The World’s Most Successful DJ sells out the Staples Center, #afterthebreak…
Tiësto At The Staples Center
Special Guests:
Tommy Trash & Alvaro
Highlights:
Showcase #4. Codenamed: Guerrilla Club Life. Trying to be funny. Not really clever.
This was suppose to be ranked in our 2012 class. However, our only EDM showcase got pushed. Rescheduled from October to March because Tiësto had troubling back spasms. Wasn’t a big deal. Being swamped professionally kept me from holding any bitterness and almost forgot all about it…if my email wasn’t so awesome might has missed the now top rated photo showcase in my flickr career.
Understatement, the pictures from this event have squashed any album posted on that site. Hasn’t stopped. Everyday it grow.
Which is strange. Never was remotely interested in EDM showcases. Our last one was 2011 which starred underground DJ — Girl Talk. Remember being so unmoved by the glorified IPod mixtape as other pastel disco creatures lost themselves in the complex beats to a live laser light show in the Palladium. Plus or minus the balloons. That’s a EDM for a non sober concert goer. Felt sorry for the roadies who had to blow up those balloons. All that hard work erased by electronic zombies. Things they did to hide the fact they were remixing a preset playlist.
These are not words of hate. Love EDM. I’ve featured it multiple times on the site and absolutely love the work of the best artists of the genre (e.i. Tiesto & Swedish House Mafia) & some noteworthy newbies (Archie, DJ Cutman, Diplo, Rebecca & Fiona)…
Sidenote: Gonna stop writing Tiësto like this. Slows down my pace. Oh, and SHM will have their showcase featured tomorrow. Check back!
Okay back to the rant.
…Great EDM is like listening to Bach or Beethoven in their prime. Sweeping movements that manipulates the melody to it’s most extreme levels. I can compare Tiesto to Beethoven because that’s what he is. Instead of a manipulating a orchestra with a wand, he’s pressing buttons on his many consoles. Garnering the same effect. Just more advanced tech savvy medium. The lights are just for show. Otherwise you’re looking up at a average man pressing buttons on his deus ex machina. It’s the technical wizards and their presentation that can make or break a show.
Yes, you read right. Beethoven. Could have dropped Chopin or Wagner. I took music appreciation back in College. Is it really hard to draw that conclusion It’s instrumental artistry. Same concept at it’s core. Takes a unique skill to see patterns in beats & melodies. Disguised by laser lights. Or most importantly drugs.
I’ve never seen security like I saw at the Staples Center on March 2nd. Worst than going through LAX or JFK. If I have to compare it to anything then the closest thing that comes to mind is crossing the boarder from Mexico to the USA. Check ticket, check ID, pat down, metal detector… funny thing was they didn’t mind my camera. At anytime I could’ve been told ‘Sir, you can’t bring that in…please take it back to your car’. As long I didn’t have drugs. Because these EDM shows are notorious for being the type of shows where drugged up kids go to party. Weed, LSD, ecstasy laced in chapstick…that’s how they party. If I was younger maybe I could understand. Got a lot of balls when the whole arena is littered with security and officers. Thrilling. Just that same high when I sweet talk my Canon into small venues. Except…doesn’t make me go crazy when the lights start flashing.
The show opened with international DJs Alvaro & Aussie’s Tommy Trash getting the crowd in the mood. The doors opened at 6. I got there at 6:45ish and Alvaro was already halfway through his 1 hour plus set. Noteworthy to add that I entered Staples to the sound of EDM and I left to the sound of EDM bumping. Robots don’t stop. If you’ve never heard of Alvaro or Tommy Trash here’s a sample to flip you to the right page.
Alvaro:
Tommy Trash:
You can tell the difference. Tommy has a more metallic-dubstep style which I absolutely love. Plus, his electronic imagery on the LCD wall were 80s inspired [See pictures below]. Like ‘You Can’t Do That On Television’ surfer chic. Alvaro…from the Netehrlands…is more party eccentric Drum machines. Claps. Sweeter. Deadmau5 or Tiesto in feel. Blended well when they switch positions.
Tommy Trash did tease Tiesto’s arrival which got a huge pop. The Tiesto came out and git a huge pop. He’s my favorite DJ so to be apart of his living revving set was something I could knock off my bucket list. Remember driving to Stagecoach last year to Club Life Volume 2 bumping on the way to Palm Springs. He’s been around for awhile and continues to make amazing mixes. What I love is you can start on track one, hit play, and just let him do the rest. No need to touch the ‘skip’ button. Like now as I’m writing this. Got Zero 76 playing in the background. Allowing me to get lost in my mind. Not so different to when I listened to Bach during my screenwriting days. He played a variety of songs from Club Life Vol. 2 (Chasing Summers, The Walls) to classics like Zero 76. However, no one song was more memorable than the 2 hour plus set. I prefer his lengthy remixes of pop hits to the strictly instrumental sets.
I danced along as best as I could in between photographing the moment. Everyone (a very foreign/female/teenage/college centric crowd I mind you) was really happy to be feeling the experience. They all were dancing to their own beat. So was I, but an hour in I realized what I always realize…I’m dancing to someone’s really amazing playlist. Think that’s why people take the drugs. To stay lost in the musical paradise of their mind. Sober minds shouldn’t apply. My favorite dancer was a 20 something with these fluffy rainbow color boots dancing in the aisle. Well, tied with the young couple grinding to her right. They eventually ended up leaving together halfway through. Have opinions where they ended up. Certified that when my Daughter pitches a EDM concert to me…I will be there as her escort. Can already feel the bitter hate boiling up now.
It’s really hard to describe the light show so I’m not going to. Check out the pictures below to get a sense of what we saw. Alvaro kept his logo up, Tommy Trash did the same with Andy Warhol pop/80s inspired visuals. Tiesto topped them with full movies, his logo, random words, video game-computer inspired worlds. The pictures are very helpful. Tried to capture the LCD screen as much as I could, but due to my position and the wires directly in my viewpoint…had to shoot around them. Not complaining. Picked that section, bottom level directly over the floor, because my goal wasn’t to focus on Tiesto & the gang. It was to capture the lively crowd watching Tiesto & the gang.
One of my favorite photos of 2012 happened in that same exact section when they were announcing the LA Kings lineup during the Stanley Cup finals. Everyone was holding lights & looked amazing on the digital frame. Wanted that same exact shot and captured it just as Tiesto appeared. Cellphones & cameras were raised in preparation. That’s why I choose the seats than the floor. Not my most popular photo according to flickr, but as a photographer one of my favs of 2013 so far.
That’s all I really have left to say. My two EDM friends believe they are the rockstars of this modern digital age. Born from the electronic technology boom of the 80s. It’s what I believe now too. To experience such a international EDM superstar live and in person gave me a deeper appreciation for their art. These are our new composers & Tiesto is our Beethoven.
If you love EDM, then you will probably love the pictures. If you don’t…hopefully I opened your mind to a new underground society that is living amongst you. Yes, getting high and getting blasted by lasers is still a thing… bordering on mainstream. My conclusion is if you like dancing then you’ll love a EDM show. If you aren’t a dancer or straight edge, like myself, then it will be hard to fully comprehend what you’re listening to live. Give it a chance. It is somebody’s remixed IPod afterall and who doesn’t love a mixtape?
More on that…tomorrow!
Pictures Highlights
See all the Pictures here!
Check out our pictures of his symphony that took over the Staples Center.
