On February 20th, Cool Customer sold out the Ogden Theatre in Denver as his biggest headline show to date. He put together a carefully curated show, boasting Funktion-One sound, an impressive laser package, and a heavy-hitting lineup. For an artist who burst onto the scene in recent years, Cool Customer has already crafted a distinct artistic world and dedicated fan base.
The show also served as the final performance before an indefinite hiatus for beloved VJ Tenorless. His stunning visual world, paired with Cool Customer’s beats, made for a highly memorable finale.
Dialing In
To kick off the evening, Cool Customer (real name William Allocca) debuted his “Chill Customer” set. Cool Customer is a New York-based producer who first appeared at Secret Dreams 2022. He’s known for laid-back hip-hop beats and uptempo glitch-hop alike. His Chill Customer set delivered on the relaxed vibes but also pushed the boundaries of “chill,” delving into the higher tempos of liquid funk.
After Chill Customer came Philadelphia-based DJ FREQ, paired with Uhnomaly on visuals. FREQ dished out plenty of dubstep along with zany edits like Nintendo’s “Mii Channel Theme” mixed with “Fergalicious.”
Next came a highly anticipated set from Two Guys: the collaborative project between Chez and Crawdad Sniper. They eased in with some downtempo cuts before amping up into bouncy garage territory. They threw down a club-ready flip of Joker’s iconic “Boat.” Toward the end, Two Guys indulged in some brostep with Sub Focus’ remix of Rusko’s “Hold On.” With the energy now fully ignited, the stage was set for an immersive audiovisual experience.
K+Lab’s AV Journey
New Zealand-born producer K+Lab was the only producer on the lineup not paired with a well-known VJ. Instead, he would present his own visual world through an AV set. As expected, K+Lab kicked things off by jamming on the keytar. He opened with “2 UR AREA,” his collab with Pigeon Hole and Eputty.
His AV set delved into the signature bug-eyed, bulbous, and noodle-armed characters of the K+Lab visual universe. K+Lab played an impressive number of originals from crowd favorites to deeper cuts. On the stage, K+Lab remarked that this Ogden show would be his last set in Denver for a while. This announcement likely relates to his recent decision to not renew his costly American visa. It was a great send-off for an artist with such a large fanbase in Colorado.
Cool Customer Calling
Since the early days of his project, Cool Customer has played with themes of communication technology and customer service (like his Customer Service mix series). Fittingly, Allocca stepped into a booth shaped like a giant, corded telephone and kicked the set off with retro footage about communications.
This theatrical opening made it clear that the customer service theme is essential to this project’s world-building. Unlike his more laid-back Chill Customer set, this time, Allocca delved straight into heaters like his original, “The M.F.” The Funktion-One system was in full effect, giving the crowd an all-out sub massage during “Peppermint” from his latest EP.
Despite the strong bass flavor, Allocca wasn’t content to stay in just one lane. While Cool Customer is synonymous with glitch-hop, he played a surprising number of drum and bass tracks, including those from Visages, Posij, and Enei. His silly “Inspector Gadget” flip was one of the first tracks that caught the attention of soon-to-be fans at his early live sets. Here, he even flipped “Inspector Gadget” into a high-octane DnB cut, much to the crowd’s delight.
As the set barreled toward its peak, the energy only intensified. Without a doubt, the crowd went craziest for Cool Customer’s “Blow Ya Mind,” which features an instantly recognizable Dr. Dre melody before dropping into heavy bass. After that moment, the spectacle gave way to something far more intimate.
Farewell to Tenorless
Toward the end of the set, Cool Customer slowed down the tempo to honor the celebrated Tenorless project by Asheville artist Joe Vassar. Following this set, Vassar is bringing the Tenorless project to an indefinite end, citing a family health crisis, rising equipment costs, and pessimism about the direction of the country as his reasons.
The night ended in several minutes of dedicated applause for Tenorless, an artist adored in the scene for his visual accompaniments to the likes of Tipper and Jade Cicada. Then, Cool Customer turned off all the stage lights so Tenorless’ visuals could stand alone during Cloudchord’s “Music Is Medicine.” The night ended on a black-and-white scene, highlighting Tenorless’s iconic blend of organic shapes and impeccable symmetry.
It’s no surprise that the current political reality in the United States will have an impact on the dance scene. We may not see the return of Tenorless or K+Lab any time soon, in part due to our shifting political landscape. It was a great honor to see them off thanks to the skilled curatorial hand of Cool Customer. This headline set proved that he has a clear perspective and a bright future as a growing artist.
