%%excerpt%% LUZCID brought his exciting Illusions Tour experience to Boulder’s Fox Theatre this Saturday.
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Liquid Stranger Goes Downtempo at Mission Ballroom Night 2
Imagine this:
- It’s night two of Liquid Stranger‘s three-night run in Denver.
- The theme is downtempo.
- The whole crowd has caught the vibe.
Thousands of bass music fans gathered from Thursday to Saturday to catch three diverse sets from Liquid Stranger at Mission Ballroom, along with 16 genre-spanning openers. Friday night offered an extraordinary chance to slow down, groove, and experience relaxed beats backed by impressive production and a PK Trinity Black sound system.
Liquid Stranger during his downtempo set
Wakaan & Beyond
Martin Staaf, better known as Liquid Stranger, is the enigmatic Swedish label head of two imprints. He first launched Wakaan, the celebrated freeform bass label with a cult-like following. Then came Sskwan, the chilled-out flipside of Wakaan. Staaf’s main label already hosts its own music festival, boasts over 50 major releases, and features tons of heavyweight bass artists. Some of the recent releases come from maintays like Rusko, Truth, LSDREAM, Jantsen, Zeke Beats, and Peekaboo.
Night two was the chance for Sskwan to shine. While Sskwan may be Staaf’s younger imprint (announced just a few years ago at Wakaan Festival), it has already made a big splash by asserting a larger presence for mellow music within the dubstep scene. Recently, Sskwan’s first release came out in 2021 from US-based producer LUZCID. It has since expanded to include Au5, Shlump, and LIGHTCODE (an alias of LSDREAM). The sounds of Sskwan filled Mission Ballroom on Friday, as all the artists on the lineup brought their best downtempo music.
Night Two’s Roster
To kick off the night, the show featured up-and-coming acts in bass music, Sharlitz Web, and REDRUM. Next, Mad Zach offered glitchy tracks over black-and-white visuals, and ATTYA kept things slow and bass-heavy. Finally, the mysterious Tripp St. closed the openers with his funky glitch hop.
All of these artists perfectly supported the theme of the evening. For example, Sharlitz Web just announced her debut EP on Sskwan, Spider Lily, which is coming out on December 1st. REDRUM has already dropped a single on the label with “Phases.” While neither Mad Zach nor ATTYA has official connections to the label, both artists mastered the chill, bass-heavy sound of the night. Tripp St., on the other hand, had the highest energy set of the night, but it was the perfect contrast before Liquid Stranger’s all-original and downtempo performance.
Liquid Stranger’s Downtempo Set
Longtime Liquid Stranger fans may have been among the most excited for his night two set. The downtempo vibe harkened back to his early classics from 2015 and 2016. Staaf began the night by promising to play those highly requested songs, and he did not disappoint.
The laser production was immaculate, the sound system was booming, and the music, of course, was the star of the show. Staaf played out fan favorites like his 2016 “Trigger Happy,” the number-one song fans requested online. He also used his Night Two set to shout out some of his collaborators who did not appear on the lineup for his Mission Ballroom three-night run. Staaf honored LSDREAM with their song “Potions,” and then he had a portion of his set dedicated to CloZee.
Liquid Stranger’s set winded down by previewing his upcoming EP on Sskwan called Unity, which will be released later this year. Staaf spoke directly to his audience to end the night with fitting closing thoughts. He hoped the downtempo set was healing and rejuvenating in preparation for the full-tilt energy of night three of Liquid Stranger at Mission Ballroom.
Photos by Seth Noreman
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Liquid Stranger Gets It Poppin’ at Mission Ballroom Night 1
On November 17, 2022 the legendary Liquid Stranger returned to Mission Ballroom for the first day of a 3 night run in Denver, Colorado.
Who is Liquid Stranger?
Liquid Stranger, also known as Martin Staaf of Varberg, Sweden, is a pioneer in the bass music world. With an early background in engineering and producing for jazz and rock bands in the late 90s, he started the Liquid Stranger project in 2003. In his early days, his goal was to fuse different genres of music into intricate soundscapes that encompass all. In 2015, he introduced his new label, Wakaan, which gave free-form bass artists a place to create and release. Liquid Stranger’s sound is ever-changing and incorporates multiple genres, including dubstep, free-form bass, drum and bass, and downtempo. Now in 2022, with a plentiful amount of excellent releases, a successful label, and die-hard fans, it’s safe to say that he is much more than a producer. Martin advocates for free expression, female leadership within Wakaan, and creating a safe space for all.
