Buenos Aires officials have prohibited Kraftwerk from performing at Time Warp Argentina this month as a result of a ban on large concerts where “synthesizers or samplers are the primary instrument.” The German electronic music pioneers were slated to bring their audiovisual 3D show to Luna Park Stadium on November 23rd.
The ban on big festivals came after the deaths of five people at Time Warp Argentina in April. A representative of the city government told Argentine newspaper Clarín, “After Time Warp, Judge Lisandro Fastman’s court ruling prohibited all electronic music festivals. Because of that, and despite the fact that they presented their paperwork with the required 30 days notice, we cannot authorize the permit.” They went on to say that, while it may not be a dance music festival in the traditional sense, the ruling still applies because the band “uses synthesizers or samplers as their primary instrument.”
Promoters Move Concerts have lodged an appeal to the city in defense of the concert’s different format, saying “They [Kraftwerk] use synthesizers, but what we’re proposing is a different format. It’s a concert that’s open to the public and runs between an hour-and-a-half and two hours. There will also be no alcoholic drinks served.”
Clarín has also reported 70 percent of the tickets have already been sold.