[Album] Big Gigantic: "The Night Is Young"
Dominic Lalli and Jeremy Salken make up the eclectic electronic dance music duo Big Gigantic. The pair have made name for themselves over the better part of the last five years since entering the national scene on the back of their talented, yet still developing aesthetic of mixing Jazz and Electronic sensibilities coherently into a single production. Where the pair's debut project, Fire It Up comes with glitchy electronic hits and seemingly forced horn runs, their latest project is anything but. Polished over incessant touring schedules and packed festival lineups every year, Big Gigantic has evolved into one of the most entertaining live electronic acts in the world. Forget the smoke, light stick cannons and 3D renderings of acts like Excision, Datsik and the like; what sets Big Gigantic apart and allows them to live up to their name is the innate ability to be different through instrumentation.
The first time seeing Lalli induce a drop with his saxophone, accented by Salken on drums live is an almost truly out of body experience. The Night Is Young very well may be the duo's best offering to date. Building on production lines established on the last project, Nocturnal, it is a full step up from where they were a year ago at this time. On "Blue Dream" you can hear pieces of "Rise and Shine", but with a distinctly different play on notes that takes it to a different place sonically. Sounds are tighter, the horns and electronic hits feel in tune with one another. If their debut project was electronic with a sprinkle of Jazz, this latest offering is a more equal split of tendencies. Adding Cherub on the first single off the project, aptly titled "The Night is Young" is the perfect collaboration for the pair and one that I am personally glad is out in the world. The project was released both as a free download via their website and on iTunes and Lalli and Salken announced a nationwide tour (Tickets) in tune with the project's release. Check it all out below.
(Check the Kanye sample on "Clvdbvrst")
Cherub Announces North American Tour with ProbCause
Photo by Bobby Reys
Breakthrough dance music duo Cherub made waves last year with a sound that paired '80s aesthetics, modern-day dance music motifs, and some inspired falsetto to create one of the most exciting sounds to come out of last year as they rode the success to several festival dates, including North Coast where I was able to catch up with them. It was during that summer that the pair linked up with eclectic Chicago hip-hop artist ProbCause who joined them on the majority of their headlining tour that ran through the end of last summer and fall. Today, Cherub announced a monster North American tour that kicks off in Nashville on March 1 and runs through May 3 where they wrap things up in Baton Rouge, LA. Jordan Kelley and Jason Huber handpicked ProbCause and Carousel to join them on the massive North American journey as well, so expect these shows to really be poppin'. Full dates available here below.
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[Video] ProbCause: "Prelude to Summer Pt. 1"
Photo By: Alexander Richter
He may be out of town, on tour with Cherub, but the homie ProbCause dropped a new video, "Prelude to Summer Pt. 1" featuring footage from his North Coast set, as well as party scenes from The O'My's place a couple weeks ago. The track, produced by Na$im Williams and Drew Mantia gets some visual aid from Elijah Alvarado who shot and edited. If nothing else, Prob always knows how to put on for Chicago and this video is as hometown as it gets, "the city that works, but also knows how to relax." If you haven't already, pick up The Recipe Vol. 2 and check in on Prob as he crosses the country on tour.
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[RH Photos] North Coast Festival 2013 Day 3
Photos By: Bobby Reys
Making it through the entirety of any festival is a workout at the least and a survival game for some, but by the end of my three-day adventure across Union Park I was in need of a pick me up. After taking in the tail end of an inspired performance and North Coast debut for local artist Psalm One, I found just that around two o'clock as the funky vibes of fellow Chicagoans whysowhite took the Coast stage for what may have been the best performance of the day had they not been competing with Wu Tang , Cherub and Gary Clark Jr.
Leading twins Charles and Davis Haines kept the crowd moving in the neon pants while Nick McMillan MC'd and danced his way into oblivion, sending the steadily-building crowd dancing well after the set ended in the early September heat. Next, it was off to Danny Brown, who performed on a similarly-placed stage to where Lil B performed a month earlier at Pitchfork Festival. It was a similar experience with the sea of fans bopping up and down to the squeaky vibe of Brown's vocals. It was Danny Brown as you would expect him although without his pants down onstage.
From there, a bit too worn on the EDM tip I took in Rebelution, who's jammy, soulful rock tunes were the perfect break from the scattering computers sounds of the DJs that dominated Day 2. Gary Clark Jr, festival king himself, picked up where Rebelution left off, keeping the easy, cool sounds coming, eventually handing the baton to Cherub whose falsetto 80's-inspired electro-pop kept listeners moving and criss-crossing their library.
All in all, though, the festival ended as it began. As headliners Wu Tang Clan and Lotus took the stage, drops of rain could be felt and a general groan could be felt across the park. Wu Tang ran through the classics with Cappadonna, U-God and RZA setting the pace for the rest of the present members while Lotus' Miller brothers gave the Last Stand Stage crowd all they could in a limited set. They played the hits, and got off the stage-twenty minutes early. I'm suggesting bubbles over music festivals in Chicago moving forward.
[Interview] North Coast Music Festival 2013: Cherub
Photos by Bobby Reys
Cherub has been steadily building a name for themselves since crossing paths three years ago with a common musical goal. It was simple, guitarist Jordan Kelley had a sound he wasn't quite sure how to achieve, Jason Huber had just the voice and production skills to make it happen. Having found each other in Nashville, TN, the pair created Cherub, a hybrid dance/funk electro-pop that has drawn comparisons to Prince and Pharrell. Over the past two years the duo have watched their stars rise exponentially, playing Bonaroo and Electric Forest, along with a successful SXSW in Austin last year buoyed by supports from the Red Bull Sound Select series. This year Jason and Jordan jumped on tour with Gramatik in the spring and, with festival season out of the way, will begin a Fall tour with ProbCause, Mansions on the Moon and Pell. We had the opportunity to sit down with the pair before the played the Dos Equis stage, check out the conversation below.
Jake: The two of you have had a crazy year or so since latching on with the Red Bull Sound Select series, what's it been like?
Jason: I mean it's been a really crazy year, we've had to take a lot of pictures of moments and step back. We've just been kind of doing our thing and then all of a sudden you'll look back and be like "woah, this is really awesome what we're getting to do." We've had so many amazing opportunities, all the stuff through Red Bull-they've just been putting us on time and time again and have been super awesome about letting us do our own thing and supporting what we're doing-it's been a really great way for us to continue doing exactly what we're doing and do cool stuff at the same time.
Jake: Yeah, the Red Bull show at SXSW in Austin was where I first saw you, all the way back at the beginning of festival season.
Jordan: Yeah, this year's SXSW was a total redemption for the year before. We had a shitty first year we went there and totally redeemed ourselves and it was great.
Jason: We played our first gay bar at SXSW this year. It was a great show, a really, really great show.