Social The Live Show Review Thread

Does anyone else read this? After this weekend I will have new reports for :

Feed me, Bloody Beetroots (deathcrew 77), 2 skrillex sets, Afrojack, Ratatat, Savoy, Super Mash Bros, Chuckie, Joachim Garraud, 2 Pretty Lights sets, Daedelus, Switch, Modeselektor, Busy P, and the new Deadmau5 set. Possible MSTRKRFT and another Claude Von Stroke. What a weekend!
 
Feed me
I had heard awesome things about him but honestly never listened. Now that I have listened AND seen him I think that I am better off JUST listening. The set really didn't hold my attention at all and I even left to go outside of the tent about 3/4 of the way through when he started playing some really bad dubstep. I like when house/electro artists throw in dubstep to mix up their set, but this was just awful. The electro he was spinning was decent, but still not what I expected.
5/10

Bloody Beetroots Deathcrew 77
AWESOME set. I would love to see BB again, they tore the roof off the place. The crowd was a lot of younger kids who didn't seem to know who they were, and once they came on the place erupted. Live drums and what looked to be guitar? (I was really far back, lol) with keyboards. It was an awesome change of pace and they just killed it. Definitely all that I expected and then some.
9/10

Skrillex
Where to begin... I have finally seen Skrillex being a main act at a show (twice) instead of the other two times where I saw him in Deadmau5's shadow where any opener would probably be pretty decent sounding. He is atrocious. His music sounds like the worst noise you could ever think of. His build ups are pretty good but when he drops that skreetchy bass I just want to leave! He kept messing up his mixes, and at one point the music cut out and he said "Oh fuck! I just hit the rewind button, I hate when that happens." as if it has happened many times before. He keeps turning the music down so the crowd can sing along, but he was even doing it when there is no vocals. What does he want us just to make the noises with our mouths? To add to this he is the most annoying person ever when he is talking in the mic, saying things like "Put your hands up if you like bass music", "Put all the girls on your shoulders", and "You guys are my best friends ever". I tried to give Skrillex a fair chance but honestly he is pathetic. I could honestly go on and on about this shit, but the truth is he gets a 10/10 for getting down with good looking girls, but I give him a
3/10

Afrojack
I personally thought this was a great set. A lot may not agree with me because of the radio play he has been getting in Chicago, but honestly I just looked past that and enjoyed the set. He played the new Martin Sloveig song with a few of his radio hits for most of the time and dropped "pon di floor" in for a quick second. It was a really nice show, very high energy. The only beef I have with him is his lack of variety. It seemed like for the 45 minutes I watched his set he only played 4 different songs! I mean songs dragged out for 10 minutes? It leads me to believe that he just didn't put much effort into his set list, which is kind of disappointing.
8/10

Ratatat
Now this was a let down for me. Watching youtubes and listening to their music, Ratatat was possibly the band I was most excited for. It was just kind of boring. I give them a lot of credit for what they are trying to do, because electronic music with guitars does not seem easy. It really just didn't have my attention though, and I left early.
5/10

Pretty Lights
Once again Derek killed it. Last December I was one of the biggest haters on PL and Derek, although I liked Adam Deitch drumming. Going into this set knowing there would be no drummer, I was curious to see if I would like it as much as I did the NYE show, and he didn't disappoint. Honestly the drummer makes zero difference, aside from the fact that its cool to watch that go on. He played all his classic songs, mixed in with a new track. His encore was the Chicago Bulls intro theme and I was waiting literally the entire night for him to drop it. When it was getting so late I figured it would be encore, and it was. Benny the Bull (out mascot) came out onto the stage and ran back and forth with a bulls flag waiving. It was really fucking awesome. The environment at the NYE show cannot be beat, but this definitely gave it a run for its money.
9.5/10
 
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i woke up today WAYYYYYYYYY before I was supposed to, so i'll contribute from some recent ventures:

