Jack Ü Let Loose Debut Album After 24 DJ Set

Fresh off a 24 hour marathon DJ set, Skrillex and Diplo finally let loose their Jack U debut album. I'll be the first to admit that a Justin Bieber collaboration wasn't something I saw coming, but all things considered, Where Are U Now is pretty fresh. Thanks in large part to the tribal samples that Diplo threw in the mix, the beat sounds like deep house went to the jungle. Many times big time duos with differing styles don't mesh, but whenever Diplo and Skrillex get together it's always something new and unique. I haven't gotten a chance to check out the entire album yet, but the track below was another positive step toward something special...#JackU

Jack U (Skrillex & Diplo) feat Justin Bieber - Where Are U Now?

Videos of the Week February 27th

Let's call it a "memorable" week for videos with a fun mix of new stuff, creative stuff and even a few covers. Kanye leads the way in the new stuff section with his debut of All Day at the Brit 2015 Awards. The track is chalked full of energy, but lyrically it's just a bunch of chest puffed out yelling. Hopefully there are more thoughtful tracks like Only One on his album, I've missed that side of 'Ye.

If you haven't listened to Big Sean's new album, you really are missing out. Skyscrapers is a stand out, but there's a lot more too. Ed Sheeran is a boss, so it only makes sense he remixed CoCo. Similarly, Fallon and Xtina nailed more than a few impressions, including a spot on one of Britney Spears by Ms. Aguilera herself. And last, but not least, a bit of novelty for the week. Kudos to the on fleek video editing by papakilatube for matching the Barney visuals to Straight Outta Compton...#Barney
Big Sean - Skyscrapers (Video)

Ed Sheeran - I'm in Love With the CoCo (Cover)

Kanye Performs All Day at 2015 Brit Awards

Jimmy Fallon & Christina Aguilera Play Wheel of Musical Impressions

Barney With Attitude - Straight Outta Compton

Photo Credit: Vevo

The Sky Keep on Fallin' With RL Grime & Salva

Yea, this is that dopiness you've been waiting on. Continuing a hot streak of Hip Hop songs turned Trap, RL Grime and Salva gave Travi$ Scott and Young Thug's Skyfall a shiny new paint job. For about the first minute, you're wondering what madness is going to ensue post drop. Then at the 55 second mark, you get a play-action-fake beat switch for ten seconds. That's when the addition of some heavy bounce is thrown in the mix with the bubbly synths.

After only a few listens, I'm not afraid to proclaim that this is one of my favorites from February. The depth and pace jives so well together that it hits home with the core of what I like going on between Hip Hop and electronic music right now. Best part about it, it's available for free via Soundcloud. Free things do come wrapped this nicely in packages, so do it justice and play it loud when you see that .part file become .mp3 in your downloads folder...#Skyfall

Travi$ Scott feat Young Thug - Skyfall (RL Grime & Salva Remix)

Welcome to the New World Scott Gold

It's starting to sounds like this whole acoustic EDM thing is catching on. Before Avicii was ballsy enough to dare mix acoustic/bluegrass with progressive house, you would have thought that mixing two polar opposite types of music was crazy talk. Enter Scott Gold, an up and comer from LA who is out to blaze his own path with the help of his new single New World. The track is part acoustic, part rock and mainly electronic, creating a surprisingly easy-listening sound. Tip of the cap to Shimon Moore for the vocals on the track too. The interesting adventure the instrumental takes you on is the reason you'll remember it, but the vocals are the reason you won't forget it...#ScottGold

Scott Gold feat Shimon Moore - New World

Bassnectar Finds Beauty of the Unhidden Heart

To put it frankly, Bassnectar was EDM before EDM was even a thing. He's been making hype albums since 2001, which is a full decade before electronic music started catching on in the US. His live shows and extravagant lighting displays are always something to write home about.

