All words: Rachel Wallace
All photos: Mike Danko (with side note that Diplo and Switch were way back in the darkness so photos reflect that sitch)
Anything I'm about to say about anything DJ-related demands a preface: I don't really listen to a ton of DJs. ANNNNDDD I've never gone to a show that had much DJ-ing going on. But Major fucking Lazer is the rum in my cherry coke, the sour cream in Paula Dean's mashed potatoes. (gotta love the food network)
My MySpace whoring led me to discover Major Lazer [ML for short from now on], who are actually DJs Diplo and Switch [of M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes" fame]. Their space has almost the entirety of their new album - Guns Don't Kill People, Lazers Do. And it is impossible not to like it, if not love it, if not want to sway your hips and maybe hit up some sour diesel [just listen to the song "Mary Jane"]. One song, "Annie Mac Minnie Mix", includes some awesome cameos, including Nirvana, that make the most interesting combination of hot DJ shit and 90's grunge I HAVE EVER HEARD.
When I found out ML was doing a show this Saturday at the Rock & Roll Hotel FOR FREE with MATT & KIM, it was pretty necessary that I check it out. Now, how Matt & Kim got on a ticket with ML is kind of strange. The DJ (culture) elements are there, but there is so much more pop in Matt & Kim that it almost doesn't fit with the more reggae/dancehall-centric beats of ML. But no one at the concert seemed to care. Everyone was very, very psyched for Matt & Kim and cheered and danced and screamed for them non-stop.
With so much encouragement, it was no wonder that Matt & Kim put on a pretty bangin show. They were as psyched as the crowd was and continually throughout their show screamed into the microphone their love for such a crazy DC audience. It seemed like they were almost surprised that everyone was so into them. Kim [the drummer] even surfed the crowd at one point with her manager. The crowd dropped the manager, but Kim managed to make it past the bar and back again.
Kim played crazy beats too, slamming impressively fast for a pop gig. Matt was not so admirable; he just played the synth stuff and occasionally sang. Regardless, their music is absolutely infectious. Standing there listening to the two of them, surrounded by a sold-out crowd that couldn't help but dance, it was hard to feel anything but happiness, no matter how much I was fighting the urge. And it was obvious that Matt & Kim love their music. Kim had a huge grin plastered on her face the entire show, especially when she was banging on her set.
Their best song was their last - "Daylight", which has been played on some MTV off-shoots. It is definitely their most popular song, as was obvious by the crazy screaming some biddies did when the first few notes went down. But it's also one of their happiest songs [who knew it was possible to get happier?] and so our kids Matt & Kim left everyone smiling.
Then ML came out, surprisingly to a smaller crowd than Matt & Kim. This pissed me off, since ML is definitely worth listening to and staying out past your bedtime for. Plus, its a Saturday night party show in DC people! How often does that happen. But anyone who left certainly missed out. Because it was all sex. [ Note the pattern. Matt and Kim=Happiness, ML=SEX. Diplo [American] and Switch [British] were both wearing suits and hats and totally pulled off the hot DJ thing. Their dancers were equally as hot, wearing a lot less clothing and giving a how-to-dance lesson to the dumber biddies in the crowd. And of course, their beats were the sexiest thing of all. Everyone had to move; the music demanded it. Whether you were with a million friends, one person or no one, you just had to dance. Because ML is just that good.
But I have one complaint, and it's a pretty big one. Having fallen in love with ML via MySpace [hey, it happens], I was obviously expecting them to play their songs, mix it up, lay down the sweet, sweet shit from Santigold and even Andy Milonakis that they've come out with. But they didn't play any of it. They just DJed, with some help from a Bob Marley lookalike, their two hot dancers and some biddies from the crowd who went up on stage to dance. [So sad; I wasn't one of them].
Yes, ML's sex was hot. But I was sups disappointed that they didn't play anything from their album [which, did I mention, is worth listening to??] So if you missed the show because it was sold out, don't feel so bad. DJs are a dime a dozen and, by not playing their songs, ML didn't really distinguish themselves that much.
Besides, you probably got your Saturday night sex & happiness from somewhere [or someone] else.
Previously in Live DC:
- 2/13: LiveDC: George Clinton & The Parliament-Funkadelic @ 930 Club
- 2/13: LiveDC: Veronica Falls/ Brilliant Colors @ Black Cat
- 2/13: LIVE DC: Steve Aoki/ Datsik/ Alvin Risk @ Fillmore
- 2/13: LiveDC: The Darkness @ 930 Club
- 2/9: LiveDC: Theophilus London @ 930 Club
- 2/9: Best Weekend Bets
- 2/8: LiveDC: Kathleen Edwards @ 930 Club
- 2/8: LiveDC: Thurston Moore/ Kurt Vile @ Black Cat
- 2/8: LiveDC: Thurston Moore/ Kurt Vile @ Black Cat
- 2/7: LiveDC: Demetri Martin @ Warner Theatre
God loves a cheerful giver.
wow, who wrote this? it's almost offensive how ignorant this person is about Major Lazer and the music.
"One song, “Annie Mac Minnie Mix”, includes some awesome cameos, including Nirvana, that make the most interesting combination of hot DJ shit and 90’s grunge I HAVE EVER HEARD."
wtf? are you kidding me? THATS NOT A SONG ON THE ALBUM ITS A MINIMIX MADE FOR ANNIE MACS RADIO SHOW AS THE TITLE SO APTLY DESCRIBES.
