Electronic producers Mord Fustang (Plasmapool) and Feed Me (Mau5trap) took Royale by storm February 5th with an unbelievable performance. The ambience of Royale fit well with the nature the performance; kind of an 18th century Britain meets new-age European Electro-House. The show fulfilled EDM stereotypes with members of the audience dressed in vibrant clothing and accessories, pharmacy ranging from Ninja Turtles t-shirts to glow-in-the-dark hula hoops. The stage setup was stacked with 2 parallel sets of speakers hanging from the ceiling. This setup was conducive to the electronic head-bobbers. This particular performance was their first of many on their 2013 U.S. Tour.
Mord Fustang originates from Tallinn, prescription Estonia. He opened up with his hit track, viagra “Lick The Rainbow.” Fustang stays fresh and up-to-speed with the Electro-House genre by using an array of equipment. His live setup includes an iPad for track monitoring, a 13” Macbook Pro stacked with Ableton Live and an M-Audio midi controller, which provides an emphasis on handle. The Estonian native maintained the audience’s attention with a certain enigmatic glow. He did so by strategically centering the light show around the audience, while simultaneously casting neon reflections of his face from his midi controller.
Immediately after leading into his other hit track, “Super Meat Freeze,” the crowd began to go wild. The song displayed his contributions to the electronic genre through his utilization of various samples from classic video games like Super Mario Bros. These short clips brought a sense of nostalgia for viewers. Samples such as these mixed with his hard hitting electro bass lines portrayed his unique and playful nature. By listening to tracks such as “Magic Trooper,” one can clearly see how he is influenced by Wolfgang Gartner’s ability to sample classic 80‘s disco tracks. Fustang ended his set with Zedd’s “Dovregubben,” capping his set off on a high note.
Feed Me (Jon Gooch), originally known as Spor, comes from the UK. The British producer is known for cultivating his live show around his LED light show and personal stage setup, The Booth. The light show has become an integral aspect of EDM, due to its ability to fuse the musical and visual experience into one. Gooch introduced his set with a trippy synth sample that lead into “To the Stars.” Within his stage setup, Feed Me’s crew illuminated many geometric prisms from character’s teeth to its eyes. Hovering above him were glass cylinders that illuminated millions of tiny LED lights, creating a visually beautiful contrast between his bass bumping tracks and visual performance.
After introducing the track, “Chain Smoker,” fans immediately started jumping up and down. The track portrays his ability to take elements of Hip-Hop, Moombahton, and Electro and energize his target audience. Feed Me merged his traditional Electro setlist with Dubstep tracks like “Cloudburn” and “Blood Red” to show his ability to adapt to stylings of newer producers, but not conform. Meanwhile, tracks like “Raw Chicken” convey that a lot of Gooch’s success comes from his ability to remain loyal to his brand image, through his interactive live stage setup. By closing with iconic tracks such as “Grand Theft Ecstasy” and “Green Bottle,” Feed Me did a great job satisfying longtime fans.
As someone who has previously listened to both producers before viewing their live shows, I give the show an A-. Both artists did a fantastic job at captivating their audience by amalgamating their live and visual performances, and playing a variety of newer and older tracks. The only area of improvement I would suggest for Mord Fustang would be to incorporate a fully interactive light show into his set, which is more than reasonable given his status within the community of independent electronic artists. Be sure to check out Mord Fustang and Feed Me on Soundcloud and see them live at a venue near you.