It’s kind of weird to interview yourself. But, since my job was to interview as many Hard Electronic artists as possible, and a day went by without one, I figured I should fill the gap, as I’m playing the L.A. show. We basically made a list of stock questions for the artist to answer how they wanted. So, I figured this would be easy. Lo and behold, the strangest thing was that I surprised myself with answers to the questions I wrote! So, if you’ve got a few minutes, let’s hang out…
Where are you from? How does your geographic location influence your music?
A Deadly Buda graphic from 1994, Pittsburgh PA.
I was born in Pittsburgh, PA. There, like most places in the civilized world, the population is force-fed garbage music repeatedly, brainwashing them and compromising their lives. It was there that I decided to fight against the insipid audio enslavers, be they man or otherwise. Eventually forced out of the city, I slowly made my way across the USA and have lived in Los Angeles County for the last 17 years, where I continue to wage my guerrilla campaigns to varying degrees of success.
What’s the story behind your DJ Name?
The original story is that “Buda” was my graffiti tag name, taken from a high school social studies report. I added “Deadly” with my first rave DJ gig in 1991. I wanted my DJ name to sound like a kung-fu movie name, like my DJ heroes growing up, Grandfaster Flash, mainly. But as time went on the meaning changed various times. I read years ago about certain Buddha’s whose job it was too destroy egos in order to set people free from the identity others have forced upon them. I like that idea, so that’s what my name means, now.
Who or what events in your life are responsible for you being the artist you are today?
My neighbor, Phil Schoemer, who first taught me how to DJ, was the biggest influence. I still remember things he taught me today, and still struggle to do them. DJ Controlled Weirdness, who introduced me to so much music in the early 90s and we threw raves together as Hear 2 Go, Christoph Fringeli from Praxis Records after that. I’ve always listened to everything Lenny Dee has to say, because he is more experienced and forward thinking than anyone in the dance music industry, period, and today when I get to work with Rob Gee on videos and stuff, helps me keep my sanity in a world gone mad.
Deadly Buda will be appearing at Hard Electronic September 9, 2017
What are you trying to convey with your music? What are you trying to communicate? What are you giving to the crowd that listens to you?
Though I try to make my sound dimension-bending and otherworldly, at the core I guess I am just trying to communicate that they aren’t alone… that we see really see these things and enjoy things together. I feel what they feel, too. Ultimately, life is more psychedelic than any drug you will ever take. So, I think when I play “crazy” hardcore I am just really describing life as it is, without a filter, and I want to just geek out with my friends about it and what we’re doing.
What moment do you cherish the most so far in your career as a DJ?
Lenny Dee’s Trax from the Darkside album art by Deadly Buda
There are some big ones for sure, Even Further ’95, and of course Even Further ’96. Both were some of my greatest sets for big crowds, and of course legendary parties. But the first one that always comes to my mind when asked is Catastrophic New Years in 92-93, in Washington DC. It was my first ever out-of-town gig, and Catastrophic was one of the biggest, if not the biggest rave crew on the East Coast at the time. My friend Dario Kenning gave them a tape and the next thing you know I’m playing ‘til midnight for the biggest, most illegal party I’d ever seen or maybe will ever see in the USA. They were diplomat’s kids, the Baez brothers, and they literally were pulling electricity right off the telephone poles into the warehouse and all the cops were obviously paid off. Ravers surrounded by Secret Service, it was unreal. I was already playing hard at the time, and I’ll never forget when I asked Mike Battaglia (now known as Mike Bee) what I should play, because I thought I might be too hard for them. He laughed and said, “just play hardcore!” and raised his fist and laughed. So I did and it went through the roof!
But for cherishing, I’ll always cherish the first raves I did in Pittsburgh with Controlled Weirdness: Psychotronic Slackrave, the Beehive parties, and after he moved, the Turbo-Zen and Millennium parties, which are stories for another day.
What specifically are you planning to give to the audience at Hard Electronic?