"But I was sups disappointed that they didn’t play anything from their album [which, did I mention, is worth listening to??] "
ARE YOU FUCKING RETARDED?? THEY PLAYED EVERY SONG OFF OF THEIR ALBUM AND EVEN MORE REMIXES OF THE DIFFERENT TRACKS.
wow BYT this is beyond ridiculous - fire this girl or don't let her write a word about anything ever again.
for the record, Diplo & Switch murked that shit.
"Bob Marley lookalike"?
Really?
They fucking blew my mind. I was a bit too blurred on Bacardi-only drinks (lame; free ticket; net neutral sentiment) to split hairs over what material they jammed, alls Is knows is...it was fuckin tyte.
I was also disappointed on how sparse the crowd got after Matt & Kim. Wish it would've stayed packed to reach the level of Transcendental Rave, but instead it dwindled into a "hey, at least this is free" curious-more-than-interested crowd.
Diplo & Switch were really class act, though. They seemed to orient a lot of dub-step tropes into the live set. I hope DC gets more acts in the same vein as them.
yo mixedblood, you seem to have read everything i wrote excpet the first paragraph? i went to the show because i like the ML mixes i've heard, not because i know shit about DJs.
i listened to the album a million times and didnt recognize anything at the show. sorry if that offends your superior music expertise.
next time ill be more down with the dj lingo.
just for you. <3
LOL @all
I second Lady Glock's comment.
rachel,
this has nothing to do with "dj lingo" or why you went to the show, but with the simple fact that your review is embarassing for BYT, DC and anyone who actually enjoys the work of Diplo & Switch and 77 Klash (the "bob marley look-a-like").
i'm glad you admitted you don't know shit about shit cuz that's already very apparent from what you wrote.
secondly i dun kno how could you listen to the album a million times and not hear all the tracks they played at the show? literally i heard every single track they played and then some - even the "mary jane" song you note. from your review i'm thinkin that's number 2 thing you don't know about because that's basically straight up misinformation and if someone from the outside read this they'd think "they didn't play any of their material? damn that sucks" when in fact they played all of it and well too. that doesn't offend my musical expertise that offends my common sense.
what it comes down to is, you shouldn't have written this review because you simply don't know whatsup. would anyone read a 3rd graders editorial on Obama's health care reform plan as anything but a joke?
BYT should do the right thing and take down your review because it reflects poorly on them and their quality control.
Not everyone is an EDM head, mixblooded. I've been doing the rave/club thing since 1996 and have seen Diplo in DC, Bmore, and London, but I gotta say that you coming off as a bit of a dick. Take the review for what it is: A very positive endorsement of ML from someone who was unfamiliar with them.
Having said that, the Bob Marley comment was...yikes.
wow.
I'm having a LOLgasm over here!
Perhaps the reviewer didn't recognize the tracks because many of them were exclusive/dubplate/remix versions. Fair enough - but keep in mind that introducing that 'DJ culture' that the reviewer is unfamiliar with - especially the Jamaican style, with versioning and toasting (courtesy the talented Klash) - is a major point of this project. They play versions of the songs, rather than the album cuts, precisely because they are trying to give a worthwhile SHOW to the people who made the effort to come out - if all you want to do is listen to the album, well, that's what the album is there for.
I am sympathetic to the reviewer simply not knowing a super lot about the subject, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that - we all have gaps in our musical knowledge. However, i will agree that it's sort of a bad look for BYT to give a reviewing job of such a Major (ahem) show to someone with these particular knowledge-gaps.
LOL
I am confused:
If it was a free show, how was it sold out, and,
does he or does he not look like Bob Marley?
Tickets were free on the Bacardi website. I'm assuming it sold out because Bacardi bought a huge block of tickets to give away early on.
This is impressively bad all around!
Chris - thanks.
well said, cullen.
this was a great show.
I think we can all agree the more informed and objective the reviewer the more useful and enjoyable the review. DC dance music writers, please hit up BYT about covering events. Marcus Dowling, Lady Glock, Couch Sessions, Glass House, DCRap, etc., I'm looking at you.
to be fair.. I think mixblooded really should write a review so rachel can give it her two cents..
ifyknawmean
fuck that, everyone here is soft. this review was ignorant as hell with a racist cherry on top. epic fail on your part. stay inside and do some homework next time before you go and write some dumb sh*t for everyone to read.
i am going to step in and ask how is it racist? i understand the musical nerd brigade taking the lack of musical information/technical details to heart (love you all!) but how is it racist?
I think the comparison to Bob Marley rubbed people the wrong way.
I don't know what the dude looks like, but from looking at the rest of the comments, I get the sense that they think it was a little bit of an "all black people look the same" moment.
chill pills are on the shelf on the left. thanks. seriously?
Let's merge this post and the Iran (or is it Iraq? whatevs, all those camel countries look the same) thread on the SS and just rename it to 'pissing contest.'
why no pictures of diplo and switch?
totally wish i was there.....laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaame
The Bob Marley thing came off more as a weak attempt at a quip than anything racist. At least to me. Like, is that the best that you can do? Bob Marley? It's something my grandmother would've said.
@purple suit: photos of Diplo & Switch at an afterparty > http://www.flickr.com/photos/sexyfitsum/sets/72157620207979123/ Find the one of Switch in the cut turning his Mac on.
I think he looks more like Shaggy.
@purple suit: read the beginning of the article
thaaaaaaaaaanks. guess it helps to read....
I think everyone who got their undies in a bunch at any time during this blog-chain should meet tonight at 12am in Dupont Circle for an all out soccer-bopper fight!