Longevity aside, he's made so many positive relationships with great artists like Glitch Mob over the years that he always seems to be churning out dope remixes too. His new remix of Beauty of the Unhidden Heart is about as chill as it gets for Bassnectar. The vibe of the remix isn't far removed from the original, but there's a much more predictable ebb and flow. If you're looking for a mellow remix to cool out to, this one is just what the doctor ordered...#LDIRemixes

Glitch Mob - Beauty of the Unhidden Heart (Bassnectar Remix)

Not All Great Instrumentals Are Worthy of Verses

It's incredible to think that one of the most legendary Hip Hop producers of my generation was able to produce a stellar beat that never got to see the light of day. Why didn't it ever get released? Well, in the words of Just Blaze himself:

“Jay asked me to hold this for him and Jeezy. Ross did something with it. Chris Brown wanted it badly but couldn’t find the right vocal flow for it once we got in studio. Canei wanted to pass it to Cole, but it was held up by someone else who actually cut me a check for it. Then it ended up just sitting, and I was weird about playing it for folks. Everyone who heard it thought it was amazing but couldn’t come up with a song to it lol. Understandable though. There’s a LOT going on."

Wait a minute, so you're telling me that Jay Z, Jeezy, Rick Ross, Chris Brown, and J Cole all hand their hands on this beat and never fully harnessed it's capabilities? The beat has Just Blaze's style written all over it with a live band feel that is accentuated by vibrant piano and a heavy dose of strings for good measure. It's a testament to great instrumentals being able to tell a story without words. In my mind, the sun is shining on a windy day walking through the streets of Manhattan with this playing. Even if the Megatron Don is turning more toward the electronic/trap realm, it's little morsels like Miracles that make you appreciate his greatness at whatever he produces...#Miracles

Just Blaze - Miracles

"I Want You To Know That It's Our Time"

Well isn't this the most adorable collaboration know to EDM? Fresh off news that Zedd and Selena Gomez are now a "thing", here comes an official single from the dynamic duo. After a long countdown that was highlighted by a lot of tweets and then a snippet, I Want You to Know has officially landed on iTunes.

The track is gift wrapped for top 40 featuring a made-for-radio hook that is about as east to remember as the alphabet and a chord progression that is as soothing as it gets for EDM. In general, it stays true to form for what you'd expect from Zedd. Aside from the fact that gossip mags will eat this collabo up, the two seem to compliment each others' style quite well. Despite coming from different neighborhoods of contemporary pop, their combination of vocals and soothing synths seem to be a match made in heaven. It's a little too poppy to get more than a few listens on my weekly playlist, but if you're a fan of easy-listening electronic music, this one has your name written all over it...#IWantYouToKnow

"I'm a Ready-Made Party, I'm Whiskey in a Bottle Now"

Yelawolf is a great example of an artist with an extremely high ceiling that has yet to reach his potential. You would have thought that his unique lyrical ability plus the Shady Records deal would have been a sure fire recipe for reaching that ceiling, but it hasn't happened yet. It's a sad thing that happens too often, but when a big label sinks its teeth into you, sometimes your creative edge gets lost in shuffle when you're trying to appease too many people. That's what seemed to happen with his Shady Records debut Radioactive, which is why I'm hoping his upcoming album, Love Story, will get back to what got him to the biggest rising star in Hip Hop.

For what it's worth, I consider his new single, Whiskey in a Bottle, a step in the right direction. For an Alabama raised lyricist, he's got a knack for pulling you in with a catchy hook. The laid back, head nod worthy hook to compliment a couple spitfire verses served as a blatant reminder that Catfish Billy still has it. You better believe he's got that same unforgiving, aggressive delivery that drew comparisons to Eminem. Time will tell whether his upcoming album will be the correction we've all been hoping for, but I'm a lot more confident after hearing his new single...#WhiskeyInABottle

Videos of the Week February 20th

To be completely honest, I probably could have used this whole post recapping SNL's 40th Anniversary and after party. In the interest of time and under the assumption that you've probably already seen it, I focused on the Jimmy Fallon related portions that include the opening dance with Justin Timberlake and the recap of a surreal afterparty. As a side note, I still can't believe Jay Z thought David Wells was Curt Schilling...smh.

