Girls ruled the first half of day two, with strong sets from Star Eyes and Katy B. Star Eyes did the Trouble & Bass fam proud, getting the crowd riled up and giving us a much-needed energy infusion to start our day. Backed by a full band, Katy B had us hooked with her unique voice and delightful stage presence. Other daytime performers included Matador Rockers, Zinc, Atmosphere and Four Tet.

Daytime is fun and all, but Sonar by Night is definitely where it’s at. Friday night featured sets from Cut Copy, M.I.A., Dizzee Rascal, the legendary Aphex Twin, Redlight featuring Dread MC, A-Trak and Boys Noize.

Click through for some photo highlights, and check in with us next week for full recaps and photo galleries.

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As winter in New York City slowly melts away around us, festival season looms larger and larger on the horizon, with events increasing in frequency all around the world along with the rising temperatures. One such event that is particularly noteworthy is Sonar Festival of Advanced Music and Technology, which takes place in the heart of Barcelona, Spain. Sonar was without a doubt one of the highlights of last summer’s musical adventures, and we cannot wait to see what the extraordinary festival has to offer this June 16, 17, and 18, 2011.

There could not be a more perfect setting than Barcelona for such a festival celebrating new, primarily electronic based, music and accompanying technology. The city itself is warm, friendly, and free, containing the perfect combination of historical nostalgia and modern evolution. Sonar by Day takes place in the heart of downtown, with performances primarily centered around the MACBA and the CCCB. Surrounding the festival location are narrow winding streets, welcoming tapas bars and cafes, and lively watering holes brimming with Catalan spirit. As the sun sets and the energy builds, partygoers flock to Sonar by Night, which is located in an enormous warehouse space located on the outskirts of the city near L’Hospitalet. The nighttime festivities carry on far into the morning, with big name DJs, producers, and live bands keeping everyone dancing across three massive stages.

Festival passes for all 3 days can be purchased HERE, along with passes to individual days and nights. Visit Sonar’s WEBSITE for more information and for continued updates as the June draws closer.

See our coverage of DAY 1, DAY 2, and DAY 3 of last year’s Sonar and get a feel for what the event has to offer, and click HERE to go straight to the photo galleries of all Sonar by Day, Sonar by Night, and Off-Sonar events from 2010.

Check out the incredible full line-up of artists below!

Nicolas Jaar, Toro Y Moi, Tyondai Braxton, Little Dragon, Floating Points, Raime, Denseland, Open Reel Ensemble, Daito Manabe, Shuttle, Dels, Offshore, Eskmo, Astrud + Col·lectiu Brossa, Agoria, Hauschka, Atmosphere, Dominique Young Unique, Oy, Xesús Valle, Facto y los Amigos del Norte, How To Dress Well, Holy Other, Actress, Apparat, Global Communication, Hype Williams, Gilles Peterson, Shangaan Electro, No Surrender, Filewile, EVOL, Edredón, Judah, DJ Sith & David M, Downliners Sekt, C156, Steve Reich + bcn216 + Synergy Vocals, M.I.A., Aphex Twin, The Human League, Cut Copy, Boys Noize, Die Antwoord, Trentemøller, A-Trak, Scuba , Steve Aoki, Munchi, Djedjotronic, Schlachthofbronx, Annie Mac + Katy B, Benji B + Pearson Sound, Toddla T + Redlight feat. Ms Dynamite & Dread MC, Mujuice, DZA, Diskjokke, Annie, Bjorn Torske, Underworld, Magnetic Man, Janelle Monáe, Chris Cunningham, Shackleton, James Holden, The Gaslamp Killer, Surgeon, Buraka Som Sistema, Africa Hitech, Paul Kalkbrenner, Mary Anne Hobbs, Yelle, Silent Servant, Noaipre, L-Vis 1990 b2b Bok Bok, Egyptrixx, Deadboy, Jackmaster, Lory D, Redinho, Spencer, Jessie Ware, Rone, Arandel, Clara Moto, Alva Noto + Ryuichi Sakamoto, Katy B, Zinc, Tiger & Woods, B. Bravo, Brandt Brauer Frick, Daisuke Tanabe, Discodeine, Illum Sphere, kidkanevil, Juan Son, Jullian Gomes, Poirier feat. Boogat, Teebs, Venice

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

Just in time to close out the outdoor concert season, Virgin Mobile FreeFest 2010 will take over Merriweather Post Pavilion on September 25. In addition to the two main stages, which will feature Thievery Corporation, LCD Soundsystem, M.I.A., Matt & Kim, and others, the festival will also include a “Dance Forest” soundtracked by Chromeo, Sleigh Bells, Neon Indian, Modeselektor and Die Antwoord. As if that weren’t enough, Trombone Shorty (featured on HBO’s Treme) will lead a second line march from stage to stage, a unique tradition from his hometown of New Orleans.

Not only is the line-up out-of-this-world awesome, the show is also free. Yes, free. So start buttering up your friends with cars because this mini-festival is worth the trip.

