Article By: Mark Dommu
Photos By: Jenna Gard

This Saturday night those of us looking to boogie made the irritatingly inconvenient trip to Terminal 5 (seriously, T5 is so out of the way) for HARD X MOUTH TAPED SHUT, a party in celebration of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. The night promised to be a good one, with LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy opening for Italian electronic duo The Bloody Beetroots. I’m a long time Beetroots fan and have seen them spin several times, always waking up sore and happy the next day, so I went in with high expectations.

The event was 18 and over and free, which meant that about 80% of the crowd had black x’s on their hands. I wondered several times if HARD had been handing out flyers to NYU freshman in Washington Square Park. I’m also not sure how exactly the event had anything to do with The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, aside from the fact that Rooney Mara’s head was everywhere…I guess that’s enough?

Proxy and Eye started out the evening, getting the initially small crowd dancing. When Proxy finished up the audience started calling eagerly for James Murphy, only to be met with a ridiculously long wait for his set. After about half an hour someone finally announced that there were technical difficulties and we were placated with Trent Reznor and Karen O’s cover of “Immigrant Song”, which debuted this summer with the first trailer for The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

After an hour of oddly low-tempo filler music (one prolific teenager behind me commented that, “this music is not, like, nice”) Murphy finally appeared and rather halfheartedly apologized for the wait, citing problems with a turntable…or something. He promised the audience, “We’re gonna have as much fun as you can in a short period of time with your clothes on.”

He was…not exactly telling the truth. After such a long wait, Murphy’s set was rather anticlimactic. The set started off with a funky tribal beat that stayed smooth and easy and got everyone dancing. For the most part Murphy’s set sounded like Miami in the 70s, and also maybe the 90s. There were a few interesting moments throughout, one drawn out warping sounded like a spaceship taking off, but for the most part it was an altogether uninspired set and Murphy seemed to be disinterested in the whole affair.

Almost the second Murphy finished the crowd started chanting for the Bloody Beetroots, and the crowd went wild when they appeared. They started with a bang and tore relentlessly through a thrashing, thumping and glorious set. If you’ve never seen the Bloody Beetroots spin before than you are seriously missing out. It’s the kind of set that you have to flail and jump around too. I could feel the bass pounding in my chest, making my face throb with every pulse.

The Bloody Beetroots are certifiable bad asses and they also clearly care about their audience having a good time, They were invested in the crowd’s enjoyment, at one point coming out form behind the DJ booth to rev everyone up. The crowd was losing their shit, I was almost kicked in the head by three different crowd surfers and did not care.

The Bloody Beetroots definitely made the entire night worthwhile, and on the way home I kept thinking about alien’s in boat shoes dancing to James Murphy’s set…so there’s that. I did wake up the next morning sore and happy wit the thump-thump still pulsing in my head, so mission accomplished.

For Jenna Gard’s full photo gallery: click here

Looking to dance your ass off this weekend? This Saturday night the Bloody Beetroots will rock the shit out of Terminal 5 for HARD x MOUTH TAPED SHUT, an event celebrating the release of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. The electronic duo will spin a DJ set, supported by James Murphy (of LCD Soundsystem), Proxy and Eye. Surprisingly this show is FREE! All you need to do is RSVP! Unfortunately, the RSVP list is now full, but if you get to the venue early chances are high that you will be able to get in for free! Terminal 5 will be the place to be at 7 PM. See you there! For more information about the event, click here.

For the second year in a row, HARD is bringing their night of electronic music mayhem to New York with Digitalism, Caspa, Switch, Designer Drugs and Destructo on Saturday, August 20th at Terminal 5.  Each with their own brand of heavy bass drops and digital wobble, this will be an amazing way to hear what music some of the best dub-step and eletro DJs are currently producing.

Click here to purchase your tickets and check out videos from Digitalism and Destructo after the jump.

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What better way to burn off thousands of excess Thanksgiving calories than to dance the night away? Last Saturday at Terminal 5, we did just that with Turkey Soup, the latest installment of the HARD series that featured Destructo, Yelawolf, Miike Snow, Flying Lotus, A-Trak and Tiga.

Destructo (aka Gary Richards, founder of HARD) started the show on a strong note, debuting Hard’s elaborate new set-up, complete with a raised DJ booth. Next up, Yelawolf took over the mic, demonstrating the chops and charisma that could catapult him to mainstream success.

When artists make the jump from band member to DJ, the results have varied considerably, ranging from amazing (Passion Pit’s Shuttle) to disastrous (I’m not naming any names). We weren’t quite sure what (or who) to expect from Miike Snow’s DJ set, but any skepticism immediately vanished once they took over the decks. Christian Karlsson and Pontus Winnberg delivered a killer set, and were appropriate representatives for the band – the duo has worked together under the pseudonym Bloodshy and Avant, writing and producing records for the likes of Madonna, Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, and more.