Bassnectar - 4/23/11 (Albany, NY) -9/10

Ok. This was a big event for me due to a) no one worthwhile from the EDM worldcoming to Albany in recent memory (except PL in november, and both mimosa and shpongletron [separately, of course] in march but that's a different story), b) he was playing in my favorite local venue: an old war armory, and c) I was bringing my girlfriend. As you'd expect, I was very excited to see him again (as well as EOTO) as I only saw fleeting parts of his Electric Zoo set when I was there. Musically speaking, I really respect what he had done with his mixes and songs (unexpected tempo shifts and impeccable timing). His set was phenomenal in part due to the crowd energy. His bangers were sung by the 4500 of us packed in there, clothing was quickly stripped (never been in a hotter venue), and he knew that he controlled the entire room. One thing that really surprised me was that he actually tended to stray away from "conventional" versions of his original productions (which, imo, you see wayyyy too much of today), resulting in A LOT of live/new remixes (between his own songs), new songs (some of his Divergent Spectrum album/unreleased shenanigans), and semi-sufficient amounts of DnB/drumstep (which surprised the hell out of me). He brought in his own visual equipment (a few light towers, 2 screens, some other cool shtuffs) which complemented the Armory's AMAZING (<3) Bose sound system perfectly. THE ONLY THING that i did not like was his stopping his set due to people throwing glowsticks/water/etc and saying that he'd "keep playing if we all promised to not be disco biscuits glowstick throwers." I 100% understand why he did it, but he JUST played some high tempo mix. wait till it slows to say that, lol.

Long story short, his set he played for albany was why I stood in the back during his Bisco set as a means of resting for wolfgang gartner.

Shpongle Live - Camp Bisco (7/8/11) - 11/10 (if at all possible)

I'm going to start by saying I may be biased as I am a massive shpongle fan. In fact, I camped out during the set change before easy star all stars (3 sets before) as a means of being front row for shpongle. While I have never seen Simon with the shpongletron (although he came to albany in march to a small club. i had to work that night :( ), I was ecstatic for the full live band. I mean come on, Simon, raja ram, michelle (who i think is gorgeous), 3 or 4 in the string section, and Joe Russo playing drums for them (which REALLY caught me off guard). Musically speaking: beautifully flawless....and even had a magical air to it since it was now an organic sound. the set list was great (although a tad predictable), Raja Ram was as raja-ish as ever, and everything was beyond on-point. While there were no shpongletron shenanigans, Shpongle had brought out 5 or 6 towers of lights in addition to the stage lights and had a bunch of circus acts (contortionists, stilts, hula hoops, etc), so they made an attempt (which did work well and I loved, for the record) to go above and beyond....so massive props to them! I also fully believe that Mother Nature is a shpongle fan. during the intro to the first song (which happened to be dmt), an eery thunderstorm began that complimented every major bass hit and tempo change with beautiful lightning above the stage...yet the storm ended minutes after the set. It was BEYOND unreal, as in, I could not give you a single adjective to describe it. The musicianship of the set was unsurpassed the entire weekend by ANY other group...and was easily in the top 2 shows i've ever seen in my life (the other was Metallica's albany stop on the Death Magnetic tour, but that's a whoooooooole other story). I will say that between the family fluff in my head and Shpongle live in my ears, I had a true religious experience.

Harvard Bass - Camp Bisco - 5/10

This was a set I wasn't expecting to catch. As an Audiophile, I wandered quite a bit from my cousin with whom I attended. At one of the tents I saw a gaggle of people on wayyyyyy too much K leave, which was my cue to walk right up to the front row. Turns out that Harvard Bass was coming on next. Admittedly, I am not the biggest fan of hard house/minimalist, but I certainly respect it. I burned a j of some rediculous local Haze I had while he was setting up. he saw me, we locked eyes and he gave me the nod and smile of a fellow stoner. I lol'd, tried to hand him some but he didnt notice me (turned his back to set gear up) so I finished it myself :). That is probably the only reason he got above a 3 in my book, because his set was boring as all hell. If my head is not reminiscent of A Night at the Roxbury during a house set, you're probably not doing it right. his intro was strong/held me really well and built into.....nothing. just mediocre minimalist for the most part. Although he did do something right since his fans in the tent were going nutty as hell, but it just wasn't my groove so I left about 20 minutes into it. but hey, if you like him, more power to you.

