Now I've Been to a Rave and Seen B-More Club in Person...
For months I had been looking forward to seeing LCD Soundsystem in concert. I've only begun to scratch the surface on my new electro/Indie/dance obsession, but this concert was, in my eyes, a way to take a headlong dive into the genre of music. I say that for two reasons, the first being LCD produces music that relies heavily on live instrumentation, which regardless of genre, is fun to watch live. Second, they've got a really really dedicated cult following that is fascinating to me. The best way to describe it is that I told many people that I was going to the concert and 95% didn't know who they were and the other 5% had this look in their eyes like "I wonder if he has the tickets on him right now so I can find a way to steal them because that show has been sold out for a while and I would do anything to see that show." Very polarizing, but that did nothing but add to the hype and anticipation I had going into the show...
...which was hard to describe, but the best I can come up with is uncontrolled chaos that was a byproduct of out of control dancing. When I say out of control, think as crowded as a mosh pit, but instead of intentionally pushing everyone around you, it was unintentional as everyone in the crowd put their own dancing interests above the next person's well-being. You got me on that description? Anyways, it was nuts on a level that I didn't anticipate or even intend to be in the middle of...but the fact of the matter was, I was in the heart of the chaos and I didn't see repositioning my spot as an option, opting instead to embrace the debauchery that was surrounding me and live in the moment. Sure the limited edition Great Whites got a little dirty from being stepped on all night and I had to clean them something fierce this week, but it was all well worth being able to soak in the intensity and sheer awesomeness of the music I was witnessing. So many instruments and elements that went into every beat, it was just cool on a level I hadn't witnessed before and I can see exactly why people covet their concerts so much.
What needs to be mentioned also is the perfect setup for the concert being on the Naval Base in South Philly (called Philly Cruise Terminal). The acoustics were off the chain, making the club bass shake your heart ever so gently with every deep bass hit. I took a zoomed out shot of the scene and it looks like a haunted house, which it was far from, but gives a visual of how long (like a football field) the terminal was...
Really cool venue, hope to go to another concert there soon. Below is a their opening track, which just so happens to be my favorite of theirs Dance Yrself Clean. I had to cut it off at a minute because the crowd went absolutely Alexander GraHAM Bell as soon as the beat dropped around the 3 min mark. Needless to say it was no place for a camera to be out when that madness overcame everyone...here's a taste...
I'm still not sure if hearing your favorite track as the first song of a concert is the worst thing ever at a concert or not. I'm leaning toward yes because it kills the anticipation, but at the same time, you usually get a longer, more drawn out original version of the track since it's the intro to the show. Glass half full would say at least they played your favorite song right? Needless to say it was a great great great show and if you have a chance to see them live, you might as well book yourself for a felony because it is grand theft being able to see them for around $30.
In addition to the epic show, I managed to score two free M.I.A. tickets in line waiting to get into the LCD show. I've been a casual fan of her work and decided what the hell, I'm gonna be down in Philly anyways for the Mets/Phils game, so might as well check it out. Especially because Bmore club specialist Rye Rye was going to be opening up for her. If you're not sure who she is, she became big with this track here and embodies the whole craziness that goes along with Bmore club dancing. Lemme tell you what, if you don't learn and/or try new dance moves after seeing her perform, you either have no rhythm or you suck at dancing and think you're better than you actually are. Think fast club bass with a Hip Hop flavor...almost dance Rap if you will, it's a really cool under appreciated sub-genre of Hip Hop and I'm gonna do my absolute best to keep putting it on blast through this blog.
Moving on to the main act, M.I.A....well...she has more energy at her shows than a 5 Hr energy mixed with a Redbull. Case in point, her concert entrance below...