In actual music related things this week, Madeon released the futuristic visuals for his new single with Passion Pit. Timeflies also let loose a new ode to sexting with their raunchy NSFW video. I appreciate the creativity of the subject, but the old folks in the office setting was a little over the top. Last and definitely not least, Low Pros (A-Trak & Lex Luger) released a slammin' new virtual reality video for Who Wanna Play. I've slept on the duo for too long, their brand of Trap is downright awesome...#LowPros
Madeon feat Passion Pit - Pay No Mind (Video)

Fallon Recapping the SNL 40 After Party

Jimmy Fallon & Justin Timberlake Open SNL's 40th Anniversary Special

Low Pros feat Que - Who Wanna Play (Video)

Timeflies feat Angel Haze - NSFW (Video)

Photo Credit: YouTube

The Next Big Track From Galantis - "You're Like Gold Gust"

If there's one thing I'll always have room for on any playlist I make, it's a jubilant electronic ballad. When I say that, I mean a song like Gold Dust with a soft piano lead in augmented by emotional vocals and eventually a feel good drop. Unlike many other EDM tracks, there's a full minute and 45 second lead in before the drop. That's a really long time, but because it's such a gradual build up, it makes for a dramatic and emotionally feel good vibe on the track.

Full disclosure, I'm only now starting to realize the awesomeness of Galantis. Without hesitation, I'd call their new single a huge step in the right direction. Prior to hearing the track below, I wouldn't have associated them with a song like Gold Dust. That's a great thing when a new artist you're intrigued by throws something right in your wheelhouse. Now, if they would only stop by the Bay Area for a show...#GoldDust

Galantis - Gold Dust

Method White Arrives With an Exclamation Point

The first big step toward stardom for many artists is a debut album. If you're one of the talented few who really score big on that first effort, then you could find yourself in a spot similar to Disclosure. Riding high on the success of their debut album Settle, they created their own record label back in 2013 called Method Records. You might recognize that Method was the label who helped get Sam Smith's In the Lonely Hour out the door last year en route to four recent Grammys.

Recently, Method Records grew a new branch by the name of Method White. According to Disclosure's Facebook page,

"Method White is going to be a platform for us to release some of our favourite music being created right now, music that we feel represents the best of the best of underground electronic music today!"

Seeing that electronic music is a booming business right now, there is probably a lot of great untapped potential lying in the weeds like Swedish DJ Jonas Rathsman. With the help of Method White, Jonas now has a well known platform to get his music out to the masses. And you better believe we're all better off as a result because Wolfsbane is a standout Deep House track. It's seven and a half minutes of pulse pounding rhythms that ebb and flow with a consistent amount of dance move inducing energy. If this doesn't get you excited about the type of music Method White is putting out, then you're probably not in the right corner of the internet reading this...#Wolfsbane

Jonas Rathsman - Wolfsbane

"Miss PYT Be Stuck on My Mind"

Feel free to get openly excited at the collaboration below because it finally came to fruition. Featuring a repeatable and catchy hook by Jeremih and bouncy bass, I Just Can't was tailor made for the club. I posted an "unofficial version" of the track back in September, so hearing the final version is long overdue.

I'll maintain that Crookers will always be a mainstay on any party mix I create because of how much energy their music packs. Their music offers the gift that keeps on giving, the invitation to dance. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to hearing their new album, Sixteen Chapel, when it drops in a few weeks. Until then, I'd suggest streaming what tracks they have released from the album already to satisfy your Crookers craving...#IJustCant

Crookers feat Jeremih - I Just Can't

"We Be Out in Silicone, Tryin' to Get Our Billions on"

If you're a Drake fan you've spent the past four days running laps around his new paid mixtape If You're Reading This It's Too Late. Evidently that whole Jungle video he released last week served as a prelude to the dark tone of his new mixtape. For those of you looking for a shiny new studio album, this is not that. It's much more grimy and random like his past legendary mixtape. Rather than talk your ear off about the whole tape, I'll simply list a set of pros and cons.