Nero - Camp Bisco - 10/10

This set is the reason why Nero is now my number 1 dj(s). Sadly, only one half of them attended (I believe the other got shafted on something at the airport in the UK, but idunno), but boy did it not seem like it mattered. I caught the end of Treasure Fingers before Nero to get a good spot, but the tent only got more and more PACKED. In fact, it's why the crowd at DFA on the main stage was a third the size it should have been. There is literally nothing I can say negatively about his set EXCEPT maybe more DnB was needed, but the high tempo dub + what he did throw in was absolutely awesome. He even had KhalifaDub as a hype man (he was Borgore's hype man 2 days prior). The crowd fueled his set, not vice versa. My section (front row to the right) started alot of the on-tempo clapping (and singing of Crush on You, lol), which turned into a few thousand really fucked up fans attempting to clap on tempo. The crowd ate everything up. He did alot of live improv mixes, live remixes of his own songs, and impromptu setlist changes...and showed that Nero is a massive force to be reckoned with. I still dont think they get the credit they deserved. I've watched the full set on youtube multiple times, and all it does is cause an intense emotional reaction within me. I believe it's for me to return and be a part something as beautiful and euphoric as the communal energy, mindset, and overall vibe that the both the crowd and Nero and the crowd amongst it's self shared, but who knows. I truly respect their production AND dj'ing ability, and I hold them in the upper tier of EDM. Mark my words: Nero is going to prove to be very influential in the popularity (and growth, for that matter) of EDM. Also, I met some of the coolest people (that sadly I lost. the guy had some Alex Grey's, but they were VIP so I lost them when they went front frow for Bassnectar. im still REALLY sad about that) and had the time of my life during that set. Never had more fun at ANY show I have EVER been to (or possibly anywhere else), which is really saddening for me to reflect on. Fuck it, though. Just means I have to buy tix next time they're around NY (except identity fest. fuck paying 100 for 1 day, especially when they were first 40something a piece.)

there are alot more shows that I want to write about, but oh well. that's what later is for
 
12th Planet
This set was really awesome. I guess I expected him to play an all dubstep set but it ended up being a lot of electro which was awesome. High energy and the rain started pouring at the end of his set which just added to the awesomeness of it. I honestly wasn't expecting too much out of this performance, it was pretty early on in the day and I am pretty surprised that he didn't get a better spot.
8/10

Busy P
This set was just horrible! I don't even get what he was going for honestly. So boring. I really have nothing to say besides that it was a really bad set. He played the new Justice track which was cool, but the rest ehhh. Everyone was dancing in the mud and it had potential to be awesome! Just wasn't...
3/10

DJ Chuckie
I was really stoked for this set and it was pretty good. Chuckie has a decent stage presence, but his set started off really slow. Towards the end I really enjoyed it, but I'd say the first 25 mins were not very good. I heard his set at the playboy party later on was really sick and I wish I could have gone, but oh well.
6.5/10

Joachim Garraud
Now this was one of the best sets of the weekend! Wow, this guy rocks. He even started playing a guitar shaped keyboard thing. Pure awesomeness. I just didn't want it to end. He even played sandstorm, a fucking classic that I haven't heard in years! I've honestly never heard anyone play that song. Great stage presence, high energy, and just had me dancing the whole time.
9.5/10

I've got some more I will add later. Thanks for the updates by the way, jeebis!
 
Well it looks like the forum upgrade broke all the links on the first post of this thread, it's going to be a bitch to fix. ><

In the meantime, some reviews from Kazantip 2011:

iO & Tish @ Clouds Dancefloor

I've never heard of these guys until seeing them live at Kazantip. They played a good mix of tech house and minimal. I like how they always add a funky edge to their music that makes their brand of minimal sound more 'organic'. While the dancefloor wasn't packed, everyone who was dancing was really into the music. It was nice to see everyone on the dancefloor having a pretty good time. It was also very refreshing to have lots of space to dance. While the people on the dancefloor weren't going wild from the music, everyone seemed to be enjoying the music in a more relaxed way.

