Articles by Colby Wuillermin
September 8th – Fashion For Passion hosted Black Diamond Adolescent at Good Units at Hudson. The proceeds for the event went to Fashion for Passion, which is a non profit cause that provides funds to assist kids pursue their creative talents in music and the arts.
Walking into the party, there was a vibrant aura of creative genius, young attitude, and fresh perspective. Girls donned glitter and sequins, red lipstick, and menswear, guys were sporting fedoras, cool sneakers, and fantastic t-shirts—everyone at Good Units looked fiercely fashionable and inspiringly individual.
The surrounding walls of the venue were beautified by the mesmerizing photography of Fashion For Passion founder, Nicholas Routzen. The photos were presented on large starch white canvasses, incorporating shades of gray and black. These carefully crafted works of art highlighted the distinct emotion of the models who conveyed a point-of-view both in their clothing, and in their expressions.
In addition to the exhibition there was a silent auction of unique fashion accessories and apparel from designers G-Star, Robert Geller, OAK, Halston, Rebecca Minkoff, Peter Soronen, Nili Lotan, Pamela Love, Prince Peter, Spratter’s & Jayne, Camilla Staerk, Logan Neitzel, Bijules, and Jarlath Mellett. The Misshapes rocked the house down, and guests got their drink and dance on—all in the name of a very, very, good cause.
Electro fans from around the world gathered on Randall's Island Park this past weekend to get their dance on at New York City's own Electric Zoo. Despite the "dustboogers", the lineup was unbelievable, the weather was perfect, and the crowd came ready to move their feet.
THUMBS DOWN
The Chemical Brothers
Dubbleyou.Tee.Eff! What happened to you guys? Although this set was highly anticipated by Electric Zoo goers, it was quite the disappointment. The performance lacked emotion and “umph”. It was kind of, well, boring. But hey, at least the visuals were cool!
Dustboogers
Dancing leads to dust on Randall’s Park Island – a lot of it. Dust leads to dustboogers. Gross.
Less Is Not More
The crowd was bigger, the lineup was better, but the venue needs to step it up. There needs to be more signage regarding parking and where to walk, more water stands, more porta-pottys, more everything! It’s also time to start “enhancing” the grounds a bit, please refer to Ultrafest or Rothbury for ideas.
One Place At A Time
Because choosing between artists is so difficult sometimes, we wanted to see them all!
THUMBS UP
Diplo
When Diplo got on the 1's and 2's at E.Zoo, he didn't forget his A-game. The Red Bull Tent was bursting with energy both from the DJ and the crowd, who fed off of one another for the entire set. Diplo's unconventional integration of hip-hop favorites like "Beamer, Benz, & Bentley" with hard-hitting beats kept the crowd on their toes, literally - consistently amped and begging for more.
Kaskade
Kaskade’s sound is unfailingly emotional and heartfelt. His set this year at E.Zoo was no different. The music clearly connected the mass as they sang “Move for Me” and “Angel on My Shoulder” in perfect unison. Kaskade is a DJ who performs music that you not only hear, but feel, time and time again.
Above & Beyond
A&B’s set was packed with high-energy tunes like “On a Good Day”, "Road to Nowhere", and "Love Comes Again". They kept up crowd interaction by writing messages out on their laptop and holding it up for all to read – a gesture that was both unique and appreciated. At one point they wrote “Can you sing?” which was happily, and loudly, obliged. Towards the end of their set, they even hugged one another, and who doesn’t love that?
Fedde Le Grande
It was Fedde's first time at Electric Zoo, but it certainly will not be his last. Bringing energy from start to finish with intense visuals and lively mixes of "We Are Your Friends", “Walking On a Dream” and "Zombie Nation" amongst others, Fedde proved to be one of the best performances of the weekend.
Steve Aoki
If you came to party, you know to go to Aoki’s stage. Steve knows how to get you absolutely out of your skull, with both his music and his antics. His set included his own anthems “Turbulence”, “Pursuit of Happiness”, and his newest “BRRRAT!” (with Armin Van Helden). Amazing music, mind-blowing visuals, his signature champagne showers, and a dive into the crowd made Steve Aoki the perfect finale to a perfect weekend.
You!
This year’s festival was considerably more sizeable than last year’s, a testament to electronica music and to festival culture. We like this at Joonbug. With the music pumping and the crowd jumping, we can’t wait till next year! Wahoo!
Slideshow photos by Electric Zoo
No matter what kind of music you are into mixing or producing, there is no doubt that you will get a kick out of the Electronic Toy Museum Sound Library, which includes more than 14,000 samples and 1,000 presets of count 'em, 97 vintage musical toys from the 60's, 70's, and 80's --all in one single instrument!