Pros:

• Most of the songs sound like they have been gathering dust for a while. I list that as a pro because we all remember the youthful exuberance of young Drizzy on his come up.
• The vast majority of the album is produced by Boi-1da and 40.
• It's 95% Drake. If you're a Drake fan, you get a huge dose of him in raw, elemental form.

Cons:

• There's a quality or polish that's absent. Again, if you're expecting a HQ, studio sound, you're going to be disappointed.
• There really aren't many collaborators on the album. If you like the typical star power he brings with him, it's absent here.
• There isn't one song on the mixtape I like better than my least favorite song on So Far Gone. It's an unfair comp, I know, but you understand what I mean when I say it.

To that last point, it's taking me a bit to warm up to the 17 song surprise barrage. Coincidentally enough, if you asked me to pick a favorite on the mixtape, it's bringing up the caboose at track 17. 6 PM in New York fits the mold of his previous freestyles that follow the same naming convention (9 AM in Dallas, 5 AM in Toronto). The beat continues rolling on with a hook nowhere to be found. It's one bar after the next, which Drake excels at when he decides to put it on wax. If You're Reading This It's Too Late may be more of a nostalgic favorite than something we'll put on his mantlepiece when all is said and done, but I'm sucker for a good throwback, so you won't see me complaining...#IYRTITL

Drake - 6 PM in New York (prod by Boi-1da & Mike Zombie)

"I Call, Baby Come Find Me"

There is beauty in simplicity. Details can be helpful, but also distract away from what is most important. Case in point Emile Haynie's new single, Come Find Me, featuring talented vocalists Lykke Li and Romy Madley Croft (of The xx). Like many other tracks Emile has been behind, he finds a way to take you on an emotional journey that is guided by instrumentation. The beginning of the track is soft and harmonic, but as it progresses, the intensity of the strings become much more pronounced, shifting the mood to a more somber tone. The simplicity of Lyyke's vocals are perfect in that they stay the same, but take on different meaning throughout the track. If you're an EDM fan, you might listen to the first ten seconds of this track, yawn and move on to the next song. That's fine by me, but if you have a minute to give it a full listen with an open mind, you may be surprised how something that is seemingly so simple has a much deeper story...#BabyComeFindMe

"I Think You Could Be, the Making of Me"

Not to take anything away from Sam Smith or Disclosure for their accomplishments as artists, but Jimmy Napes deserves a great deal of credit for their success. Having listened to a few solo tracks by Jimmy, I now have a better understanding of why Sam brought Jimmy up on stage to accept Grammy awards. Not everyone has a producer that deserves the mic at The Grammys, but Jimmy Napes sure did.

After listening to his newest song below, it's easier to quantify how influential he has been on other peoples' music. Great hooks, swanky deep house vibes and just enough harmony to get everyone singing along. The Making of Me checks all those boxes and will serve as the title track for his four song The Making of Me EP that is scheduled to hit e-stores on March 8th. If you take anything away from this post, it should be the impact that solid production has on making talented artists into industry leading artists that win Grammys...#TheMakingOfMe

Jimmy Napes - The Making of Me

Videos of the Week February 13th

The Grammys were without a doubt the big ticket item this week in the world of videos. While I was tempted to do a top 5 Grammy videos, I felt like picking a top two out of the many videos would be more impactful. That being said, it was a tough decision, but Sia's Kristen Wiig and Maddie Ziegler assisted performance of Chandelier and Common & John Legend's emotional rendition of Glory were my favorites. What pushes Glory to the top are the real life social issues that continue to make the lyrics and message of the song extremely apropos for 2015. Honorable mention performances include Sam Smith and Mary J's performance of Stay With Me and Ed Sheeran performing Thinking Out Loud With John Mayer, Herbie Hancock & Questlove.

