ACTRESS
The doors opened at 11pm on a Thursday night. Le Poisson Rouge, in all of its 1970’s nightclub glory, was filled with one of the more eclectic crowds I’ve seen in a while. A mix of music ‘buffs', NYU students, bros looking to get their groove on, old men and just about everything in between; the place was packed as the first band took the stage.
Right off the bat, and by that I mean immediately as the first notes of the first band erupted from the stage, you already had some people make a beeline for the door. Next Life does not make dance music. They don’t really make electronic music. What they do, in fact, is play some very loud, utterly brutal death metal. Did I mention this show was part of the Unsound festival, one of the premier electronic/experimental festivals in the world? It seems like that fact was lost on many, but still only a minority, of the attendees. Those looking for a ‘dubstep’ show were probably disappointed/scarred by this Norwegian duo (with drummer) as they spat out song after song of staccato, jarring, obscenely loud riffs.
The next two weeks are rife with concerts for any music lover out there; Bad Brains for the punks, Mastodon for the metalheads, and enough dance and electronic music to satisfy even the most die hard ravers. Here is a short but currated list of shows for the next two weeks. If you see something you like, don't wait to get tickets!
Mastodon, Opeth @ Roseland Ballroom (April 11)
The Chainsmokers @ WIP (April 12)
Nothing moves faster and in more complicated ways than genres of electronic music. Depending on who you talk to, a track can be UK-Funky, or 2-Step, Jungle or DnB. What is stable and easy to track, however, is the incessant stream of awesome music coming from the UK underground. Perhaps the epicenter of cutting edge electronic music, the mature club scene of London serves as a breeding ground for some of the most influential and important steps forward in electronic music to date.
So, where does that leave us? We all know (or think we know) dubstep and its arena rock American counterpart, aptly referred to as "brostep." Started in London by the likes of Skream and Digital Myztiks, dubstep played heavily on themes originating in Jamaican dub, i.e. heavy bass lines and a kind of electronic dissonance. What will be surprising for some American listeners, is that this stuff has been around for more than ten years now! While it has only hit the US in recent years, the English have been mulling over this stuff for a long time at this point. Henceforth, we have entered into post-dubstep, a genre after a genre, the next step after 'step, if you will.
EDM lovers are in for a real treat for the next few months. A plethora of electro fests are lined up and ready for the taking. While we wait for dates and lineups to be announced for post-June festivals, peep these April-June events that are confirmed, with tickets on sale now!
who: Tiësto, Röyksopp, STS9, 12th Planet, araabMUZIK, Awolnation, Calvin Harris, Cosmic Gate, CSS, Datsik, Dillon Francis, Mt Eden, Nero, Steve Aoki
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