Original Deadly Buda style with new and improved ingredients. Since it’s Hard Electronic, I am going out-of-my-way to break the mainstream rules, really my old style. So, starting at 133 BPM and in a half hour, crank it up to 200+ BPM. I’m going to start banging some new Dave Delta tracks, and end up with some Mr. Madness at the end. Make sure to get there by 10:00 PM though, because that’s when I start. There are so many great DJs playing that if you blink you’ll miss one of us!
What is something you really want to tell the public that we might not have asked about?
The world today is dangerous, and meant to be confusing and overwhelming. It’s easy to get upset and impatient with everything going on. Just when you think you know the answers, another contradictory layer to the madness is revealed and frustrates. In today’s world we cannot rely only on logic or emotion, but must hone our intuition to navigate through the madness. Mistakes will be made by us and others, but if you proceed knowing you are good, and look for and amplify the good in others, be they friend or foe, we can navigate around the dangers and feel immediate satisfaction in our actions. I have to remind myself of this, so maybe others need to hear it too.
The system that makes this possible was made public at about 2:00 AM, on August 13, 2017, when Deadly Buda finalized the integration of 19 “smart contracts” on the Musicoin blockchain and attached them to his DJ mix on Musicoin.org. “This will completely change the dance music landscape,” said DJ Deadly Buda, “it’s a
development on par with the introduction of the 12” single or the crossfader. It will change the way we do things creatively and the listener will be the winner.”
The DJ mix contains 15 EDM tracks of various genres, hard electronic, dubstep, hardstyle, hard bass, jungle, drum and bass, hardcore techno, shamancore, tekno, and ambient, by artists Counterstrike, Satroniq & DJ Delirium, Teknoaidi, Subterranean, Cap, M27, Harhor, and Deadly Buda.
The DJ mix format was popularized in the 1970’s and since then has existed in a quasi-legal state. A recorded DJ mix is a continuous blend of several separate songs or “tracks”. To be traditionally legally compliant, this requires numerous permissions, paperwork, and licenses. By the time the paperwork is done, the audience generally considers the music in the mix old, and has moved on to the latest sound in fashion. Consequently, most DJs over the decades haven’t bothered to get the permissions, and have released the mixes “illegally” on cassettes, CDs, and now, SoundCloud and YouTube. Generally, the artists in these mixes aren’t receiving any compensation for their music and oftentimes aren’t even credited as part of the mix. Many DJs don’t supply playlists due to avoiding scrutiny, time constraints, lack of proper labeling on dance records, or at worst, just wanting all the attention for themselves.
Ironically, dance music producers make their music specifically so that it can be mixed by DJs, and clamor for popular DJs to use their songs. DJ mixes, though often technically illegal, are the main channel of publicity for smaller dance music scenes or up-and-coming talent. So for the last few decades, the music industry has generally not enforced their copyrights against DJ mixes while retaining their right to do so. Consequently, the DJs, still fearing potential incrimination, can rarely publicize their mixes on a grand scale or derive much more income than money they spent purchasing the records or Mp3s used in the mix. The cumulative effect of this quasi-legality has been that DJ mixes are still considered “underground” even though it is the audience’s preferred manner of listening to dance music.
“The more I understood blockchain technology, the more I realized that the legal problems with the DJ mix were about to be a thing of the past,” stated DJ Deadly Buda. “All the permissions, paperwork, and payments could be done in an instant.”
Blockchain technology is basically a decentralized ledger system maintained by multiple computers. The most popular blockchain in the world is Bitcoin, and it has inspired other blockchains to target specific areas of the world economy. Musicoin, as the name suggests, is geared towards music, musicians, and fans. When a user plays a song on musicoin.org the artist of the song gets paid one Musicoin (currently worth about $0.01-0.04 USD)—usually in a matter of seconds. This is significantly higher than average artists get paid per play on Spotify or iTunes.
Furthermore, the Musicoin blockchain system allows an artist to upload a song and attach what is called a “smart contract” that can distribute payments to multiple parties if needed. For example, the smart contract could be programmed so that every time the song is played, the drummer, singer, guitarist, and bassist in a band all split the payment.
