For myself and many others who follow the electronic dance music revolution, this is one of the most sought out shows of the year. Big Gigantic, who last year was a small opening act, has evolved into an prolific headlining act that is booking large venues across the nation. Teamed up with Griz, an exciting young producer, and the boys from Adventure Club(at least for this leg of the tour) they put together a string of sets that is pushing the boundaries of DJs and electronic production across the board. Just off their first leg, climaxing at Red Rocks, CO, these superstars are growing quickly as performers and are rapidly gaining popularity.
Big G, like I said before have not always been on the top of many peoples playlist, but because of their versatility they easily gained acclaim by opening for a few very good, very different performers. The “band” consists of Dominic Lalli as the electronic producer/saxophone player and Jeremy Salkin on the drums. The first time I saw them they were opening for Lotus. They played a set then that consisted of what I would call electric jam music, similar to what EOTO, STS9 or what Lotus themselves play. The next time I saw them they were opening for Bassnectar about six months later. At this time they had quickly evolved to playing a dubstep based set that appealed more to the younger Bassnectar audience. Now that they are on the top of the ticket stub, though, they have found a balance between all the genres they are capable of. From house to dubstep, and from jam to hip-hop, they are truly, for me, the most randomly perfect act in EDM right now.
The started with Griz. He just two weeks ago put out his first full length album, “Mad Liberation.” The album is composed of what would be considered light dubstep and hip-hop and ranges in tempo from 70 to 100 Beats per minute. He really shows his diversity within his production and also within his live act. He also broke out his sax for a couple tracks that were originally recorded by Big Gigantic’s Dominic Lalli.
Next was one of the two members of Adventure Club. Honestly, I have not really been a huge fan of their produced music. A lot of it is a bit “ravey” for my taste. However, his live show consisted of some house, but much to my liking ranged to the heaviest of heavy, and probably had the most intense set of the night. Good work. Not to mention, during Big Gigantic’s encore they played a remix of one of Adventure Club’s songs, “Do I See Color” and brought him back on stage to conclude their performance. Great way to end a great show.
In a musical existence where remixes seem to come out by the minute and originals become increasingly stale, this group of performers are raising the bar. Look for this act to be at even bigger venues in the next few years and in bigger bolder letters at the top of festival lineups. Get out and see Big Gigantic if you’re one of the few who haven’t yet.
Photo credit Knitting Factory Reno, NV