Monday, August 1, 2011

Mad Decent Block Party @ South Street Seaport, July 30, 2011




So, this ridiculous rager started at Noon on Saturday, but me and my friend didn’t arrive until about 3:30pm or so. Having said that, I’m not really sure who we missed (or who we actually saw for that matter) and I will explain why. It was a completely outdoor event with no check-in at all. They were selling beer there but really, what would be the point of buying a beer when you could just go to the closest liquor store and get stuff and bring it back. Not to say that I did this (or didn’t), but I’m just saying, it was a possibility! On to the show…

Because of how awesome of a place it was, and how crazy it got, I will attempt to talk about the people I know who performed. Bosco Delrey was the first act I remember seeing in it’s entirety, because I remember mentioning how I wasn’t a very big fan of his sound. It was a very strange attempt at rock fusion, the fusion being techno and dance music, and I don’t really think it was very good. The sound for me wasn’t very good (it wasn’t a speaker problem, because everyone else sounded great) but it was so hot and everyone was so far from sober that they were pretty happy to hear just about anything even in the realm of music coming out of the speakers.

The Hood Internet were the next DJ set up I believe. They’re the Chicago based production duo who are probably best known for their mashups of hip-hop and rap. They play really popular rap songs over completely different beats and instrumentals, that are also usually really popular, and fun to dance to. It’s all over the place, from house to techno to reggae to rock, but their performances consist of them mixing their remixes. Their set was quite fun, I remember an increase in the dancing of the patrons in attendance, myself included.

Maluca is the next act I definitely remember hitting the stage, mostly because I remember a buddy of mine asking me whether that was her standing in front of the stores at the Seaport, with a huge entourage. I’ve never seen or heard of her before, but the woman in question was wearing what looked like a bikini with a see-through plastic skirt. I thought, if that’s not her, she definitely looks like she should be performing at this event! She did eventually take the stage, and the Bronx native went straight into her style of song, which she describes sometimes as “tropical punk.” It sounded at times like Reggaeton, also sometimes like electro Cumbia, but no matter what she performed the crowd went into a frenzy. I clearly have been missing out, because she walked with her fans, and also with her crew. There were probably 12 guys on stage with her, none of which had a microphone. She had a rapper sized entourage to say the least. It didn’t matter though, she must have performed 5 energy filled songs before she had to beg the crowd to leave. She didn’t, and did one more song for the screaming fans before making her exit.

At this point it was like a million degrees outside, but it didn’t really matter by then; you were having so much fun that it was really irrelevant at this point how sweaty you were. I’m glad too, because the next act on stage after Maluca were the boys I came to see, Zeds Dead. The Dub-Step duo hailing from Canada hit the stage running and blessed the crowd with a barrage of their Dub-Step remixes, a mixture of old stuff and brand new stuff, all good. I was kind of annoyed because my favorite of their songs, “Knights in White Satin,” went unplayed. It was OK though because when their set was done, the DJ who would play in between the sets played it, literally as soon as they got off the stage. So I still go to hear my favorite track. If you’re into Dub-Step these guys are amongst the most creative with their stuff, check them out for sure.

It gets a little fuzzy for me at this point, because I was running around trying to find people and meet up with other people, with that said, I believe Gang Gang Dance were next, playing the background music for my “where are my friends” escapades. Claude VonStroke was the closer of the show, rocking his usual techno and house jams way past sundown. The funny thing is, this was probably the part I remember the most people having the most fun. Literally everyone on the Seaport was dancing, and at that point, there were quite a lot of folks at the Seaport. Unfortunately though, time flies when you’re having fun, and the show was supposed to go until 9pm. By 9pm, the music faded right out! Everyone looked towards the stage and Claude just shrugged his shoulders, looking around at his sound people. They all looked just as confused as he was! I mean, everyone on the stage was dancing too, including Claude, and then the music stopped. He grabbed the music and said, I guess we’re done here, of course, to a bunch of boos. The people who were booing though could not have been there all day! I wasn’t even there the entire time and I was tired as hell, danced myself right out of my wits on Saturday. The Mad Decent Block Party was definitely closer to Mad CRAZY, and if you missed it it’s hard to explain how insane it was. Hard to imagine you had more fun at an event that day…

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