7.5/10

I'll post more updates a little later.
 
Dillon Francis
This was my first "moombahton" show and it was really good. I am loving this type of music and this guy had me dancing all night. I marked Zedd off for only playing for an hour and not doing an encore, but after Dillon played at the same place and the same thing happened, I realize it is the venue's fault and not the artist. Having said that, Dillon Francis has zero stage presence. Honestly it was like there was just music playing and no DJ. Kind of lame and dissapointing. Nonetheless I still had a great time and his track selection was awesome.
7/10

Will add more later.
 
Maaaan, who's been going to shows! Next week I'll have reports on the following... david guetta, bassnectar, sts9, fatboy slim (YESSSSSSS), rusko, benny benassi, carl cox twice, ATB, wolfgang, major lazer, zeds dead, rjd2 again, break science again, big G, felix cartal, paper diamond, and crookers.

Later: markus schulz, zedd, ana sia again, and pantyraid! ( martyparty again, and dj ooah.)
 
Feed Me 6/17
The Quad in ATL -- Feed is awesome, great energy nice house sound with a dub type feel. I already came in knowing a good bit of his songs so this made the concert that much better. The quad is a 1,800 max person bar type deal with like 3 bars spread out with a decent dance floor area, so the venue is obviously not the greatest set up but is still big enough,wasn't really a big turn out anyway. My friend got way entirely to fucked up and i had to kinda watch him, he just sat outside against the wall the majority of the time while i came back to check on him periodically. It was too hot inside for his dumb ass to be rollin like that, other than that. 9/10

Skream 8/13
The Quad also -- I got to meet this crazy fucking man! so already 10/10! He was outside with mindelixir and this L was coming up pretty hard and kept staring at them. I was thinking, "no way these mother fuckers are just out here in the patio area smoking a cig." So i finally just go over cause whats the worse that happens? I look dumb in front of strangers =) but it ended out being them, talked to him about his baby and whatever shook his hand and all that (with his awesome European accent) HAHA. I was amazed at how many people didnt know he was out there??? The actual show was off the wall, small turn out, i like these shows sometimes though cause you can rage hard! like i said before 10/10

Identity Festival Aaron's Amphitheater ATL 8/23

Nero-- UMMMM The BEST Fucking shit,other than it started at like 3p.m or something. I was so bummed i missed him at Camp Bisco this year and this way the only person i wanted to see other than the Biscuits. KILLED IT! Played mostly all of his new shit. The only thing sucked was there was unassigned row seating.. so if you didnt get to main stage a little early security would have the bottom tiered closed off :X but these came in handy later in the day/night, we ended up raging at the main stage in the shade most of the time. 10/10


Crystal Method -- Never seen or heard of them before but shit was pretty cool, good energy, crazy instrument that the guy built, good stuff. We kinda just sprayed people with one of these water spray things while we raged on, they were selling there since this was at the stage outside in the parking lot and fucking 95 degrees. 8/10


Disco biscuits -- I love them so if you don't go fuck yourself=D They did not have their laser set up:! but still some nice visualization in the background. Good times. Great Friends. 10/10


Rusko -- Holy shit soooooooooo much energy from this little English bastard. He does keep you into it even though he is playin basically the same garage dub, shit was crazy full of energy. Night had just fallen and Steve Aoki just ended so there was alot more people in that thing than usual. GOing fucking wild! 8/10


Kaskade -- Closing out the night. Big fucking l.e.d t.vs, whole different stage set up, lights shining into hanging curtains creating nice effects. He rocked it, the visulations on this were sweet, i mean when you have a couple huge tvs accompanied with some nice progressive house music and some candy flipping and a 20$ ticket (WTF?) The main stage was like theater seating, everytime we sat down it felt like we were at the movies, waiting for the show to start lol. Best Tuesday in a while:D 10/10
 
I just bought a ticket to see Skream and Benga on the 19th of october. beyond stoked for that one.
 