Grammys aside, the Imagine Dragons video for Shots was extremely well done. Watching the Incpetion-like visuals made me like the song more, which is exactly what a video should do. In other news, Charles Barkley still is comical anytime he swings a gold club, especially when Jimmy Fallon is there to observe. And last but not least, I'm still trying to wrap my head around Drake's new short film Jungle. I appreciated the nostalgic look back at where he came from and getting to see firsthand how his music began opening up doors. If it's meant to show what a day in the life looks like for him to generate empathy, then mission accomplished. Either way, it's thought provoking, which isn't a bad thing...#Jungle
Imagine Dragons - Shots (Video)

Drake - Jungle (Short Movie)

Sia - Chandelier (Live at Grammys feat Kristen Wiig & Maddie Ziegler)

Common & John Legend - Glory (Live at the Grammys)

Jimmy Fallon: Hallway Golf with Hugh Grant & Charles Barkley

Photo Credit: YouTube

"I Was Livin' in the Heat in the Moment"

I'm stil trying to get to the bottom of why I like the Haim sisters' music so much. There's something about their unique chemistry and roll-off-the-tongue vocal delivery that reels me in. Their sound translates to just about any genre as evidenced by their collabos with Cudi, Bastille, A$AP Ferg and now Calvin Harris. Even though Calvin's synths are generally the reason why you end up pressing play, Haim stole the show on Pray to God. The video does a good job of capturing their mystique on the video below. Plus what successful video doesn't include a wolf, bear, eagle and a lion? Yep, that's right, it has everything primal you could ever want...#PrayToGod

Kygo Has Taken Tropical House to New Heights

If you're curious how big Kygo is becoming, look no further than the new song he debuted in the trailer for the upcoming 2015 Ultra Music Festival. At the age of 22, he's now the leader of the Tropical House movement that has quickly taken the music industry by storm. This spring, he'll be headlining the biggest festivals (Coachella, CounterPoint, Ultra, etc.) in 2015 and he hasn't even released an original studio album yet.

I'd liken his rise to the rapid ascension Drake had after So Far Gone caught on. He's taken the genre a different direction, counter-balancing the rowdiness of sub-genres like Trap and club thumping Progressive House. The care-free tropical vibes he's able to intricately weave together have a "just relax" affordance that resonates with listeners. It's hard to put into words how much I'm looking forward to his debut. Will it live up to the monstruous hype? Is Trop House a fad or is it just getting started? Time will tell, but everyone enjoys a good rookie of the year story, so hop in the hype train while there are still seats available...#UMF

"Somedays You Hear It, Somedays You Don't"

Now THIS is an exciting mix of blend of Indie dance and EDM. What's great about a Madeon and Passion Pit collaboration is the upbeat, feel good vibe that shared through both of their musical efforts. Pay No Mind is packed full of energy, but there's a mellow component to it that allows Michael Angelakos's vocals to lead the way. I'll admit, after hearing this I'm bummed we have to wait until the end of March to hear Madeon's new album. What I do know is that the anticipation will only continue to grow following the success of the song below, You're On and Imperium...#PayNoMind

Madeon feat Passion Pit - Pay No Mind

Flosstradamus & TroyBoi Light It Up With Soundclash

Wow, what a perfect song to jump start the week on a otherwise mundane Monday. Equipped with plenty of high pitched synths and a boat load of bounce, Flosstradamus and TroyBoi just sparked a match and poured a gallon of gasoline on Soundclash. In case you're wondering, it's not a mundane, formulaic track either. Around the two minute mark, there's a beat breakdown is borderline criminal. Folks, there's nothing to worry about with regards to Trap with Floss leading the way...#Soundclas

Flosstradamus & TroyBoi - Soundclash

All Day Kanye - "Red Leather Jacket With the MJ Zippers"

So the Grammys are tonight and word has it Kanye is going to be debuting a new song at the award show. Presumably, the song will be his new collaboration with Travis $cott, All Day. A high-ish quality rip of the track has been circulating the past few days and can be played below. It's high quality enough for you to understand the hard-hitting beat and braggadocious vibe of the lyrics. While the song probably won't go down as one my favorites of his, it's equipped with more than enough energy and intensity to get the hype train rolling toward a new album.

