Last Tuesday night, we made our way to Highline Ballroom for Chiddy Bang’s Opposite of Adults’ Release Party. Featuring Chiddy Bang, Donnis, XV, 2AM Club and Samuel, the night had many surprises in store for eager fans.  We arrived just in time to catch 2AM Club’s great crowd interaction. As they sang “Worry about you,” the audience chimed along. Next up, XV stepped up to the plate, commanding the stage with an awareness as he delivered sharp verses to some heavy beats. Playing several tracks from his mixtape, Everybody is Nobody, the audience took heed to every word. From Smallville, Kansas, XV showed that he has game, and that he can certainly play with the rest.

Donnis blew the roof off the house when he jumped onto the stage. The Atlanta-based rapper exploded with metaphors and presented a fresh accent of country cool and grammar. One of XXl Magazine’s 2010 freshmen class, Donnis exercised crowd control like an experienced pro. Having seen him several times, he has certainly grown up from his freshmen days, but still knows how to play. When he brought up Jim Jones for a number, the audience erupted in fervor and excitement, and it didn’t stop there. Following up, the live and instrumental infusion of Chiddy Bang added a fresh touch of indie hip-hop to the music depository of the night. With a hodgepodge of styles, Chiddy Bang has a knack for creating great combination of melodies intertwined with lyrical play. Their live variations and tracks from ther new album, The Opposite Of Adults, was a treat for the audience – especially when they unveiled a new song produced by Pharrell Williams.

Overall, the entire show had a great vibe, and for their first sold-out show in New York City, we’d say Chiddy Bang hit this one out of the park. The audience came for fun, and by the expressions around the room, they certainly got it. Check out photos from the night by Oliver Correa.

Last Saturday, HARD Summer Tour hit New York City’s Terminal 5 as the second to last stop on their nationwide journey bringing dance music to the masses. Terminal 5, whose capacity is set at 3,000 heads, was completely sold out; packed wall to wall on every level with enthusiastic partygoers who were nearly bursting at the seams with energetic excitement. New Yorkers JDH & Dave P started off the night with an opening set of disco tinged house music, which provided the perfect appetizer for Destructo’s heavily electro influenced set, heating the dancefloor up in earnest. By the time Sinden took the stage, the crowd had been reduced to one heaving organism that was pressed up against the barrier as he spun a set of solid bass music, bring in elements of house, dubstep, and garage. Canadians Crystal Castles closed out the night with their explosive performance of experimental electronic music created through the use of a live band.

Thanks to our good friends over at URB Magazine, we were lucky enough to have the opportunity to sit down and chat with UK producer/DJ Sinden who has revitalized the club scene with his own brand of forward thinking remixes and productions, clever mash ups, and genre-melting DJ sets. Although Sinden’s sound is associated with different forms of house music, his original influences while growing up stemmed from hardcore hip-hop, the kind that you have to be over 16 to purchase (in the UK), and that your parents would confiscate and destroy if the records were ever found. He sights Public Enemy and N.W.A. as primary influences, which then lead him to branch into the discovery of electronic music through jungle and garage. Pulp Fiction’s “Alex Reece”, which he describes as soulful, sparse, quirky, minimal, and different, fundamentally changed his perception of electronic music and inspired him to truly embrace dance music.

His new label, Grizzly, is in many ways set to reflect Sinden’s own eclectic taste and his desire to keep things fresh and constantly pushing forward. Although house has always been the unifying focal point for the music Sinden has been involved in with regards to both his own production and DJ sets, Grizzly in many ways represents a move away from the traditional 4×4, and an attempt to create and experiment with new patterns and ways of looking at club music.The direction that the label will take is still very fluid, with Sinden’s own innate sense for sound acting as the primary compass – certainly nothing to complain about. Sinden’s own transition into UK Funky and more cutting edge sound has mostly stemmed from a boredom with the over-saturation of generic basslines, which stirred up a desire to move forward and keep things interesting, through tapping into unique micro scenes from all around the world, such as guarachero and old go-go rhythms. In this sense, he has never been much of a “genre” artist, preferring to dabble in many different areas and switch up his production, keeping us hanging on his every release.