2manydjs - Bristol 27/8/11

This is the second time I have seen these amazing djs. There set opened with a very short "bootleg" of there "hey boy, hey girl" bootleg, then suddenly dropped into the "warp 1.9" drop. This moment seems to capture what they are about, just fun party music. There set had about 10 or so moments when the floor in this warehouse club was going crazy during there 2hr set. It wasn't as wild as there set at a festival, but it definitely was fun.

7/10
 
Bassnectar's Bass Island event on Governor's Island, NYC

Z-Trip - 10/10

An amazing performance, this guy has a butload of freakin skill. He threw down some amazing dubstep and kept mixing in classic rock songs to his dubstep which made it even better. Favorites of the night were his taxman - the beatles mashup and another brick in the wall - pink floyd mashups. Had the whole entire 10,000 strong crowd singing at the top of our lungs. Extremely skilled DJ of the old skool vinyl kind.

Bassnectar - 11/10

Wow, I don't even know where to start. This was the most incredible performance that I've ever seen in all electronic music. From the old school bassnectar to new unheard unreleased tracks this set had me literally craving more. The lighting used was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. It was almost a perfect visualization of bassnectar's music. I don't know how else to describe it, at some points it looked like a giant robot was eating lorin on stage. It was INTENSE. And he played FSOSF from Underground Communication which is one of my all time favorite tracks that I've never heard him play out live. Towards the end he brought Lupe Fiasco out on stage and played a remix he made of the Matrix theme song using lines out of the movie between Neo and Morpheus at the beginning. It literally blew my fucking mind.

Here Ya Go...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4z-guKlgr8
Fucking Incredible!
 
I saw Switch who was really good. He mixed a buncha house of various styles but they were all really aggressive. He used the CDJ's gracefully like a mofo using the minimum amount of change at a time on the mixer. it was great. at the end of his set he was sampling the same track over and over but remixing it differently each time. it was dope as well. I didnt hear any dubstep either, so it made my night even happier.

Switch opened for digitalism. I had been meaning to see Digitialism since 08. Well, I finally had my opportunity. They played songs, meaning it wasn't a continuous mix of non stop music. They opened with echos, I think.They played the rest od the tracks i wanted to hear, including the moST KiLLER remix of Jupiter. The singer messed up once by one beat, but im not holding it against him, and noone seemed to notice or care anyway. They closed their set with POGO and it was amazing to see everyone wildyn out to pogo and basiclly sing it for him. Then towards the end of the song they did a 5 minute drum solo/breakdown. I had a good time. The "hipster scene" isnt really my thing but i allowed myself to have a fun time. My friend told me he thought it was bascily a rock show but instead of guitars they used keyboards. That's pretty accurate.
 
James Zabiela- Really good set! This guy is awesome because he shows you what he is doing. He was even banging away on an iPad! He played all sorts of stuff in this set from house to techno to drum n bass. The set started out sooo strong and kind of faded away around the 40 minute point (an hour long set). I kind of lost interest around this point and got some food but this set was great and I would love to see him again.
7.5/10

Wolfgang Gartner- WOOOOO Wolfgang is the man. This set had me jumping up and down screaming my head off for more by the end. He played illmerica as well as the 5th symohony song which was dope, and even mixed in some daft punk for a minute I think? He has a really good stage presence and just knows how to rock a crowd. He played the set right before David Guetta, and after watching him I couldn't even stand to see Guetta's ass up there.
9.5/10

I will add more later.
 
What a weekend!

David Guetta- I didn't expect much from this act, so it wasn't a big surprise when I left after a half hour. Guetta just played his usual radio BS and it was really lame. The sound was very soft for some reason also. He just failed to get me engaged at all during the act... Not much to say here.
3/10

STS9
I saw tribe twice this weekend and they were flawless both times. They played a lot of stuff off of the new album (when the dust settles) and peace blaster. They are just relentless, it is crazy. This was my first time seeing them and I am now going to make it my business to get a ticket every time they come into town. Just beautiful music, man! One of the best sets I've ever seen (both nights).
10/10

Zeds Dead
Man, I was really excited to see Zeds Dead. After watching for ten minutes I could tell that this set was going no where fast. It was just really boring. They say pointless things into the microphone and one of the guys is doing absolutely nothing while the other tries to hype up the crowd.... it just wasn't very hype at all though lol. They played a mostly dubstep set with some electro mixed in. Dissapointing.
4/10