“When I realized every song on the Musicoin system had its own payment address, I got as many people I knew that made great music to upload. Then, I asked their permission if I could use their music in my mix,” revealed Deadly Buda. After conferring with some of the artists, realizing they were helping to establish a new paradigm, the following formula was decided: 40% of the mix revenue goes to the DJ, and the remaining 60% is split evenly between each of the songs in the mix. “A DJ spends a lot of time sifting through a lot of bad music to find the gems he or she plays for the public, so I wanted to honor that time and money expenditure while at the same time leaving a fair amount of room for each song to make money as well.”
A new paradigm for how DJ mixes can be made and monetized is now officially live thanks to DJ Deadly Buda and Musicoin, but there is still work to be done says Deadly Buda, “In the very near future, there will probably be just a checkbox an artist can use that gives anyone on the system the right to mix their music so long as they get paid via a smart contract. As soon as that happens, the system will be unstoppable and will benefit the established music industry and new artists alike.”
Dance music came into my life in stages. Growing up on the East Coast in the ‘80s, Cybotron, Strafe, and Run DMC were early ballistic missiles which struck me in third grade, when my gym teacher broke out linoleum squares and tried to teach a room of suburban kids how to breakdance. Hip hop and electro became my first loves, first fueled by NYC radio and beginning in ‘88, daily doses of Yo! MTV Raps and Rap City. Also in ‘88, Inner City’s “Good Life” and “Big Fun” entered my world through metromix sessions on Pittsburgh’s urban radio station, which I recorded to cassette. Although I had no idea who The Belleville Three were at the time, those tracks were my first introduction to the sounds of Detroit.
The Mover: Selected Classics (Remastered 2017) at home with various toys.
As I started listening to and more and more music, my tastes had grown to include electronic pioneers Yello and The Art of Noise, but oddly it was the work of the demoscene that really started to pique my interests towards techno. For those unaware, in the early ‘90s various groups of computer programmers would code “demos”—self-contained programs showcasing original art, motion graphics, and music to showcase their creative talents. Distributed on computer bulletin board systems and (very) slowly downloaded by dial-up modem, these demos became progressively more awe-inspiring with each release as the artists honed their digital tricks, often rivaling or exceeding the work of popular video games of the day. And the music really got me going—soundtracks filled with original music that I soon learned was techno, trance, and ambient. The demoscene inspired me to dig deeper—admittedly only superficially at first, as some of my earliest purchases were cornball compilations picked up at the mall. But everything changed after THD’s own Deadly Buda threw Power Rave ‘92—my first rave—at a roller rink just outside of Pittsburgh. The music that night was harder and darker than anything I had heard before, and by the end of the night, mall compilations were certainly no longer cutting it. I bought my first mixtape the next weekend at Turbo Zen—Buda’s record store—as well as Industrial Strength Records’ first compilation. First cut on the disc? Mescalinium United’s “We Have Arrived”, now widely known as the track that gave birth to hardcore techno. The title couldn’t be any more apt, and I was instantly hooked—a whole new take on the 808s and 909s that fueled my earliest musical interests.
Industrial Strength ISCD1: The compilation that introduced me to The Mover in ’92
Through attending as many parties as Pittsburgh could throw at me, I quickly grew to consider Marc Arcadipane (and his countless aliases) one of my favorite musical artists. I blew out speakers to “Nightflight (Non-Stop to Kaos)” over the years—watch your bassbins, I’m tellin’ ya—and I may be doing the same right now, 25 years later, as I write this piece. The 2×12” of “Selected Classics” was released on Killekill’s sub-label Boidae, licensed by Acardipane’s new Planet Phuture label. Even for a 33 RPM pressing, the hats and snares are crisp, and looming basslines blast thick enough to rattle fillings. A carefully curated, fully remastered track selection runs the gamut from the aforementioned “We Have Arrived” (originally recorded in ‘89 and released in ‘90) to album cuts from 1993’s The Final Sickness (Planet Core Productions) and 2002’s Frontal Frustration (Tresor) and the EPs released throughout. Sorely missing from the 12” release is “Over Land & Sea” from the Signs of ‘96 EP, a slow, brooding track that culminates in a doom chorus of nightmarish, growling bass and crashes. Dystopian 3 a.m. fog and strobe material that to this day desperately needs to be in a movie. (Digital release purchasers of this compilation, however, will be pleased to find the track included, as well as 2002’s “Spirit Slasher”.) You’ll find the pumping “Waves of Life” with its driving vocal stabs and synths that rounds out in a downright blissful coda, the disorientating, uneasy spiral of “Reflections of 2017”, and the percussive, percolating “Astral Demons” and its absolutely dope stereo acrobatics.
