There is a remarkable beauty that resonates at a Glitch Mob concert. Somewhere amidst the gripping visual effects, the LED Bass Drums, and the thousands of people going ballistic, you can see three musical legends in their prime. The Love Death Immortality Tour, which began earlier this month, is sending shockwaves through the Electronic Dance Music Community. Style points alone make this tour a force to be reckoned with, even in comparison to the last time the Los Angeles Superstars came to party in Atlanta. Lush, visual detail of flickering soundscapes emanated from the Jumbo-Tron sized display screen behind them. Throughout the show, the three Mob Bosses pounded on four LED encrusted Bass Drums, (each the size of a Boeing jet-engine) striking them with timpani mallets in a tribal dance frenzy.
Ooah, Edit, and Boreta have outdone themselves this year, and they looked like they were having as much fun on stage as the crowd was. Part of what makes a Glitch Mob performance so spectacular is that each sound, drum beat, synth line, and bass growl is played live on their 4 Lemur Controller Software supported iPads. These musicians are way above the average CDJ sporting Disc Jockeys you’ll find at your average club, playing one fully mixed and mastered song after another after another. When you as an audience member attend a Glitch Mob Concert, you can see them play Every Single Melody in real-time.
Many music listeners argue that there is a specific quality of genius that is involved in playing an instrument like the piano or guitar, a quality that many would suggest is lacking in an EDM performance. There is a big difference between beat matching two pre-recorded songs and being able to play scales and arpeggios on an instrument, so it is easy to see why some find it hard to compare Bassnectar to Jimi Hendrix. Not all concert goers agree whether turntables or button mashing is the musical equivalent to playing a saxophone or singing in a choir, but within the first few moments of taking the stage at the Tabernacle this past Thursday, The Glitch Mob etched a new standard for DJ’s and their live performances.
Everything about The Glitch Mob is futuristic to say the least. So often, genius musicians that are born well before their time waste away in poverty because their art is unappreciated by the present population. It is refreshing to see a venue like the Tabernacle, (arguably the second largest venue in Atlanta behind Phillips arena) packed to the brim with cheering fans. COOL Fans. People you want to hang out with at a show. The Glitch Mob has the perfect fan base! There were no fights, sloppy drunks, or ketamine comas. Not a single ambulance was called for, and people were respectful of each other. For all the haters that say that EDM shows are populated with drug abusing bass head burnouts, I implore you to buy a ticket to a Glitch Mob concert. They are the REAL future of Electronic Music.