Carl Cox
I saw CC twice this weekend and I give him the best rating possible for both. This guy is a fucking legend. He has an amazing stage presence and his track selection was perfect! He played funky techno all night with some house mixed in and even did a remix of killing in the name of by rage against the machine! It was fucking nuts. One of those sets you just never want to end.
10/10

ATB
This set started out really strong and just kind of died. It was awesome to start though definitely. He started off with Ecstasy which was a great beginning since its the track that everyone thinks of when ATB is mentioned. I honestly don't like trance, and the fact that this set kept me entertained the entire time says something about ATB. He has an awesome stage presence and was even singing along with the music at some parts, which I thought was really cool... definitely something you don't see often. He played some house tunes but obviously a trance set. I liked it and would definitely see him again.
7/10
 
Benny Benassi
This is my third time seeing Benny and I think I am going to rate him the same as I did last time if I remember correctly. He is always pretty good... definitely very consistent. He always has the crowd engaged and even had a guy up there singing Cinema when he played it. It kind of sucked that he played the skrillex version of Cinema, but the crowd loves that shit and I guess that is why he did it. I don't like Skrillex but when artists drop his songs its hard not to get down. When Skrillex is up there though and he plays ALL of his own songs, I wanna die a slow death. Benny is the man.
8/10

Bassnectar
Do I really need to write a review for this one? Lorin brings it HARD every time. He opened by saying it was the last of his summer tour and the last festival so he "wasn't going to fuck around", and he didn't... not even for a minute. He just goes so damn hard the whole time it is just completely relentless. He was playing his new album the first half of the show, and even though I don't like the new album, this set was so fucking awesome.
10/10

Big Gigantic
This set was fucking awesome! I saw a little bit of Big G at the Congress Theater on Friday night when they opened for STS9, but I guess I didn't see enough of it. They have an awesome set up going on here with a drummer and a saxophone player, except the saxophone player also plays music from I think a laptop and a MIDI pad... couldn't really see. The saxophone makes them stand out from other acts and just adds to the awesomeness. I will now be seeing them on New years at the VIC in chicago.
9/10

Future Rock
These guys really rock. I wish I saw them last night with the New Deal but I sold my tickets. They are a 3 piece band with guitar, drums, and keyboards. They had me dancing my ass off and were really good with keeping the crowd into it. Even though I was expecting more of a dj set type thing (I had no clue what these guys did), I just did not want this set to end. I will definitely be seeing them the next time they are around Chi.
9/10

RJD2 with Break Science
Break Science features Adam Deitch from Pretty Lights and most people know of RJ. In my opinion Adam is one of the best drummers in the world and it is a shame that PL doesn't play with him all of the time. This set was really good. RJD2 spun some classics like the Horror and Ghostwriter which was awesome to see, but also did some stuff I've never heard like a Gangstarr remix. This was the second set that I saw on Saturday and if you'll notice on another page I saw RJD2 and gave him a 3/10 or something like that.... this set was definitely different.
7/10

Rusko
I was excited to see this set because I've tried to see Rusko a few times and something always goes wrong. I half expected this set to not be so great and it wasn't. Rusko blows. I have mad respect for this guy because he does try really hard up there (always dancing the entire time, etc), but he is kind of annoying talking THE ENTIRE time he is up there. I don't like when dj's do that. Bassnectar uses the perfect amount of microphone in his sets, just talking when he needs to get the audience ready for a big drop or something... Rusko overdoes it. Some of his songs are good, but he is REALLY bad live. Also the volume was turned so far down at his set it really didn't help.
4.5/10

Overall this was an incredible weekend of music. After seeing everybody my three favorites were definitely Bassnectar, Carl Cox, and STS9... in that order I think.
 