As a fully indoctrinated fan, each of the selections are fully ingrained in my psyche, but for the uninitiated, this collection should be a truly rewarding journey into the unique energy and vivid imagery that The Mover presents. For those trying to decode the mythos of Acardipane’s “See you in 2017” message (for a deeper look into this, be sure to read The Hard Data’s Spring 2017 issue) over the years, well, we have arrived. Today, Aphex Twin and Nina Kraviz are unleashing Mover tracks upon a whole new generation at festival crowds. Acardipane added yet another label under his belt (the surfacing of Planet Phuture), and we’re in store for a new Mover album this fall. And not to ruffle any political feathers, but was “The Emperor Takes Place” prophetic?
To this day, this still sounds like some of the most futuristic music I’ve ever heard, and is eerily on-target. Welcome, at last, to 2017. Lying dormant since 2002 and rising like a dark phoenix, the Mover is back—as it was foretold to faithful listeners. (5/5)
Growing up in Akron, Ohio, I was fortunate enough to be surrounded by a great music scene. Whether it be The Black Keys & The Pretenders from Akron, or heavy metal mainstays like Mushroomhead, Chimaira, Marilyn Manson, or Filter from Cleveland, drawing inspiration from home was easy. However, it wasn’t until my late teens that I began to hear some of what the region’s underground dance music scene had to offer.
My first ever show was a small weekly booking at The Vortex, a popular local club in Akron. My buddy Nate Woodruff, whom also comes from an instrumental background, booked me for this gig. I had been producing a few years prior but I felt it was my time to give DJing a go. Sadly, there was a steady learning curve I had to endure. As time went by, I not only began to learn the nuances of DJing, but also learned the lay of the land. Akron is an interesting city when it comes to underground dance music. First, you have many young bucks looking to take on the scene, promoting parties that tip the cap to modern dance music, with breakneck bass and steady aggressive sounds. But when one takes a step back, they can see that Akron is also a scene of thriving vintage and avant garde producers and promoters alike.
When an outsider asks of Akron and dance music, the first thing many people will tell them about is an event series called Contrive. This series has been around for years and showcases some of the best local DJs the scene has to offer. Primarily centered around the house genre (although other four on the floor sub-genres have been featured), these parties take you back to the nostalgic sounds of Brooklyn, Chicago, and Detroit. Ran by Mark Roscoe, these shows have a cult following of both new and old heads from the region. Featuring great DJs such as Justin Bailey, Joshua Gilliland (of Rubber City Promotions), Ricky Spanish and more, integrity is an abundant trait at this event.
Live set up for Contrive in Akron, Ohio. Credit: Rubber City Promotions
If house isn’t your taste, that’s ok. Another event that has popped up in the scene in recent years has been one of my own, Audio Arena. Once an outsider of the rave scene, it took a long time for me to comprehend what all of the fuss was about. When I would go to metal shows, it was an experience. People didn’t just stand and watch, and if they did, the band always gave it their all to keep everyone entertained. From there to watching one, or sometimes two people DJing…it was a tough transition. Because of this, I wanted to host parties that weren’t just a basic rave environment. In some way, shape, or form, these parties had to keep the attendees involved.
My first rule about Audio Arena is always featuring DJs of many different sub-genres on one bill. I have always believed that music variety is paramount in appreciating your own strengths, so whether it be house, trance, breakbeat, trap, dubstep, drum & bass, UK hardcore, hardstyle, or anything else that engages the mind, there is a place for it at my shows. But what makes my shows more unique is the location. Albeit stressful and expensive, we have been able to pull off three parties at laser tag arenas. They all went seamlessly, yet, I still wanted to break more barriers. In January of 2017, I threw the regions first ever trampoline park rave at Sky Zone in Boston Heights, Ohio. I was worried about many factors, but we ended up breaking an attendance record and by the end of the night, many were saying how it was one of the best parties they have ever been to.
