Memorial Day Music: Prismo, Petit Biscuit, Krewella, Hybrid Minds & Sarah Silverman

Posted on May 30, 2016 by Terry Gotham

Milpool Summer has arrived all at once! To celebrate the long weekend, new tunes from Krewella & Hybrid Minds, two rising stars Prismo & the 16yr old rising star Petit Biscuit, and a hilarious send up of “going out” anthems by Sarah Silverman I somehow missed from 2013. Bomp these tunes in the office if you’re working, or by the pool if you’ve taken the day!

Rishty continues reminding everyone why you can’t miss his posts on TSIS. I’m really hoping the Houston native Prismo makes it out to the East Coast, as his production chops are stellar. Coexist manages to be bassy, poppy & fest anthemy at the same time. Guitar chords, strong vocals and a delicious punchy bassline make for a fantastic introduction to Prismo. Now I really want to know if the name comes from Adventure Time, don’t you?

When a producer clears 100k followers on Soundcloud, smart bloggers take notice. When a producer clears 100k before they’re 17 years old & reaches #1 on the French iTunes Electronic charts with his last single, you put down the bong and press repeat. Petit Biscuit needs to get on your radar right now. The kind of smoothness evokes some strong feelings of Kygo, but it’s distinctly not tropical. To be clear, the piano and guitar is all him, so let’s make sure we don’t think of him as a bedroom producer. A fantastic, shimmering tune that glides along in the sun, with drizzles of vocals and hopeful xylophone vibes. Is that a thing? Cause if it’s not, it should be.
Krewella’s first long-form release since the departure of Rainman made a bit of a splash recently, getting the coverage the headliner deserves from the EDM blogosphere. While a lot of sites showcased the one or two main singles, the 2nd half of the album really caught my eye. Marching On specifically. The combo of their signature vocals & post-EDM sensibility layers over a blues’y back beat. I think it’s a sleeper track that’s going to find its way into a bunch of festivals this summer. DJs will drop the almost rock, almost hymnal break into their sets to keep the energy going without laying on the cheese, you’ll see.
I fucking love Hybrid Minds. They make some of the best, smoothest drum & bass I’ve ever heard, and I listen to a LOT of d&b. Their new releases are consumed almost instantly, and Fade was no exception. Gorgeous piano work supports Katie’s Ambition, who provides excellent vocal tracking in her own right. Add onto that a drum & bass beat that has been perfected by Hybrid Minds to be as heavy as it can be without being aggro. Delightful from start to finish.
And now, for something completely different. Sarah Silverman employs Will.i.am and drops a send-up of “Shit’s Gonna Be Epic” anthem tracks that I cannot believe I missed in 2013. This shit is kind of hysterical, with Sarah littering the music video with her signature gross-out, snarky & profoundly true opinions. I’m not going to spoil any of it, so get at it, then shout her out on Twitter. Don’t ping Will, cause he can stay in 2013.

Cole Rolland Plays Dubstep On Guitar. Someone Tell The Pegboard Nerds.

Posted on December 22, 2014 by Terry Gotham

Firstly, dope 80’s style electric guitar work definitely needs to come back. And if this kid is the one to do it, so much the better. Cole Rolland takes the electrostep remix of Krewella’s Alive by Pegboard Nerds and drops it live, on his axe. This is a massive accomplishment & further reinforces my hypothesis that dubstep is the synthetic equivalent of a whammy bar, especially when he plays dubstep…largely with his whammy bar. I am a huge fan of the technical skill involved in this cover, and would love to see more guitar YouTube people get into this kind of cross over work. Shit, Infected Mushroom sounded dope with a live guitarist. What are you doing to cross boundaries while expressing yourself on Monday huh? 😀

Ten Questions With Terry Gotham: V-Squared Labs CEO Vello

Posted on February 6, 2014 by Terry Gotham

1. What does it feel like to be responsible for what hundreds of thousands of event attendees see for hours at a time every year? It’s a great feeling to have and with a lot of good energy, it’s enjoyable. It’s a group experience they’re all contributing to to make something special.

2. This may be too broad but, when a club kid sees what you’re able to do and likes it and wants to do it themselves, what advice would you give them about how to start? The best way to get started is to start experimenting with trial versions of performance software. There are trial versions of most commercial visual programs, with student discounts available as well. Plenty of opportunity to get your hands on the software & experiment with it. Get yourself a good laptop or desktop or whatever you can afford and start rocking. Continue reading →

Krewella & Headhunterz Combine Forces To Fight Bullying!

Posted on November 17, 2013 by Terry Gotham

Fresh off their set on Good Morning America, Krewella continues to surprise by collaborating with the Future King of Hardstyle, Headhunterz. Headhunterz has shot into the realm of global visibility with his remix of Kaskade’s “Lessons in Love” (below), and this collaboration is not to be missed.

I’m kind of amazed that they’d choose hardstyle over Krewella’s dominant genres of electro, big room house and dubstep, but I’m glad they did. Pete Tong dropped the track on his All Gone Pete Tong radio show, and it’s coming out Nov. 19th on Ultra. The anti-bullying message is something I frankly wish I had in middle school and I’d love to make sure the younglings hear this. It’s a bit cheesy, but when the bass kicks, you realize you’re in the middle of a massive hardstyle track with synth-y frosting on the top. Considering that Krewella has fought against a bunch of bullying because the group is 2/3 female, and the amount of shit Headhunterz gets for being into hardstyle, I’d imagine this is a sweet track to make. I hope it gets the exposure it deserves, and the kids who need to hear its message jump up and down listening to it.

(PS: Yes, Krewella did perform on Good Morning America, being the first EDM act to perform on American morning television. Here’s the video in case you want to know what Live for the Night sounds like before 9 AM.)