Sinden will head back to the studio at the end of this year to work on some solo material, but there’s plenty from Grizzly to keep your dancing shoes moving until then. You can look forward to the release of a collaborative record between Felix Buxton of Basement Jaxx’s disco alias Jon Gionvanni and Sinden, as well as new material from Bassanova (Grahmzilla and Jess Jubilee’s project). You should also keep your ears peaked for Sinden’s remix of Lone’s “Once in a While”, which is sure to be a killer track, and as always, future releases from his role as one half of The Count & Sinden.

Check out the full photo gallery from this edition of HARD Summer HERE.

With the recent release of Body Talk Pt. 1 and the imminent release of Pt. 2, I was eager to see how Robyn’s performance has evolved since I last saw her in 2008. The good news: Robyn’s headlining performance on Friday was everything I could have hoped for and more. The bad: she left “Konichiwa Bitches” off an otherwise strong set list. But personal gripes aside, Robyn’s set was hands-down my favorite of the week.

She started things off with ”Fembot” and went straight into “Cry When You Get Older” before kicking back to 2005’s Robyn with a retooled version of “Cobrastyle”. The set list was perfectly balanced between old and new songs, and included almost every track from Body Talk Part 1 (“Dancing On My Own”, “Dancehall Queen”, “None of Dem” and “Don’t Fucking Tell Me What to Do”). As with “Cobrastyle”, Robyn offered up fresh interpretations of several old favorites, including “Be Mine”, “Who’s That Girl” and her breakout debut single, “Show Me Love”. She also played “Dream On”, a collaboration with Swedish musician/producer Christian Falk, and closed the show with an epic rendition of “With Every Heartbeat” in its full original glory.

The creativity that Robyn displays in her impressive body of work has already set her apart from the droves of pop stars that have come and gone over the course of her fifteen-year career. Add her showmanship to the mix and she is completely untouchable. Robyn had me captivated from the moment she took the stage for her first-ever U.S. show at Highline Ballroom in February 2008. She began the show with “Cobrastyle”, delivering the first four lines with a rigidity that matched the form of the song, then suddenly broke into a dance so uninhibited and natural, I can still remember the audience’s collective awe and delight.

What I find so admirable about Robyn (aside from her music, of course) is how high she set the bar back in 2008, and how easily she cleared it two years later. Almost all of the artists I’ve seen on multiple occasions have failed to live up to magic of the first time, but Robyn is a clear exception. Not only did she wisely wait until she had new material before embarking on a major tour, her effervescent personality is so infectious, it makes you wish she was your best friend.

Body Talk Pt. 2 will be released in the U.S. on September 7 with Pt. 3 on the horizon, also slated for a 2010 release. Click through for photos of Robyn’s amazing Øya performance, and CLICK HERE to see more photos from the festival.

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What’s left to say about Major Lazer? After attending every single NYC appearance, I thought I’d tire of seeing them live. Not so. Diplo and Skerrit Bwoy took over Øya’s Vika stage with lazers blazing for one of the most explosive sets of the week. Though there were familiar elements I’d come to expect from a Major Lazer show – Skerrit Bwoy’s “Pon De Floor” moves, girls dancing on stage, and a touch of Ace of Base – there were definitely some surprises in store.

Assigned the sunset time slot, Major Lazer ushered in the night with a full-blown party, transforming the stage into outdoor dancehall. Flaming Lips lead singer Wayne Coyne joined us in the photo pit to take some choice shots of his own, a testament to Major Lazer’s growing popularity. Coyne wasn’t the only one who made a guest appearance – Die Antwoord joined the action and clearly had a blast on stage, wearing Pokemon and Stitch onesies, no less. Unpredictable as always, Skerrit Bwoy took advantage of the scenic atmosphere, disappearing for a moment only to emerge in one of the trees surrounding the stage.

All in all, it was one of my favorite Major Lazer performances to date. I had to take off a little early to catch Robyn, but given their recent collaboration, I have to wonder if La Roux made a cameo after I left.

Catch some snaps of Major Lazer’s set after the jump… and CLICK HERE for more photos from the festival.

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Miike Snow’s performance was the one I was most looking forward to on Øya’s second day. And while Richie Adomako and Kenroy George reported on one of three sold-out NYC shows back in March, I personally never had the pleasure of seeing them live.