Audio Arena 4.0 – Trampoline Park Edition, Boston Heights, OH. Credit: Maddeax Khole
But enough about me. Let’s continue. There are other promoters I want to give a shout out to, including Nick Baker of Kosmik Kahuna and Joseph Ryan of Druidic Productions, who throw events with style. I also want to make sure I mention two prominent local labels who have made huge imprints on the national and international scene. First, Sweetdrop Digital is a label ran by Justin Hachat AKA Justin David. This label specializes in the sounds of progressive trance, as well as working with other melodic sub-genres. Second, Crowsnest Audio is a label ran by Tyler Swan AKA Lord Swan3x, whom actually attended my high school alma mater. This label is known for its heavy bass music and has amassed great street teams in Canada and even overseas. Also worth mentioning is Crankdat, who is a rising star out of McDonald, Ohio by way of Kent State University. He rose to fame almost overnight and is now touring the country.
Before we move on, we would be remiss to leave out our neighbors to the north. Cleveland, Ohio has always had a vibrant scene, and it’s dance music scene is one you would expect from a major city. In the center of it all is Cumulus Entertainment, ran by Eric Weinart and Shaun Malone, respectively. This duo puts together phenomenal productions multiple times a year that rival most major events in places like Miami and Las Vegas. Their hallmark shows, Winter Warm Up & Radiate Festival, are thrown at the legendary Agora Theater & Ballroom and draw thousands of people every time Cumulus has an event.
Winter Warm Up 2016, Agora Theater, Cleveland, Ohio. Credit: Cumulus Entertainment
Another household promoter in Cleveland is Tru Events, headed by Michael Mellon. Tru Events would be the company known for bringing in all of the A list DJs on their major North American tours. Their venue of choice is Liquid, a club on West 6th Street in Downtown Cleveland. This venue is one of the best the city has to offer, with a 21st century feel, 360 bar, and industry-standard sound. It is very clear that if you find yourself in the confines of Northeast Ohio, and you feel the need to dance, you will most certainly find what you are looking for.
This is not where the story ends; not by a long shot. Only a short 111 miles away is the metropolis of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a melting pot of some of the best underground music in the United States. By nature, Pittsburgh has one of the oldest rave scenes in the nation, and as TheHard Data Founder DJ Deadly Buda can attest to, is still going as strong as ever. Back in the late 80’s and early 90’s, a group of DJs were inseparable, and little did they know that they were all destined for greatness. Turbo Zen Records was the name of the game, and these DJs ruled the land. Known then (and some now) as DJ Deadly Buda, +FX (now DJ Virus), Dieselboy, Richie Hawtin, and a few others, these performers took part in some of the more legendary parties in midwest raver lore, including Soul, High Voltage, and Power Rave 92′. Also in the house scene came a DJ who is still very much in the game. Known as Euphoria, Eric “DJ Strobe” Cohen was one of the leaders of the house movement in the city.
Fast forward to today and not much has changed, which is a very good thing. Pittsburgh is thriving with tons of promoters and DJs, all whom bring their own special signature to the scene. Let’s begin with Hardstyle Family, which is ran by Eric Wade. It’s not difficult to figure out what kind of parties that this company throws, but if you areTHAT dense, they organize some of the better Hardstyle and Hardcore parties in the region. Although their long running series Rave So Hard is wildly successful, nothing can match the pure ferocity of Fantasyland Festival. This open air festival has been held in Ford City, PA for the last couple of years and features a main stage which is designed to visually jaw-drop each attendee. When the night gets darkest, a separate stage is open for silent disco, a very popular trend in the scene.
Fantasyland Festival 2016, Ford City, PA. Credit: ArcaneRaver23
If harder styles isn’t your thing, feel free to check out an event by 1UP Productions. This company is mainly ran by Ron “Rizzo” Gianfrancesco. These events are generally as multi-genre as you will find in the scene and include some of the most creative themes in the region, making for an always entertaining experience. Head down to their home venue, The Braddock Elks, for a great underground feel. Another great promoter is BC1 Productions, manned by T.J. Harris, whom like myself, gathers inspiration from the old school and brings it to the new. Although they don’t throw many shows annually, when they do, they pull out all the stops.