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Since tonight is Avicii and I do not have the means to go, I will simply reminisce about a few shows

Das Racist - Camp Bisco - 7/10
This was a show I caught while waiting for Shpongle to go on. Honestly, I was pleasantly surprised. I didn't know much of DR prior to the set, but I will say that they embody everything i love about oldschool hip hop (the goofyness, the fun of it, etc). Their instrumentals were very well put together (and had an original bassy/electric feel to it), their lyrics were actually creative and catchy, stage presence was nice (even began climbing on the speaker stacks to rap.). Pleasant surprise for me :)

David Solano - DayGlow Albany (9/8/11) - 6/10
I had no idea who David Solano was prior to this, and I can see why. Apparently he is DayGlow's resident DJ. His opening set for Chuckie was no different than what you hear at any other club. Standard top 40/clubstep/electro house set, although it wasn't bad, it wasn't exactly good either. No original material besides simple looping and finger-fucking the LFO for awhile. Although I do give credit on the dayglow stage show, which was sort of built for his set.

Chuckie - DayGlow Albany (9/8/11) - 7/10
While I did know of Chuckie prior to this night, but I did not know much of him. I promised myself that I'd go into the set with an open mind though, but honestly, i was rather disappointed. He deffinately had a good stage presence, but the whole "dirty dutch" thing he kept screaming about on the mic was nothing more than your usual house music with a little bit more reverb on the bass. got pretty repetitive pretty quickly. I did really like some of his remixes though. Some of the songs were great, but the set was overall standard procedure. Despite all that and the shitty crowd (a bunch of drunk college kids. felt like my high school prom all over again), I will say that I had fun!

Hopefully I should have Deadmau5, Dirtyphonics, Funtcase, Chase and Status, and Paul Oakenfold reviews coming soon.
 
EDIT: Did a massive update, now the links on the main page should all work. Also added a lot of dates, event information and some missing reviews.

Joss @ Mantra Lounge Bar, Kiev, Ukraine 09.09.2011 (12pm - 2 am)

This DJ was playing as the opening DJ when the place was switching from "lounge mode" to "club mode". Mantra was still pretty empty at this point as we had decided to come a littler early (12:30 pm is early by Ukrainian standards) to make sure there would be no issues with face control as this was a big night. The dancefloor was still quite empty, so me and my friend decided to come up in front of the stage. I've never heard Joss play before and I was pleasantly surprised by his DJing skills. He played some funky tech house that got the early birds moving. I wouldn't say it was anything mind blowing, but it was a good start for the beginning of the night. Throughout his set, the dance floor was beginning to fill up as more and more people were getting into the groove. 6.5/10

[Don't remember the other DJ playing, I was busy doing some other stuff :)]

Dr Spy.der @ Mantra Lounge Bar, Kiev, Ukraine 09.09.2011 (4am - ??)

This guy is the resident at the a club called "Top of the World" in Moscow. It's supposed to be the most exclusive club in Moscow. So obviously I had pretty high expectations for his performance. The dance floor was packed when he came on stage at 4am. He played some pretty legit Tech House. His mixing skills were top notch and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. However, the crowd didn't really go wild, but I feel that's more because Mantra attracts a more rich hipster crowd that doesn't enjoy going crazy on the dance floor. Overall, I'd say I would definitely see Dr Spy.der again, but I think I would have enjoy his set more if the crowd was a a little more down to earth. I feel he could let his skills shine in a more relaxed environment. I wasn't able to listen to his whole set as I was pretty drunk by 5am and I felt like it would be better to get going. I guess it's better to either stay sober or to do other things at EDM events. 7/10
 
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Audiofly @ Crystal Hall, Kiev, Ukraine 18.09.2011

Just saw these Audiofly last night (this morning?). They know what minimal techno is all about: subtlety. Minimal might not be as "explicitly energetic" as regular techno, dnb or trance, but when done right it can sound so powerful that it will make you want to dance all night. The groovy beat would keep you up and dancing on the dance floor, while the well placed effects/drop would make everyone go wild. Their mixing skills were top notch, their whole set felt like one long song... This night I had a pretty deep conversation with my friend (we were on MDMA), so I didn't get into the music as much as I usually do, but when I did hit the dance floor, I felt awesome! :) Highly recommended for anyone who likes minimal or tech house. 8/10
 
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