Tickets go “on free” Saturday, July 24 at 10 AM on Ticketfly, who is waiving all service fees for the occasion. If you miss out on the free tickets, Virgin Mobile is offering up a limited set of premium tickets, which gives access to pavilion seating. As an added bonus, Rusko has produced a mini mix featuring many of the artists on the line-up, which is available for $5. Proceeds from premium ticket sales and the mini mix will be donated to charities supporting homeless youth.

With vocals by M.I.A. and Collie Buddz, and remixes from Thom Yorke, Buraka Som Sistema, Kicks Like a Mule (KLAM) and others, the latest EP from Major Lazer, Lazers Never Die, highlights the great dynamics between DJs/producers Switch and Diplo. Five tracks in all, these songs are busy and unlike the riddim vibes of their 2009 release, Guns Don’t Kill People, Lazers Do. For $4.95 we’d say Lazers Never Die is a pretty good deal, but nothing beats a free sample - click here to stream the EP on Myspace.

Click through for the track list and a video-teaser for the album.

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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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Photo Credit: Loren Wohl

On Saturday, Vice and Intel officially introduced The Creators Project to the world with a massive launch party in New York City. Milk Studios was the perfect setting for the event,  simultaneously acting as a museum, music venue, movie theater, classroom, and party space.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW PHOTOS FROM THE NYC LAUNCH EVENT

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We were already amped about the massive line-up for Øya Festival in Norway, but after seeing the list of artists scheduled to perform at Nighttime Øya, our anticipation has gone through the roof. Øya has teamed up with some of the best clubs in Oslo to keep the music going after the park closes at 11 PM. Diplo, Caribou, Four Tet, Jamie XX are among those who will illuminate the nightlife scene in the nation’s capital each night after the festival.

As for the festival itself, Yeasayer, Die Antwood, and the Flaming Lips have been added to the roster, which was finalized last week. They will join the list of previously announced artists that includes M.I.A., LCD Soundsystem, Robyn, La Roux, The xx, Sleigh Bells, Miike Snow, Major Lazer and many, many more.

Tickets for Øya Nighttime events will be available at the venue and in advance at the festival. Discounts will be given to those who hold a festival pass, which costs around $330 for five-days. CLICK HERE for tickets and info.

In a surprising union, Major Lazer (Diplo + Switch) has teamed up with La Roux to create Lazerproof, a mixtape that combines Major Lazer’s electro-dancehall bangers with tracks from La Roux’s eponymous debut album. No stranger to the realm of mixtapes, Diplo has collaborated with M.I.A. on Piracy Funds Terrorism and Santigold on Top Ranking, creating mixtapes that fuse the respective artists’ debut albums with a selection of hip hop, dubstep and reggae beats. La Roux’s songs have seen their share of dubstep remixes, making her collaboration with Major Lazer a little less surprising (bonus: check out tradehooks compilation of the best La Roux remixes HERE).

Lazerproof balances the familiar with the unfamiliar, while delivering surprise after surprise. Some songs are close derrivatives of their respective archetypes  - the Costra Nostra Edit of “Cover My Eyes” adds a ska beat while keeping the melody and vocals intact. “In For The Kill” gets reworked twice, first in “Independent Kill”, where Candi Redd raps over the original melody, then again in ”In 4 The Kill Pon de Skream”, which takes Skream’s pervasive remix  and laces it with a stripped-down beat from “Pon de Floor” for a curiously subtle result.

“Magic (Falling Soldiers Dub)”, a less obvious interpretation of “As If By Magic”, takes the vocals from its poppy predecessor and lays it over a reggae dub. Stripped of its synth undertones, the song takes on a completely different mood. The two closing tracks – “I Said It (Major Lazer Dubplate)” featuring Opal and “Hold Yuh (Double Dubplate)” featuring Gyptian – left us mystified. Although there are two La Roux songs that didn’t get the mixtape treatment (“Saviour” and “Reflections Are Protection”), neither resembles the tracks in question.

CLICK HERE to download Lazerproof from the Mad Decent blog, a free download if you get it today (Wednesday, May 26). Last we checked, the server was having some issues, so if you need it right this second (as we did), head over to the Stockholm Beat Connection for an alternate download link.

We leave you with two samples from Lazerproof: “In 4 The Kill Pon de Skream” and the mysterious “Hold Yuh (Double Dubplate)”. If you can figure out its origins, by all means, enlighten us in the comments section below.

Major Lazer & La Roux – “In 4 The Kill Pon de Skream”

Major Lazer & La Roux featuring Gyptian – “Hold Yuh (Double Dubplate)”

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This week’s volume of Music Monday brings us artists with new albums who have the ability to take simple forms and make them resonate with reverberation inspired either by words, vocals, instrumentals or beats. This Music Monday features The National (High Violet), Fan-Tan (Age of Discovery), Kaskade (Dynasty), Marco Benevento (Between the Needles and Nightfall), Thee Oh Sees (Warm Slime) and a bonus track from M.I.A‘s forthcoming untitled album.

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