Live Review: Gramatik at The Big Up 2011

by | Aug 3, 2011 | Concerts & Festivals, Reviews

As one of the first bands to open up The Big Up 2011, there wasn’t a huge draw to the stage during Gramatik’s set. A small crowd of dancing hippies, spread relatively thin, watched as the duo rocked a laptop and electric guitar from behind a banner bearing their moniker.

I like the Gramatik that introduces the music world to innovative ways of looking at the DJ/live instrumentation combination blowing up across the electronic scene. It’s not all incredibly unique, but Gramatik does his style of music right. In Hit That Jive the DJ fuses jazzy swing music with hip-hop and the added effect of an electric guitar, a sound that is upbeat and danceable. At TBU Gramatik dropped those types of crossover tracks, keeping to that sense of buoyancy. The DJ also retained a nonchalance in his music – call it a laid back, down to earth spirit that creates a mellow atmosphere for the beats to orbit around. Oftentimes Gramatik’s cool hip-hop vibe is lined with little perfect little pockets of jazz’s music legacy, including funk, soul and rock n’ roll. Chilled out trip-hop that flirts with all elements of music, from rhythm and blues to jazz, Gramatik stays true to a soulful hip-hop teasing you with playful guitar work and good-time instrumental loops. They ended up being the perfect way to start The Big Up party.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lxdog1B1H-Y

journalism by M E G A L O M A N D E E