The show never let off the gas pedal...not once for over an hour. I recognized a few tracks and bounced around all ignorant and crazy with my five fingered gats blazin' when Paper Planes came on. It was just a fun show to be at and it was partly because of the girl I took to the concert, who deserves a shout out (I see you melo!) because she (like me) is an absolute dancin' machine with all kinds of rhythm (that was primarily meant to give her credit even though it probably came off more than a little cocky on my part hah!). You know when you're dancing with someone you just met and every move is in sync with them no matter how fast or slow the music is you are dancing to? That's wassup...and for all you guys needing a tip right quick, here's a free one. If you see a bachelorette party at a bar, don't hesitate to throw yourself in the mix and start dancin', it ends up being a great decision more often than not...#Truth + #FirsthandExperience
If you haven't already you should cop both @_m_i_a_'s new ablbum Maya
as well as @lcdsoundsystem's new album This is Happening
. Below is LCD's newest video for their track Home, give it a look...
...which was hard to describe, but the best I can come up with is uncontrolled chaos that was a byproduct of out of control dancing. When I say out of control, think as crowded as a mosh pit, but instead of intentionally pushing everyone around you, it was unintentional as everyone in the crowd put their own dancing interests above the next person's well-being. You got me on that description? Anyways, it was nuts on a level that I didn't anticipate or even intend to be in the middle of...but the fact of the matter was, I was in the heart of the chaos and I didn't see repositioning my spot as an option, opting instead to embrace the debauchery that was surrounding me and live in the moment. Sure the limited edition Great Whites got a little dirty from being stepped on all night and I had to clean them something fierce this week, but it was all well worth being able to soak in the intensity and sheer awesomeness of the music I was witnessing. So many instruments and elements that went into every beat, it was just cool on a level I hadn't witnessed before and I can see exactly why people covet their concerts so much.
What needs to be mentioned also is the perfect setup for the concert being on the Naval Base in South Philly (called Philly Cruise Terminal). The acoustics were off the chain, making the club bass shake your heart ever so gently with every deep bass hit. I took a zoomed out shot of the scene and it looks like a haunted house, which it was far from, but gives a visual of how long (like a football field) the terminal was...
I'm still not sure if hearing your favorite track as the first song of a concert is the worst thing ever at a concert or not. I'm leaning toward yes because it kills the anticipation, but at the same time, you usually get a longer, more drawn out original version of the track since it's the intro to the show. Glass half full would say at least they played your favorite song right? Needless to say it was a great great great show and if you have a chance to see them live, you might as well book yourself for a felony because it is grand theft being able to see them for around $30.
In addition to the epic show, I managed to score two free M.I.A. tickets in line waiting to get into the LCD show. I've been a casual fan of her work and decided what the hell, I'm gonna be down in Philly anyways for the Mets/Phils game, so might as well check it out. Especially because Bmore club specialist Rye Rye was going to be opening up for her. If you're not sure who she is, she became big with this track here and embodies the whole craziness that goes along with Bmore club dancing. Lemme tell you what, if you don't learn and/or try new dance moves after seeing her perform, you either have no rhythm or you suck at dancing and think you're better than you actually are. Think fast club bass with a Hip Hop flavor...almost dance Rap if you will, it's a really cool under appreciated sub-genre of Hip Hop and I'm gonna do my absolute best to keep putting it on blast through this blog.
Moving on to the main act, M.I.A....well...she has more energy at her shows than a 5 Hr energy mixed with a Redbull. Case in point, her concert entrance below...
The show never let off the gas pedal...not once for over an hour. I recognized a few tracks and bounced around all ignorant and crazy with my five fingered gats blazin' when Paper Planes came on. It was just a fun show to be at and it was partly because of the girl I took to the concert, who deserves a shout out (I see you melo!) because she (like me) is an absolute dancin' machine with all kinds of rhythm (that was primarily meant to give her credit even though it probably came off more than a little cocky on my part hah!). You know when you're dancing with someone you just met and every move is in sync with them no matter how fast or slow the music is you are dancing to? That's wassup...and for all you guys needing a tip right quick, here's a free one. If you see a bachelorette party at a bar, don't hesitate to throw yourself in the mix and start dancin', it ends up being a great decision more often than not...#Truth + #FirsthandExperience
If you haven't already you should cop both @_m_i_a_'s new ablbum Maya
as well as @lcdsoundsystem's new album This is Happening. Below is LCD's newest video for their track Home, give it a look...
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