Flying Lotus, brilliant as always, stepped up his game by supplementing his set with a bassist and drummer, making this his first New York City appearance with live instrumentalists. I’m not sure if this qualifies as his ∞ project (it wasn’t billed as such), since past ∞ appearances have included a fuller range of instruments (guitar, keys, harp, violin, saxophone, among others). Nevertheless, the band was a great addition that made his music more hard-hitting and added depth to his set.

Looking sharp in a grey tux and bow-tie, A-Trak played a set that drew heavily from his growing list of hits. The crowd was still going strong as Tiga closed out the night.

CLICK HERE to view more photos by Lauren Marsh, and HERE to check out videos from Poison Ivy.

Now that we’re over the CMJ and Halloween craziness of October, it’s time for us to take a look at what we have coming up this month. Click through to see some of our top picks…

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This summer, Hard is going bigger than ever, with not one, but TWO New York City visits from the LA-based party machine.

On July 24, Hard will carry on one of NYC’s favorite summer pastimes with an outdoor concert at Governor’s Island. Headliner M.I.A. will be joined by fellow Creators Project alums Die Antwoord and Sleigh Bells, along with Skream, Benga, Rye Rye, Theophilus London, Borgore, Destructo, 12th Planet, Nguzunguze and Ninjasonik, all coming together for an evening of music you won’t want to miss. [tickets + info]

This August, Hard will also hit the road for their first tour, stopping in 12 cities across the US and Canada. Crystal Castles, Sinden and Destructo will take over NYC’s Terminal 5 on August 21, with more performers to be announced at a later date. [tickets + info]

To prepare you for the madness, the good folks at Hard released a promotional mix featuring artists that will perform at Hard this summer. Though the mix is geared towards the L.A. events, the mix is not only free, but also good, so who are we to complain? Listen to the mix below, or CLICK HERE download. Peep the tracklist after the jump…

Hard Promo Mix (Produced by Nitrus)

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Last Saturday, Hard brought their signature party back to the east coast for a blowout that drew a sold-out crowd to Terminal 5. The unstoppable line-up of Destructo, Proxy, Buraka Som Sistema, Major Lazer and Boys Noize delivered five straight hours of pulsating electro that made Hard’s second outing in New York City a raging success.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL ALBUM

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Hard Fest recently announced that M.I.A. will headline shows in both Los Angeles and in New York City this summer. The dates are particularly well-timed, given that M.I.A.’s third studio album is tentatively slated for a June release. Last January, M.I.A. took to Twitter to leak a new track, “There’s Space For Ol Dat I See”, produced by Rusko (listen to it below). We’re hoping that this new collaboration will manifest itself on stage this summer, which isn’t too farfetched – Diplo was M.I.A.’s official DJ on the People vs. Money tour in 2008.

M.I.A. + Rusko – “There’s Space For Ol Dat I See”

Hard NYC will take place on July 24 on Governor’s Island. Tickets go on sale Friday, March 26 at noon. There will be a limited number of $40 tickets available.

Don’t forget, Hard will be hosting a pool party this Thursday in Miami, and will hit NYC on April 3 with Major Lazer, Boys Noize, Buraka Som Sistema, Proxy, and Destructo.

As usual, Diplo turned to Twitter to announce an April release for Lazers Never Die, the upcoming Major Lazer EP. “Sound of Siren”, which features M.I.A. and Busy Signal, is the first song off the EP and has already been making its way around the interwebs.

The EP will also feature collaborations with Buraka Som Sistema, Collie Buddz, Lindi Ortega, Kicks Like a Mule, Ms. Banks and Thom Yorke (which brings to mind another Diplo Tweet from a few weeks ago).

Major Lazer will embark on a “Lazers Never Die” tour this spring, which will include stops at Ultra (March 27), Hard NYC (April 3), and Coachella (April 17). Listen to “Sound of Siren” below, and click through for the full track listing.

Major Lazer featuring M.I.A. and Busy Signal – “Sound of Siren” (right click to download via Pitchfork)

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After a successful debut last month, Hard has announced the line-up for their next New York City outing, which will once again take place at Terminal 5 on April 3rd, 2010. Hard NYC’s first event leaned heavily towards dubstep, with a line-up that included genre heavyweights Crookers and Rusko. While Destructo and Major Lazer will make repeat appearances, Hard is diversifying, adding German electro sensation Boys Noize, Portuguese quartet Buraka Som Sistema, and the US debut of Russian DJ Proxy. Like Major Lazer, Buraka Som Sistema bridges a musical and cultural gap by mixing familiar sounds with their worldly musical style.

Speaking of Major Lazer, they recently embarked on an international tour, with Jillionaire (aka Trini Chris) taking over for Skerrit Bwoy as the resident MC. Chris recently sent us this remix of Major Lazer’s “Jump Up”, which, apart from the vocals, is a totally different track with more of an electro-house vibe, done by Trinidad-based Razorshop Productions. Check it out below or download it here, and look out for more remixes and releases in the coming months from Chris’ fledgling label, Feel Up Recordings.

Major Lazer – “Jump Up” (Razorshop Funky Sax Dub Mix)

Click here to buy tickets and check out photos from Hard NYC‘s debut in October.