Well... I suppose it's time I weigh in on this contentious matter.
I think he's great. I know, I know, that's fuckin' sacrilege to anyone that knows me or what I listen to. I think that he's a really talented kid (23 years old) and I wish him all the luck in the world. No, I don't listen to his music, but I've heard it and the production is tight. Just because it isn't my personal taste in electronic music doesn't mean he isn't talented. I've read some interviews with him and I'm surprised that he never describes his sound as dubstep, but merely that he "tends to produce within a certain tempo range that [he] find drives people crazy".
The fact that he elicits such venomous reaction really speaks to how talented and influential he has become. If we take a step back from spitting on the kids rolling their faces off at his shows wearing pokemon candy cuffs, neon shirts and native american headdresses, we need to realize that a lot, if not most of these kids wouldn't be diving into electronic music without the pied pipers that are Skrillex and Deadmau5. While it's true that a lot of these kids are there just to get fucked up and party, some of them will experience some of the most profound nights of their lives and will be forever affected by electronic music. I know I was.
Let's face it, jaded ravers have a bitterness unlike any others. We need to realize that whether we like it or not, this batch of newly minted ravers is here to stay, and frankly it's a good thing for the scene as they grow up and delve into other genres of electronic music. Some might gravitate over to deep house, or minimal, or dnb, whatever. I know that even though I don't listen to Skrillex, he is exposing people to electronic music in an easy-to-digest shiny, blinky package. I'd take the fans that Skrillex generates any day over the douchebag EDM fans that the Swedish House Mafia prints out.
So yeah. I don't really care for his music in terms of listening to it on any sort of regular basis, but Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites is a pretty fucking novel track with an interesting sound. We old timers just need to step the fuck back and let nature take its course. Change is inevitable. Just keep listening to whatever you like, and before you know it, these kids will become your peers. I know it happened to me. Guys who are now my really good friends were the ones behind the decks when I was 17 and starry-eyed in a warehouse, having some of the most life-changing significant nights of my life.
I know I would have been apeshit for Skrillex when I was 17, so I'm content to step back and wish him well.
:D
