This past September, effusively adored (and often reviled) Linkin Park released A Thousand Suns, a sprawling studio experiment that challenged the band’s oft-constrained standards as well as those of the pop-rock world at large. Has there ever been a moment before when Village Voice would dare assert “Linkin Park Made…
DJ-producer Eric Estornel is a veritable chameleon of electronic dance music. In a career spanning almost two decades, he’s shifted musical styles as often as monikers. His extensive discography boasts atmospheric techno as Maetrik, twisted electro as Mariel Ito, and moody deep house as Maceo Plex, all executed with a…
There’s a chance Tyvek’s Nothing Fits is a painstakingly assembled second record. Perhaps every player utilized great precision and grace when performing each note. The resulting album, however, sounds like a glorious mess. The Motor City band spits out its lo-fi, garage-y punk rock with such urgency it seems as…
Now in his 40s, British-born rapper Slick Rick has spent nearly half his life battling MCs, criminal charges, monocular vision, and deportation. Like a fortune teller, the rapper titled his 1988 masterpiece The Great Adventures of Slick Rick two years before his real troubles began: an attempted murder charge, followed…
When middle-aged lovers in matching pastel jumpsuits pop a little blue pill, light a dozen vanilla-scented candles, and get ready to rock so very softly, there’s only one soundtrack sexy enough for that kind of action: the sweet and flaccid strains of Air Supply’s Forever Love: Greatest Hits. Packed with…
Have you ever visited Little Dragon land? It’s a magical musical netherworld located halfway between creepy and cutesy, where the wind whispers and rages in strange songful bursts of art rock, R&B, and electro-pop. The days are dusky. The night sky shimmers in a totally trippy way. And if you…
Last week we previewed the upcoming January 21 performance by Maceo Plex at the Electric Pickle. The acclaimed American DJ-producer is Eric Estornel, who also goes by Maetrik and Mariel Ito — it depends on whether he’s feeling dark, sci-fi, or sexy. He’s been rocking the decks since the early…
View photos from No Age’s performance at Grand Central here.No Age With Beings and Rene Hell Grand Central Tuesday, January 18, 2011 Better Than: The outcome of the Heat game a couple blocks away. No Age shows in Miami, by now, seem to attract two distinct but related groups. There’s…
It is no secret that we love the Methodaires. We love the crew’s take on ska and roots reggae. And we certainly love that its self-titled debut EP is finally out and getting a proper release for Miami fans this Friday at Churchill’s Pub. The Gold Coast Derby Grrls will be hosting…
Regular Crossfade readers will recognize the name Beings, a local heavyish-arty-fuzzy group with a kickass female drummer. So who the, uh, hell, is this Rene Hell character sandwiched between them and No Age tonight at Grand Central? The answer: It’s just one name for an idiosyncratic electronic artist who’s so…
Despite the name, Dirty South isn’t a filthy rapper from Macon with a mouth full of purple sizzurp and $30,000 diamond-studded platinum grillz. He’s actually a skinny, clean-cut white guy from Australia. Born Dragan Roganović in Belgrade, Serbia (formerly Yugoslavia) during the late ’70s, he immigrated to Melbourne at the…
It’s no secret that Crossfade loves L.A.’s best scrappy lo-fi punk duo, No Age. Luckily for us, No Age seems to love our hometown right back — or at least have booking agents who do. No seriously, they’ve publicly professed their interest in Miami recently, even if their schedules don’t…
Jesse Marco Ransom Mondays Monday, January 17, 2011 Mokai Better than: Another trip to the airport. Ransom Mondays at Mokai are supposed to be “industry” parties. That refers to the hospitality industry: bartenders, concierges, waiters, etc. It would seem, though, that the only industry that might unify the patrons on…
Last year, L.A. music event, Hard, made its Miami debut with a pool party at the Fontainebleau during Winter Music Conference. Unfortunately, the lux setting and the MTV Spring Break atmosphere left us unhappy with the results. The lineup was killer, but the hotel’s expansive pool area makes for a…
See 10 photos from Buju Banton’s show at Bayfront.Buju Banton and Friends Featuring Buju Banton, Stephen Marley, DJ Khaled, Gramps Morgan, and MoreSunday, January 16, 2011Bayfront Park Amphitheater, MiamiBetter than: Any reggae concert you’ve ever attended.Last night was a movie of epic blockbuster proportions. Imagine if Avatar came out with…
We’ve always wanted to just hop in a time machine and transport ourselves back to the height of a different musical era — you know, jazz in the ’20s, British pop in the ’60s, funk and R&B music in the ’70s. Well, now thanks to Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings,…
Raucous, rowdy and nothing if not fun, Bright Light Social Hour is everything so many of us fell in love with when we first discovered rock ‘n’ roll. It’s the kind of bluesy jam that could be heard blasting from our reeking bedrooms during junior high, as we listened to…
The Queers Churchill’s Pub, Miami Saturday, January 15, 2011 The Queers’ frontman Joe King is back. He never left or disappeared or anything. But last night’s show at Churchill’s gave us a clear picture of what his band was like in their prime, maybe. More accurately, this is the Queers…
View the photos from Miss Kittin at the Vagabond here.Miss Kittin DJ SetFriday, January 14, 2011The VagabondBetter Than: Reliving the electroclash era through its unfortunate haircuts and makeup. With about a decade’s distance now from electroclash’s birth in proto-hipster South Williamsburg, it seems grossly unfair to still categorize the scene’s…
A self-proclaimed city kid from New York’s East Village, Jesse Marco took a free fall into the music business at the age of 18 when he began an internship with British music mogul Mark Ronson. He gained recognition after taking a number of opening slots at New York clubs. A…
The Netherlands may be pretty tiny in actual land mass, but its influence on dance music has been outsized. The country represents a disproportionate influence on the trance scene — it’s the birthplace of titans Armin van Buuren, Ferry Corsten, and Tiesto — and has offered forth countless other more…
The Lee Boys are a world-famous family band of Perrine natives who all went to Miami Killian Senior High School. They play an updated, Miami-style version of Sacred Steel music strongly influenced by funk, soul, blues, rock, and R&B. The band tours the world playing 120 shows a year, and…
