Flux Pavilion, Cookie Monsta, Brown & Gammon, Mammals
Friday, May 11 at The National
Two Fridays back, The National sold out. Kids packed the GA floor like sardines for Flux Pavilion. Flux Pavilion, AKA Joshua Steele, is one of the biggest names in all of electronic dance music right now, specifically bass music. To put things in perspective, The National didn’t sell out for Steve Aoki or Zeds Dead, furthermore solidifying how massive of an event this was for the city. We have Steez Promo to thank for making it all happen.
Flux Pavilion, Cookie Monsta, Brown & Gammon, Mammals
Friday, May 11 at The National
Two Fridays back, The National sold out. Kids packed the GA floor like sardines for Flux Pavilion. Flux Pavilion, AKA Joshua Steele, is one of the biggest names in all of electronic dance music right now, specifically bass music. To put things in perspective, The National didn’t sell out for Steve Aoki or Zeds Dead, furthermore solidifying how massive of an event this was for the city. We have Steez Promo to thank for making it all happen.
Before Flux stepped on stage there was an impressive lineup of opening talent which included the likes of Brown & Gammon and Cookie Monsta. B&G and Cookie are expected to bring the heat early, as they tour with Flux regularly. Personally, I was most impressed with local talents Mammals, a teen duo from RVA who managed to unexpectedly incite the crowd’s energy into a bit of mayhem.
As the Flux Pavilion logos on stage began to light up around midnight, I witnessed the National reach a decibel level I hadn’t before heard. He hit the stage and dove right into a two-hour set of non-stop ferocity behind the tables. Mental wasn’t even the word for it – more like hair raising, head-hunting fire. The moments of slow melancholic bass (custom Flux) paired nicely with fast-paced jives which at times drifted more towards moombahton.
He dropped every big track you could imagine, including the recent collaboration with Example “Daydreamer.” The most unexpected piece of his set that personally made me exstatic was a funky mix of bass loops mixed with some cut vocals from Nero’s “Are You Ready.” If anyone has a recording or can drop some knowledge as to what track that was, it would be greatly appreciated.
On the whole it was a great night! Check out the video below for further evidence:
Words and Video by Wade Davis of whiteraverrafting.com
Still Images by Reese Kempter of dopeonplastic.org