In other news, Kanye actually did something randomly nice. While exiting House of Blues, he gave Cameron Grey a shot at impressing him with a few bars as he was walking to the car. Is this an effort to finally get some good publicity or was he actually impressed? I guess we shall soon see if anything becomes of this, but the skeptics out there will be following up, you can bet that...#CameronGrey

Kanye West feat Travis $cott - All Day

DJ Mustard Takes FourFiveSeconds to the Club

If you were one of the many people who wished Rihanna's new single FourFiveSeconds was a bit more uptempo, you're in luck. DJ Mustard just came through with a slightly Trap, but mostly uptempo Hip Hop remix of Rihanna's new single. In general, Mustard is on fire of late with remixes to Beyonce's 7/11, a collabo with DJ Snake and a new one with Cashmere Cat on the way. Sure, he's established himself as one of the best Hip Hop producers in the game, but I'm really digging his remixes and collaborations with EDM DJs of late. Hopefully all these new remixes signify a new album is on the way. I liked 10 Summers, but if his recent remixes are an indication of a new direction, I'm on board...#MustardOnTheBeat

Rihanna feat Kanye West & Paul McCartney - FourFiveSeconds (DJ Mustard Remix)

Videos of the Week February 6th

In a week dominated by historically awesome late night spots, it was a challenge trying to fit actual music into videos of the week. Let me take that back actually, Will Smith and Jimmy Fallon were every bit as musical as Rihanna and Kanye. The only difference was Big Willy and Fallon were using an iPad beatbox app and RiRi and Yeezy were relying on Paul McCartney for the beat.

While Fallon gets most of the late night love, Kimmel's celebrities reading mean tweets about themselves is about as entertaining as it gets. Between Childish Gambino, Ariana Grande and Psy, it was really tough finding a favorite among the hilarity. In an effort to inject some musical quality to the post, Sam Smith came through at the right time with visuals for one of my favorites of his, Lay Me Down. Last, but certainly not least, the Saved by the Bell reunion was a slight of nostalgia that anyone born in the 1980s thoroughly appreciated. It is crazy how well all of them look exactly the same twenty years later...well...minus Mr. Belding...#SavedByTheBell
Jimmy Kimmel's Mean Tweets Music Edition Part 2

Rihanna feat Kanye & Paul McCartney - FourFiveSeconds (Video)

Jimmy Fallon and Will Smith Beatbox Rap It Takes Two

Sam Smith - Lay Me Down (Video)

Jimmy Fallon Visits Bayside High School (Saved by the Bell)

Photo Credit: YouTube

DJ Snake & DJ Mustard Get Extra Faded

You ever have one of those weird occurrences where you have two friends who hang out in different circles from each other, yet one day you find out that they were friends before you knew either of them? That's what I feel like tonight as I listen to DJ Snake & DJ Mustard's hard hitting remix of ZHU's Faded. Prior to this remix, who would have thought that they would ever collaborate?

Last April, I posted ZHU's Faded and it seems like ever since then he's been a shooting star. In support of ZHU's grammy nomination, Snake and Mustard gave the funky original a snap and trap makeover. The resulting sound is heavy, grimy and will give your speakers a workout. Chalk this one up to the rare occurrence when two great producers actually manage to craft a remix that is just as good as the original...#Faded2

DJ Snake & DJ Mustard - Faded 2.0

"I Gotta Hit List, I'll Write Your Name"

You'd be hard pressed to get me to admit it, but I may or may not be a big fan of Taylor Swift's Blank Space. I swear she has to be putting some type of added sugar or something to her music because it can be inescapable once you give it a listen. I mean for example, her video for Blank Space has been out less than three months and it has over 458 million views on YouTube. That's nuts that a track about train wreck/promiscuous relationships sung by a girl who in no way represents those types of relationships could have such a meteoric trajectory.

