Seven Pool Parties During Miami Music Week 2017

There are ventriloquists in Las Vegas, sunrise sets in Ibiza, field raves in England, and pool parties in Miami; we all have our strengths. Take notes, Sin City, because the Magic City was doing this before you even knew dance music existed. Important: Floaties at pool parties aren’t funny, so please be respectful. The cocktails with the overturned Coronas, however, are great. Also, ladies, be cognizant of your coverups; one woman at the Delano last year had a fishnet-ass-cheeks sunburn.

Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde Has No Time for the Past

Hynde is happy to have a headlining date at the Fillmore while on a break from a tour opening for Stevie Nicks. “We get to play a lot of the new songs.” Those new songs are from the Pretenders’ tenth album, Alone, which was released last year. Produced and including guitars by the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, it features the punk-rock attitude Hynde has displayed throughout her career.

The 11 Best Techno Parties During Miami Music Week 2017

The city is filled with techno music during Miami Music Week. A diet of just one of the 80-plus venues would satisfy even the most discerning techno palate. If the options become overwhelming, write the names of the parties on small pieces of paper, crumple them up, put them in a fedora, and draw randomly.

Five Acts Making Their Ultra Music Festival Debuts in 2017

If there’s one complaint you hear often about Ultra Music Festival, it’s that the acts all seem to be the same year after year. Some of that criticism seems valid, but if you’re looking for something new among the headliners, perhaps you’re looking in the wrong place. Acts such as…

The Five Best Hip-Hop Parties During Miami Music Week 2017

Miami Music Week, which culminates with the deafening, glitter-and-neon bacchanalia that is Ultra Music Festival, is almost all about the DJs. It is as preoccupied with electronic music as Dr. Seuss was with cats, hats, green eggs, and ham. There are parties around pools/There are parties before school/You’ll find parties…

Carl Cox Expands the Ultra Resistance Brand

There’s no denying that acts like Swedish House Mafia, Avicii, Martin Garrix, and Afrojack help Ultra Music Festival sell tickets. But before EDM became a marketing buzzword, Ultra was putting dance music at the forefront every March with a lineup that always seemed to carefully balance popular, if flash-in-the-pan, trends…

Five Free Parties During Miami Music Week 2017

You don’t have to be a model heiress or a startup millionaire to have a great time at Miami Music Week. Sure, having a table at LIV is fun, but it’s incredibly overpriced. There’s plenty of good music and good times to be had with just a few dollars in…

Concert of the Week: Jazz in the Gardens

“Jazz in the Gardens” is the wrong name for this festival. The two-day event held at the home of the Miami Dolphins, Hard Rock Stadium, is now in its 12th year. But there is no garden, at least not in the typical, backyard sense of the word, and, more important, the music isn’t strictly jazz.

Sharp-Dressed Men of ZZ Top Come to Fillmore

Right along with being guaranteed the last entry in any alphabetical list of history’s greatest rock ‘n’ roll bands, ZZ Top has one other quality that makes it stand out from the pack: longevity. And, no, that’s not a reference to the size of their beards.

Where Are the Women at Miami Music Week?

As Ultra Music Festival inches toward two full decades as the premier dance-music event in the nation, in 2017 the festival doesn’t have a single woman among its headliners and only a handful in the rest of the lineup. Though it would be nice for the events surrounding Miami Music…

The Best Trance Parties During Miami Music Week 2017

Amid all the house, bass, techno, and beyond at Miami Music Week, it can be easy to forget about trance — unless, of course, you’re a devoted member of the #TranceFamily. Trance has been an integral part of Miami dance music; residencies such as George Acosta at Shadow Lounge and…

The Ten Best Parties During Miami Music Week 2017

That thump in the air isn’t just the incoming EDM bpm; it’s your excited heartbeat about to burst from your chest. The best and brightest of the entire dance community are on their way to Miami, and they want nothing more than to party with you.

Gigtat Lets Ultra Attendees Tattoo Set Times Anywhere on Their Bodies

Imagine yourself tilted at a music festival this summer. It’s pouring, your cell service is spotty, and hours ago you let some dude with cool hair use your set sheet as a rolling paper. Now what? Easy. You stare at your forearm for a couple of seconds, point to the main stage, and elbow your way there. The who, what, when, and where are all right there on your skin, because you tattooed the entire festival lineup on your body at home.

Will EDM Survive Beyond 2017?

If you asked what song best describes the state of EDM in 2017, it wouldn’t be electronic. It wouldn’t have a drop or a simple synth melody or a four-on-the-floor beat. It would be “After the Gold Rush” by Neil Young. The singer-songwriter wrote “After the Gold Rush” while the…