Six weeks have passed since I last witnessed A-Trak create a sea of bodies shake the floor at Webster Hall for the Downtown 5^th Anniversary Party. Next Saturday, April 30, A-Trak will be gracing New York with his presence once again. Scion is bringing the Magic 8-Ball Tour to Terminal 5, featuring A-Trak, Kid Sister and The Gaslamp Killer.

For those who don’t know, A-Trak was the first DJ to take home all three competition titles (DMC, ITF, Vestax) and the first to win five World Championships. He won DMC’s World DJ Championship at the mere age of 15, making him the youngest person to ever win this competition. However, when A-Trak performs live, his main concern is the audience, making sure they dance and flow in sync with his roaring beats of disco, house, funk, and occasional rap. But his magnetic scratch techniques and turntable skills will inevitably be apart of the equation. The new Ducksauce (DJ A-Trak and DJ Armand Van Helden) album is just about complete, so I’m looking forward to novel up and coming tunes weaving their way into his set.

Performing alongside A-Trak will be Melisa Young (a.k.a. Kid Sister) whom A-Trak produces and has signed to his label Fool’s Gold. Kid Sister draws inspiration from the music of her youth. She blends electro pop, hip-hop, ghetto house, and Chicago house into one cohesive sound and performs it with deep soul.

The third on the line up is The Ghostland Killer, a LA based DJ who releases his mixes off of Flying Lotus’s label Brainfeeder. His sound is unique and has ample range. From Indian instruments, jazz horn lines, symphonic string melodies, and light percussion to dubstep, heavy basslines, and controlled static, he does it all.

Comfortable shoes are encouraged because this will be an entire night of hard dancing. Join us at Terminal 5 for this show as we jump into the New York summer scene together. This show will be a treat.

Tickets range from $25 to $35 and can be purchased HERE.

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

Next month, A-Trak will embark on a cross-country tour with Kid Sister and The Gaslamp Killer. A-Trak has a knack for combining electro and hip hop (if you don’t know what we mean, CLICK HERE to check out his last mixtape, Dirty South Dance 2), and is best known for his legendary scratching skills, for which he won the DMC World Championship at the tender age of 15 (the youngest winner to date). Lately, A-Trak has kept busy as one half of Duck Sauce, who’s single, “Barbra Streisand” was an international hit. We’re hoping this tour will give us a preview of what we can expect from A-Trak’s upcoming album.

Joining the Magic 8-Ball Tour on the ones and twos is The Gaslamp Killer, who we saw this past weekend at A Taste of Sonar in London. From what we saw, GLK is a perfect match-up for this tour; like A-Trak, he has an uncanny way of mixing hip hop with electro (and has some scratching skills to boot), but the two artists’ styles are completely different.

The Magic 8-Ball Tour hits NYC’s Terminal 5 on Saturday, April 30 with special guest The Clipse. Get a full list of tour dates and links to purchase tickets HERE.

Last Saturday, we jetted to London to catch A Taste of Sonar, the annual preview event for the three-day festival held in Spain in June. Buraka Som Sistema has been at the top of my must-see list ever since their live show was described to me as a “life-changing experience”. So I when I saw the opportunity to route my return flight through London, I jumped at the chance to catch their show.

Continue Reading

Tomorrow, we’re heading to London to catch A Taste of Sonar, Sonar Festival’s annual preview event in London. Headlined by Buraka Som Sistema, the event is meant to give the London audience a taste of some of the artists playing at the Barcelona festival this June. Buraka will perform on the main stage, along with The Gaslamp Killer and Noalpre. The second stage, curated by the Red Bull Academy, will feature MJ Cole, Benji B, Axel Boman, Braiden and Tiger & Woods.

And how’s this for impeccable timing: last week, Mishka released the 24th edition of their Keep Watch Mix series, featuring none other than Buraka Som Sistema. It’s a great mix with chilled out moments and some fun remixes. Definitely check it out –  CLICK HERE to cop a free download, courtesy of Mishka.

For those residing in London,  A Taste of Sonar, is happening at The Roundhouse in Camden. Tickets are available HERE.

This Friday, July 30th, Webster Hall will be sculpted into bass heaven with Nero and Gaslamp Killer, while our favorite NYC trio, Ayres, Catchdubs and Jubilee, bring their flashing lights rave goodness to the stage. This is one not to be missed, period.

Last time we caught the mother fucking Gaslamp Killer, he delivered an epic sermon of cosmic bass that melted our brains in Brooklyn. Vaulting hip-hop into another dimension, GLK’s eccentrically dizzy dj sets wrap riddims around your soul while his hair keeps up the tempo. Have a listen to this mixtape from last year which Flying Lotus tells us is his first glimpse into the mind of GLK.

The Gaslamp Killer – Brainfeeder Podcast [Download]

Nero brings their internally bruising drum & bass and dubstep riddims straight across the pond to damage your ear drums. Remixing eveyrone from The Streets to Beyonce, these boys are poised to bring out the bassface in everyone. Check out one of the their hugest anthems from this year…

Nero – Innocence

The Flashing Lights crew needs no introduction. Let their latest mix do all the talking…

Flashing Lights Mix #6

FREE BEFORE MIDNIGHT WITH RSVP - CLICK HERE

ADVANCE TICKETS - CLICK HERE

Featuring The Gaslamp Killer & Prefuse 73 at the Music Hall of Williamsburg

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL ALBUM

Gaslamp Killer – I Spit On Your Grave

The best present this holiday season came from none other than the beat junkie Flying Lotus. He released a mixtape chronicling cosmic dubs and edits from the past ten years, blended perfectly by The Gaslamp Killer. Here are FlyLo’s words:

Merry Christmas and happy holidays to everyone
as we’re approaching this new year, I felt it was time to let go of some things that have been gathering dust. Some old things, and some new things, I tried to pick out tracks that I know yall haven’t heard yet so there should be surprises around every turn.

can’t believe i’ve been making tracks for over 10 years now..That said, there’s so much to learn still.

I hope you all enjoy this mix. Thanks to the Gaslamp Killer for doing an incredible job on this.

Can’t wait for you all to hear my album ‘Cosmogramma’ coming out April 20th 2010 on Warp Records.

Enjoy
s

Brainfeeder

The Gaslamp Killer – “A Decade of Flying Lotus”