Dead Rocks iii.
This is one of those concerts that is almost too good to try and explain to someone who didn’t witness it, but I’ll give it my best shot.
Pusher opened the night with a rousing set that helped bring the crowd to terms with being at Red Rocks once again for Dead Rocks. His pop-electronica was mixed in with a few other surprise genres to rile up the crowd and introduce them to everything that Pusher could do. It certainly worked as I took pictures and saw the crowds make their way to the best spots in the house. While plenty of people wanted to be up front for Zeds Dead, that definitely did not stop them from enjoying Pusher.
Rezz took the stage next and introduced the crowd to her own brand of techno, all whilst wearing some of the coolest googles. (She designed them herself too). Despite still being early, Rezz threw down some hard and heavy techno that amped the crowd up. Her goggles swirled as the setting Colorado sun illuminated the stage and helped to make Rezz’ first Red Rocks performance one for the books. She played everything from new music, to iconic tracks (Raise Your Weapon), to a few of the tracks that helped put her name on the map. If you haven’t had the chance to see Rezz, make plans to because you will not forget it.
Next on the decks was NGHTMRE who brought quite the set to Red Rocks. There were some threatening clouds headed our way, but it certainly didn’t stop him from laying down some of the heaviest dubstep/trap I’ve heard in quite a while. Nothing was off limits as NGHTMRE was just as hyped as the crowd. I wasn’t able to catch all of his set due to my interview with Pusher, but hearing it from where we stood, it sounded like the crowd was having the time of their life. I’m quite certain that NGHTMRE will be back to Colorado soon to get more of the dubstep capital of the US.
Now, to be perfectly honest, I had no idea who Lil Dicky was before his set started. I knew what he looked like, but that was pretty much where my expectations stopped. Thus, as the rain began to fall and Lil Dicky traversed back and forth across the stage of Red Rocks, I found myself eager to hear what he had in store for us. Rap isn’t always my preferred genre to listen to, but Lil Dicky was nothing short of spectacular. Taking many of the stereotypes of rap and turning them on their head or into a song, Lil Dicky made sure that the crowd forgot about the pouring rain. At one point he stopped and made sure that the entire Red Rocks crowd helped him sing the National Anthem. It was an impressive sight. Towards the end of his set as the rain continued to come down, Lil Dicky seemed to get even more excited as he stripped and danced for a fan from the crowd who had been brought on stage. I have to say, his dance moves are waaayyyy cooler than mine. This set was definitely worth it.
It was on to Tchami and his church that descended upon Red Rocks like the rain clouds above. In his characteristic attire with visuals to match the theme, Tchami went into full deep house mode and worked Red Rocks like a master. Track after track, nothing could stop the bass from echoing across the rocks as the rain pelted fans all over while they refused to give in. Tchami gave the crowd everything he had and I was thoroughly impressed with his set, even after only seeing him one other time. Tchami is one of those artists that you absolutely MUST see as soon as you can. It’s worth every second. Finally the rain abated as Tchami would down with “Afterlife” and his deep house remix of “Take Ü There”.
It was finally on the Zeds Dead. Last year I was incredibly impressed with their set, mixing old and new, and plenty of genres to create the perfect set to capture the feeling of Dead Rocks. That was, until this year when they found a way to outdo themselves. Blending some of their most iconic songs with sneak peeks at the album that should be released this year, Zeds Dead had the crowd in the palm of their hands. With tracks like “Rude Boy”, “Collapse”, “Stoned Capone”, bringing NGHTMRE out for their collab track, and then bringing out special guests Twin Shadow and D’Angelo Lacy to perform “Lost You” live, I was in perpetual awe. DC and Hooks are masters of their craft, continually producing music that grabs hold of you and refuses to back off. From the heaviest dubstep, to some of the slickest Drum N Bass, to collabs with artists across the spectrum, Zeds Dead proved once again that Dead Rocks is one of the best concerts of the summer. They’ll be back for a Dead Rocks iv, I would put money on it.
Check out the rest of my pictures from the show!
