Skrillex feat. 12th Planet, The Foreign Beggars, Nadastrom – The Mothership Tour

Skrillex feat. 12^th Planet, The Foreign Beggars, Nadastrom – The Mothership Tour at Verizon

With most Electronic shows being at Stereo Live I was expecting the best and most intricate show that the venue will ever have, only to learn two weeks before the event that the venue was changed from Stereo Live to Verizon Wireless Theater.

Though it is a wise business decision to be able to sell more tickets, the venue in itself is to restricting in comparison to Stereo Live, has more expensive drinks, and is understaffed at the bars. With the possibility of being able to sell more tickets, there were more than just hardcore fans at the show which at times is a problem because they lack the knowledge and enthusiasm as well as respect for the music. With the growing popularity of Skrillex over the past few months, the audience was comprised of us who knew the lyrics and what to expect from the King of Dubstep, while other people who only know one or two songs just went and spent more than forty dollars per ticket. Those of us who purchased our tickets earlier only paid twenty five dollars. Those who attended the show with me liked the Verizon Wireless Theatre better than that of Stereo Live. Though I do not like the venue at all the show all together was an attest to the surrealism and imagination of Skrillex and his hardcore Dubstep beats.

Nadastrom was a two DJ set with a type of sound that felt cheap and falsified with even worst effects and too much of a repetitive rhythm. There was a lack of fluidity with the vocals and the music that they were mixing. It had no originality to it and is South American music played in shanty clubs which is a mix of a Latin beat with a mix of  Electronica. It is the newest fad in Latin America that is known as “Tribal.” The worst part about the set was that of the lack of sophisticated transitions from song to song. With Electronic music, the best part about the “drop” and about the “build-up” is that it sounds fluid and all like on lengthy song. This set used sirens for changes in music which made it sound like an amateur stunt and lack of experience. Though this is a different type of traditional Electronic music that is already hard to get the mainstream audience to admire, this set made it even worst to those who had not heard it before, and in the end has not turned anyone to liking it.

The Foreign Beggars was a bit different than the traditional Hip-Hop and Dubstep is here in the United States. With the DJ and the two singers being from London there was that sound of the origins of Dubstep. Dubstep’s origin is from the UK and was started about three years ago and just recently became mainstream, making this set be one of the first to actually play some of the foundations of this new wave of music hitting this generation. The mixes were good and consisted mainly of Hip-Hop beats with a few spurts of Dubstep. The singers were from London making their rap not be the consistent one that we hear on the radio or at clubs. The problem that occurred during this set was that there was for some reason a want for there to be a mosh pit. This seems unnecessary and bit excessive for a Dubstep show but some in the crowd began making one and The Foreign Beggars emphasized and encouraged it.  English rap is a very downplayed version of American rap which made the set good due to the enthusiasm the artists portrayed as well as the response of the crowd, but overall it was just good music.

                12^th Planet then took the stage and the crowd did not know what to expect. The lights dimmed a bit more and then the beats hit the crowd with an enlarged amount of intensity that the previous two artists lacked. His set was comprised of Hip-Hop, Dubstep, and House music, which was finally what was expected at a show like this. The audience began  screaming and going crazy for this DJ and showed the enthusiasm that the artist portrayed towards the crowd. He leaped off of the stage onto the crowd and just looked like he himself was an admirer of his own work and was only doing this as a means of entertainment and fun. That enthusiasm that the musicians bring to their work is something that is admirable and makes the audience receive them with open arms.  The most memorable moment during the set was when 12^th Planet took over the crowd’s senses and bodies with the sound of the Tetris theme song. After a few seconds the buildup was completed and the dropped beat turned the 8-bit theme song into an intricate and amazing Dubstep remix.

Skrillex is one of the first Dubstep DJ’s to penetrate the bounds of the mainstream dance audience with his song which was released last year: “My Name Is Skrillex.” Since then Skrillex had grown to be more of a performer and an astounding DJ with much talent that thanks to Deadmau5 and some help from his label mau5trap recording has now entered the Electronic world as himself with “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites.” Since then he has also made his own label of OWSLA. With such a rush into the mainstream media, there was a bit of hesitation as to the delivery of his shows. Though he is one of the main “Must See Acts,” of Fall 2011, the demand that the audience has for him, with it now consisting of a mainstream audience, is different than what his original show was. With high anticipation as well as having seen such astounding and different performances this year, Skrillex has to go above great lengths in order to leave a dent in the 2011 concert year.

The lights then dimmed and a figure came from the side of the stage to the middle of the booth. Skrillex said his part welcoming us to his show and saying if we could get louder than Dallas. Me, Alex, the http://www.coogradio.com webmaster, and my cousin, all screamed with the masses. The build was intense with everyone waiting for the drop to consume them. The background of the booth was a simple set up with hexagons raised up, but as the projectors began to run the scheme and colors began making it an abstract mural of figures shapes and designs which could only be designed by the creativity of Skrillex. During different phases of the show a character appeared behind Skrillex, which turned out to be a replica of his movement. It was at first a puppet, and then a type of advanced robot, and finally ended with the creature from the video of First of The Year (Equinox) which stood behind the small child as she killed the man which attempted to assault her. The music was a superb and deeply profound experience which did overwhelm your mind and body making it move to the pulsating rhythm of the ground shaking beneath you and the array of an extravagant light show. There were small portions of Hip-Hop in the performance but the majority was Dubstep and House. The difference between the mainstream crowd and the hardcore Dubstep fans had dispersed since the crowd all jumped and danced in unison. The entire set was solid without any lack of enthusiasm from Skrillex, the crowd, or the music. As the show was coming to a close, Skrillex ended with such a stunning performance when mixing Promises by Nero (Skrillex Remix) and My Name is Skrillex Cinema by Benny Benassi and Go Gary (Skrillex Remix), as well as Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (Zed Remix).  It was a honor to have earlier this year hear the original version of Cinema by Benny Bennasi by Benny Benassi and Go Gary as well as the Skrillex remix by Benny Benassi, so to hear it from the creator himself, Skrillex, is one of the most invigorating musical experiences this year.

Though the venue was not my preferred one, and the opening acts were not up to par with Skrillex, his performance was a masterpiece which had everything that was expected from Skrillex and even a bit more. There was an after party at Rich’s which I was not able to attend but my friend Patrick Alvarez or DJ Ukemi was present there and said that it was as fun  and exhilarating as the show.

Though this is the beginning to turn into the “Rave” generation once again, like in the 90’s, and let us be hopeful that music like this is not merely a fad but an actual new genre of music to be spread to all.

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