This is one of the most unique sound libraries out right now. Sound samples from 97 vintage musical toys were recorded with state of the art preamps and microphones at 24 bits / 96khz quality. It feels like you actually own every single one of the toys!
The carefully edited creative samples in the collection are organized into 10 categories: Children, Developed, Drums & FX, Mini Sampler, Musical Toys, Organ Basic, Silly, Small, Speech & Style-o-phone.
This is a definite must have for music gurus. To find out more information or to purchase the Electronic Toy Museum Sound Library, click here.
She’s got you dancing in the club and in your car, singing the hook on “Bass Down Low” and “Like A G6” with The Cataracs and The Far East Movement. She’s since recorded a music video for her latest single, “Booty Bounce.” There’s no denying that this little girl is leaving a big impression.
You’ve been described as a small town girl with a big city attitude; what’s the road been like from the small town to the big city?
It’s been fun. It’s been crazy, but it’s been fun. I’m doing what I love! I came from a really small town and now I am in LA recording music. It’s so crazy, you can imagine.
Describe your “Aha!” moment. When did you know that music was what you wanted to pursue?
I’ve always loved music but I think my first one of those was the first time I performed. I opened up for The Pack at The Knitting Factory in LA. It was my first time doing my set, I was absolutely terrified. Then I thought to myself, “I’m about to shit on everybody!” I went out and did it, and I’ve tried to keep that mentality since. After coming to LA, I was just like, “I need to do more of this. I need to step it up.” Performing is my favorite thing in the world.
Outside of music, where do you draw inspiration?
A lot of different things! I’m inspired by the sounds of the city, fashion, different people, situations in my life. The city inspires me. Right now, my music is fun, but as I grow, my music will too. I’ve been through a lot of different situations and stages in my life, which has made me indecisive and sporadic. I’ll wake up tomorrow wanting to do one thing and I’ll want a different sound on another day. I like mixing it up! I just want to be heard throughout the entire world; that would be cool.
You’ve said visuals are important to you. How do you incorporate this into your craft?
The fashion aspect has been really important to me. I can’t really bring it out in the studio or when I’m writing, but I love to play around with it when I can. My videos for “Fireball” and “Booty Bounce” have given me that opportunity. Hellz Bellz hooks it up too, they’re my homies.
You have a fierce image. Have you always been this fierce or did you create your image over time?
I’ve been through so many different stages growing up and I feel like now it’s all kind of come together. I don’t think about it as much, but I know I am a lot more comfortable with who I am now. I also have more opportunity to play around with my image now, and have fun with it, whereas before I was in LA my friends would be like, “There’s Dev again in her crazy shit!”
Growing up who were your favorite artists? Who are you listening to now?
I know I keep saying this but I went through a lot of different stages. I went from grunge to indie-rock to hip-hop to rap. I loved Nirvana, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Eminem. Right now I listen to The Cataracs a lot, because we all live together! I also have Crystal Castles in my car right now; they are really good.
You’re the girl that gets the party started. What’s a night out like with Dev?
Oh Gosh! Shit! A night out with me—brace yourself! Bring water because you’ll need to stay hydrated. I live with The Cataracs and we are always getting into random shit. Alcohol is always involved! Poppin bottles—we have fun.
Who would you really like to get in the studio with?
Nicki Minaj. There’s a lot of female artists out right now who are kind of on the whole, pop-rap thing you know? But she’s stunning on all of them. I’d love to work with her; I think we could do something really cool together.
What has you experience been like as a female in this business?
Being a female is tough in this industry. There’s a lot of men. The first thing people want to do is be like, “Oh, she didn’t think of that herself.” But I did. Also, there’s a lot of pressure, like “Show ass!” “Show boobs!”, but I’m not trying to sell sex. That’s not me. I’m trying to hold it down for the girls—I can roll with the boys and keep it sexy without all that.
Three things you can absolutely not live without. Ready, go.
Aw fuck! One, my cell phone. Two, chocolate. Three, my family—my sisters hold me down. They keep me in the place. I’ll talk to them and they’ll be like, “Dev, you ain’t shit!”
What advice would you give to other aspiring female songwriters/musicians?
It’s hard to not be influenced by the male in this industry. Stay true to yourself. You can’t let one thing knock you down. You can’t give up. You’ve got to keep hustin’, keep grindin’. Eventually, the grindin’ will pay off. That goes for all females, whatever you do, just be the baddest bitch you can be at it. Remember that keeping you first is important.
What can we expect next from you?
Well, I’m in the process of recording and doing as many shows as possible. I’m constantly writing and in the studio. Tours and new music, watch out!
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