Original version aside, YONAS rocked it on his own version. My first reaction when listening to the track was how much it reminded me of Chiddy Bang. There's just enough essence of the original version to encourage you to sing along, but the verses and beat are jam packed with a 150 proof shot of energy. Rappers coming up and spitting like YONAS are few and far between these days, so appreciate the new remix below and feel free and cop it for free if you like it...#freemixtuesdays

Will Ferrell & Kevin Hart Steal the Show on Fallon

Usually I save all noteworthy videos until Friday's videos of the week post, but tonight I'm making a rare exception because of the high entertainment value of the video below. In the Twitter/Vine culture of quick clips, a 12 minute video is generally a hard sell. That being said, comedy gold can be described as having Will Ferrell, Kevin Hart and Jimmy Fallon on the same stage lip syncing pop songs. Can't imagine Will Ferrell gyrating to Beyonce or dropping glitter as a dramatic ending to singing "Let it Go" from Frozen? Well you'll get exactly that below and much more as a fourth superstar enters the stage out of nowhere during the last round. In general, Jay Leno was great for many years, but this is yet again proof that Jimmy Fallon was born to host late night TV...#Fallon

Photo Credit: YouTube

"If I Go Will You Follow Me Home?"

After listening to Hardwell's new track Follow Me, I'm left wondering one thing. Why isn't Jason Derulo on more EDM tracks? Sure, it's easy to cut and paste a talented R&B singer onto a progressive house beat and call it a day, but JD's delivery works really well with the ebb and flow of different tempos. While Hardwell's new one doesn't exactly break the formulaic mold of a top 40 EDM track, I'm a sucker for the great vocals. In case you missed it, Hardwell's new album, United We Are, hit you favorite e-store last week. The jury is still out, but there are more than a few who are getting behind the up and coming star's debut album...#UnitedWeAre

Concert Review of Knife Party at Mezzanine

It's been entirely too long since I've posted a concert review, nearly two years for those of you keeping track at home. In an effort to start 2015 on the right foot, below is my review of Knife Party's concert at Mezzanine in San Francisco this week.

First off, it's not every week that an electronic duo who headlines festivals decides to play at a club a few blocks away from your apartment. The phrase "no-brainer" purchase comes to mind when I think about how long it took for me to consider buying tickets. Having never been to Mezzanine before for a show, I was doubly intrigued because I had heard a lot of good things about the club.

When I entered the club, my first reaction centered around how small it was and how nice the sound quality was. Sam F was the opening act and he did his job in getting the growing crowd hype and ready for the main act. I thought there was a really solid turn out for the opening set, which speaks to the palpable excitement that was building as time passed. The biggest thing I appreciated during the concert was the quick shift between the opening act and the headliner. You could equate it to changing drivers on the highway without stopping, which was a nice surprise.

When 11 PM hit, the mood went from anticipation to completely turnt up. Off top, the duo of Rob Swire and Gareth McGrillen sucked us all in with the Abandon Ship intro Reconnect, which bled into one of their most recent singles, Resistance. In hindsight, the first hour of their set was focused on cuts off their new album and recent remixes. The second hour of their set is what made the price of admission well worth it for me. Over the sixty minutes they weaved in an out of favorites like Internet Friends, Centipede, Begin Again, and their Save the World Tonight remix. It was a blur, but an awesome one at that.

As the set was gradually reaching an energy apex, I started silently hoping they would find a way to incorporate my favorite cut off Abandon Ship in their encore. It's as if they heard me because sure enough, they queued up the reggae flavored track, Give It Up as I went nuts. The concert didn't need icing, but I got it anyways and it perfectly capped off an enjoyable night where I danced myself clean in under the cozy roof of Mezzanine...#AbandonShip