The band took the stage in matching black jackets and white theatrical masks, which coupled with the lights, fog and ambient intro, gave off an eerie vibe reminiscent of the Phantom of the Opera. They launched into “Cult Logic” and “Burial”, removing their masks in one fell swoop during “Black & Blue” to reveal the full emotional range behind their music.

Physically watching each member’s contribution to the sound made me appreciate the complexity of each song even more. While the entire set list came from their eponymous debut album, the live interpretations were not mere regurgitations of the originals. Miike Snow pushed the boundaries of each song’s structure, adding improvisational breaks to several album favorites, including “Sylvia” and “Black & Blue”. As expected, they ended the show with a rousing rendition of their first single, “Animal”.

Click through for photos from Miike Snow’s Øya performance, or CLICK HERE for more snaps of the festival.

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Øya’s Friday line-up was by far the most popular – single day passes sold out less than 20 minutes after their release. Stacked with MVPs like Die Antwoord, Flaming Lips, La Roux, Major Lazer and Robyn, the line-up was not only  good on paper, each artist delivered solid performances that collectively made the third day of the festival Øya’s best overall.

Check in throughout the week for highlights of individual performances…

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL ALBUM

Thursday was sunny and gorgeous, perfect weather for an outdoor festival. We kicked off our day with some appropriately tropical tunes, with Norway natives Casiokids and the LA-based Fool’s Gold (not to be confused with Fool’s Gold Records). Miike Snow was a definite highlight – their live set highlighted the complex layers of their music. LCD Soundsytem was great as expected, and it was especially nice to see Brooklyn’s own Yeasayer, who we’ve never had the pleasure of seeing live.

The beautiful weather rekindled our spirit of musical exploration and gave us more freedom to wander from stage to stage. Over the course of the day, we caught glimpses of Broken Bells, Lindstrøm & Christabelle and Jonsi.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL ALBUM

Øya got off to a rainy start on Wednesday, where dedicated poncho-clad fans came out in droves to take in a wide variety of both local and international acts. We checked out performances by Imperial State Electric, Gaslight Anthem, Sleigh Bells and M.I.A., and stumbled upon a hilarious scene during Fucked Up’s set, when the lead singer stripped to his skivvies and sang from the audience, stopping for a photo opp along the way (above).

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL ALBUM

The night before the official start of the festival, Øya kicked things off with the annual Klubbdagen (Club Day), where nearly 80 local bands played in 25 venues scattered around Central Oslo. Armed with the official Klubbdagen map and our iPhone (which will surely come back to haunt us with an astronomical phone bill), we navigated the streets of Oslo, making stops to check out The Last Heat at Juicy På Sukkerbiten, Tre Små Tøser (which loosely translates to “Three Small Hussies”) at Blå, and Phone Joan at Gamla.

And since the experience was just as much about exploring the city as it was about exploring the music, we’ve included some snaps of the sights we encountered along the way.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL ALBUM

Last Thursday, Green Label Sound brought electro-funk pioneers Pee Thug and Dave 1, otherwise known as Chromeo, to the stage of the Bowery Ballroom in a spectacularly sexy display of light, energy, and sound. Native New Yorkers Telephoned and Holy Ghost! opened for Chromeo, warming up the expectant crowd with their individual flavors of party music.

In recent years, Chromeo has gained a stellar reputation for their cheeky brand of pop music which oozes sex and attitude through every synthesized note. The two French Canadian musicians have been known to describe themselves jokingly as the only successful Arab/Jewish partnership since the dawn of human culture, but the breakthrough of their second album Fancy Footwork demonstrated that their success is no laughing matter.

Taking the stage of the Ballroom to the roaring sound of the crowd chanting their name, the duo took their places behind their signature well heeled legs of light, accompanied by three backup vocalists in little black dresses. Playing the whole set with dark shades on, Chromeo exuded cool while maintaining a vibe of accessibility and fun. The crowd went wild for tracks like “Tenderoni” and “Needy Girl”, singing along with every lyric and seriously getting down to the funky bassline. Using an impressive array of keyboards, synthesizers, drums, guitar and a talk box, the artists each employed multiple instruments, demonstrating without a doubt that while their show may be flashy, their music is built on a foundation of serious talent.

Look out for Chromeo’s third album Business Casual, which is set to drop September 14 and features their new single “Don’t Turn the Lights On”. Check out the full photo gallery from the show HERE.