Opening Support
DRINKURWATER
The first opener of the night was DRINKURWATER, whose been on a quick come-up this year, releasing some heaters! Many were excited to see him on the lineup and have him out in Denver! He played a super high-energy set with hits like WET WET and Ear Tickle that got the crowd prepped for the rest of the night.
Sully
The next opener was Sully, and everyone was ecstatic to have him as opening support! Again, with some of his biggest releases this year, he came up very quickly. Coming in hot, he threw hits like his Tape B collab, Impulse, and other hits like Misfits with Liquid Stranger himself. The energy shot through the roof during his set.
TVBOO
Fan favorite and Denver local TVBOO was the next opener on the support lineup. Known for his hilarious personality and antics, his visuals and set followed suit with the craziness. He played an edit of the viral Youtube video of the Harry Potter puppets singing Severus Snape, and the crowd completely lost it! There were also the most ridiculous visuals of TVBOO himself clad in his famous hillbilly outfits being throw down with some wonky tunes that made everyone go wild.
Zeke Beats b2b Jantsen
The next supporting act was Zeke Beats b2b Jantsen, and many were excited for this b2b because of how amazing both artists are on their own! Many were curious to see how this b2b was going to play out, and they did not disappoint. Their set had each of their logos projected on the screen side by side, which was super awesome to see! Zeke Beats came in with the dirtiest live scratching, and Jantsen came through with his heavyweight sound. The combination of these two legends was so much fun to experience, and the crowd couldn’t help but go nuts.
Kill The Noise
The last opener before Liquid Stranger was the infamous Kill The Noise! Many weren’t sure what they would hear in this set because of the different genres he usually plays. What an incredible surprise this set was. As the first song dropped, so did everyone’s mouths as they realized this would be one of the heaviest sets of the night. KTN was throwing down dubstep but not your usual dubstep. It was the type of dubstep that started to evolve in 2018 to get deeper, bouncier, and denser. To be brought back to that time period was a pleasure, and the energy was at an all-time high. We’re thrilled that Liquid Stranger switched things up by adding Kill The Noise to the support lineup.
Liquid Stranger
The last opener before Liquid Stranger was the infamous Kill The Noise! Many weren’t sure what they would hear in this set because of the different genres he usually plays. What an incredible surprise this set was. As the first song dropped, so did everyone’s mouths as they realized this would be one of the heaviest sets of the night. KTN was throwing down dubstep but not your usual dubstep. It was the type of dubstep that started to evolve in 2018 to get deeper, bouncier, and denser. To be brought back to that time period was a pleasure, and the energy was at an all-time high. We’re thrilled that Liquid Stranger switched things up by adding Kill The Noise to the support lineup.
This night of the run was the all original throwback set from Liquid Stranger. For many who’ve known and loved Martin since his early days of releasing music, this set was a dream come true. From the moment he stepped on stage from the moment he departed, there was no letting up as banger after banger ripped through Mission Ballroom. The man laid down oldies like Rocket Fuel, Creature, Burn Like the Sun, and much more. Not only did he play old tunes that many have probably been chasing, but he threw down VIPs of old songs. He played the VIPs of Ripple, Don’t Stop, and Bombaclaad Star, which he pulled out a Dubstep VIP of that he had forgotten he made! The amount of music he could fit into an hour time slot was amazing!
Production
This year, the production was seriously top-notch. With Liquid Stranger bringing in the full PK Trinity sound system to Mission Ballroom, it made the biggest difference in the entire experience. The openers are usually quieter than the headliner, but the PKs ensured every artist came in with a bang. Earplugs are always a must at any show, but especially this one because of how penetrating the sound was. Mix the PKs with the incredible laser production and melty visuals, and you’d be sure to transcend. We’re so stoked that Liquid Stranger brought in such a great production and continues to level up!
Conclusion
Overall, Liquid Stranger on the first night of his three-night run at Mission Ballroom was incredible from start to finish. We are so happy to have experienced such excellent opening support acts and a throwback set from him! We can’t wait to see how he will continue to evolve.
Photos by Kyle Brim
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