Mad Decent Records « Rager Onions

In two words, the scene at Aragon Ballroom on Friday night was pure chaos. All in good fun, Chicago’s newfound arena for the best in EDM got a visit from two of the most talented producers in the game: Dillon Francis & Flux Pavillion. Or as we like to call it, Flux PaDillon.

And as we expected, the combination made for quite the epic Lollapalooza after-party (presented by React Presents).

Establishing the vibes on a high note, Dillon Francis set the perfect tone for a monstrous set from the British King of Dubstep. While he showcased plenty of new material, Francis didn’t stray much from his Moombahton roots – spinning some of his gems like ‘Masta Blasta’, his remix of ‘Hulk’, and of course – ‘I.D.G.A.F.O.S. 2.0′. And we’re not saying that’s a bad thing. We’re just saying it was the appetizer. The entree?

Bass. And plenty of it.

Seemingly, Flux Pavillion came to Chicago to play ball. The artist’s new style was apparent throughout the entire set – creating a darker and darker tone as the show progressed. He gave those in attendance a lot to anticipate for his upcoming releases, and a taste of his new collaboration with the show’s opener, titled ‘I’m The One’. (yet to be released – scrappy preview below).

His captivating background visuals placed a heavy shadow over the latter part of the show. To be specific, one of his graphics seemed to eerily depict The Blitz. (Little history lesson kids – this refers to the strategic aerial bombings on the United Kingdom by Germany for almost 60-consecutive nights during World War II). Was this obvious to anyone else?

Call me nerdy, but I’d be really interested to see if that was his influence. Because if you’ve heard his new collaboration with Cookie Monsta, ‘Come Find Me’ , you might hear why the graphics make sense. Or maybe it’s just me. But the sound you hear in this track was sampled by Flux in a few different songs throughout the set. Clearly, Joshua Steele will not stop developing as an artist any time soon.

The after-party’s ultimate highlight came when Flux Pavillion took over the mic for ‘The Scientist’ – and gave the audience some live vocals for one of his new original bangers – ‘The Scientist’. And as the countdown to the Scientist dropped, it became clear Flux wouldn’t leave until he blew the roof off of Aragon Ballroom. And he did just that by giving the crowd exactly what they wanted before bed with a little ‘Gold Dust’.

As impossible as it may seem – Flux Pavillion’s best days could still be ahead of him.

Slowly but surely – Atlanta has started to make a name for themselves as a mini-hub for EDM, and most particularly dubstep. With rumors stirring about Tomorrowland possibly coming to the ATL in 2014, it’s hard not to pay attention. Although we doubt it, as it seems the city has no permissible venue for such a grand affair. People we know in Georgia told us (they’re cool, don’t worry).

Helping lead the way is Lee Bates, better known as MUST DIE!

With wobbles and bass as his hammer and nail, MUST DIE! has built an audial Taj Mahal with his latest EP, ‘WEIRD’. With releases on Dim Mak, Subhuman, Play Me, and Mad Decent Records, Lee possesses the skill set to wreck speakers and dance floors alike. Each song contains a specific sound unlike any other on the EP, all while synchronizing a similar groove throughout. With the release of volume one, we can only assume that a second volume is in the works.

8-bit never sounded so good.