speedy breaks and acid to left-field, and yes, all akin to that sacred Berlin club that is the comparison for every set over 128 bpm. O'Grady did flex his ability to incorporate vocals as he introduced some UK hip-hop that would have been laughable to the techno-driven audience had anyone else dared to try. Toward the end, and for good measure, a blazing heap of beeps and whomps rang out like a collection of Nintendo 64s set ablaze while drill 'n' bass percussion acted like lighter fluid. It was like O'Grady telling us that he still has plenty of tricks up his sleeves. Grant Albert

Daniel Avery B2B Danny Daze

What can two Dans do that one Dan can't? Well, when you put Daniel Avery and Danny Daze together behind the decks, you can expect sinister and relentless pounding techno via Avery, while Daze holds down the fort with electro-driven percussion and overall weirdness. The two needed one another to bring in a late-night, speed-induced set. Pounding bass, quick pauses, a crowd's cheer, and then back to business — warped speed techno. Avery worked on those basslines while Daze twiddled with the hi's like he was polishing up a piece of art. Synths growled like sleeping monsters while the kicks galloped like sprawling horses; combined, it gave the audience little time to catch a breath. Avery and Daze kept the crowd cemented to their respective patch of grass while all that noise evaporated into a cloudy sky. It's a tough choice, so let's not pick — each Dan was the man. Grant Albert