Photo by Nathan Burrell. More on Flickr
With one part psychedelic dance party, a dash of various samples, and a hefty helping of live drumming, the ingredients making up Pretty Lights’ set mixed perfectly to transform the Pageant into a surreal disco. Backlit by three massive LED panels and an arsenal of rotating stage lights, Derek Vincent Smith and his touring drummer (who played a kit along with Smith during the entire set) blazed through roughly two hours of layered beats, ranging from hip-hop to dubstep to house. Animated with the inviting swagger of your favorite club DJ, Pretty Lights juggled laptops and controller equipment, resulting in bangers like “Finally Moving Remix” and “More Important Than Michael Jordan.” To mix it up even more, Smith wasn’t afraid to layer various samples, from Britney to Rage, over his beats.
The energy in the venue was contageous – the audience kept dancing through the encore and all the way back to their cars in the parking lot. With all of his music free to download from his website, we’re ready and able to continue our Pretty Lights experience at home to hold us over until he returns to STL.