One of the more paramount promotional companies in Pittsburgh would have to be 1337. This company is fronted by the duo of Robert Burton and Justin Doverspike. Generally throwing a handful of events a year, they pride themselves on a well-executed marketing plan, outstanding visuals, and a lineup that is bested by very few. Over the years, 1337 has become the front-and-center company of Pittsburgh underground raving, and their promotional efforts don’t go unnoticed by anyone.
1337 “Era” NYE 2016 Party, Pittsburgh, PA. Credit: Jeff Poole
Last summer, I was fortunate to be a part of Shipwrecked Festival, which was held at Club Changes just north of Pittsburgh in New Castle, PA. This was the second Shipwrecked Festival and was ran by G.O.D. Audio/Visual Productions, in conjunction with Dirty Ramen. These companies are ran with loads of experience by Ben Bridegum and Sean Lush, respectively. If you are looking for that essential variety we all crave, both of these promoters know what it’s all about and bring it to the masses.
Last but not least, we have some fresh promoters in the business, although one would not know it at first glance. Bass Technology is ran by Sammy Padgett and has thrown some of 2016’s most memorable events. Leading this is the event series, Invaders of Outer Bass, which in the Fall of 2016 was thrown at Cruze Bar. With some of the best club sound I have heard in Pittsburgh, this show drew hundreds of people and reminded us that the Pittsburgh scene will be thriving for generations to come. Also relatively fresh to the scene is Bassburgh Promotions, ran by the three-headed monster of Kevin Petted, Seth Hoover, and Chris Stankay. This trio throws events more frequently than some of the aforementioned promoters, and they still manage to do so with superb precision, locking down headliners and a very solid supporting cast.
Although these seem to be the names to remember in the underground, there are still many other niches in the Pittsburgh scene. For instance, 2step Tuesdaysis a weekly get together at the Tiki Lounge, which is one of the most unique bars I have ever been to. Headed by Miaa Rigby, this weekday party is a nice change of pace, generally featuring more downtempo music that still gives an electronic edge. Hot Mass is another major gathering of likeminded folks. This nightclub in the heart of Pittsburgh shows that techno, house, and other smooth sounding rhythms are very much welcome in the scene. Some of the DJs featured at this club are of legendary reputation. If you want to see a true art form, this is where you would go. Last but not least is a show series called Lazercrunk, which is organized by Geoff Maddock. This event series focuses on avant garde genres, specifically breakcore, and is currently hosted at Belvederes Ultra-Dive. National and international acts come from all parts of the globe to participate in this one of a kind party.
There are so many other people and places I am leaving out in this midwestern gold mine of music, but I have run out of time. I will leave that for you to discover. After all, some of the best treasures are found, not given. So if you are looking to breakdance to breakbeat, shuffle to hardstyle, twerk to trap, or do whatever your heart desires, you would be foolish to find yourself out of options in this Mid-American masterpiece.
I was born in Pittsburgh, DJed my first rave in Pittsburgh, and when asked where I am from I always want to say Pittsburgh, even if I haven’t had a mailing address there in decades. So it was with keen anticipation that I looked forward to the Pittsburgh edition of the Trauma Harder Styles Tour 2016, and it lived up to the hype in my subconscious.
Meccano Twins at Trauma Live’s Harder Styles Tour 2016: Pittsburgh
Every stop on the tour has its unique flavor, and the stop in the Steel City could be best described as one of child-like enthusiasm and fun. Being the least populated city on the tour, that was reflected in the attendance, however, for those that made it out in the 20 degree Fahrenheit cold, it was a life changing and transformative event that most will recognize a few years from now, and one that I see now, simply based on my past experience in this realm.
Tommyknocker at Trauma Live’s Harder Styles Tour 2016: Pittsburgh
There was a crowd of old and new last night. There were a few attendees, such as Dario Kenning, who attended Pittsburgh’s first rave on December 13, 1991, the Psychotronic Slack Rave. Dan Mross and Colby Newton, veterans of the Turbo Zen days, were also in attendance. They were joined by a new breed of ravers, getting a taste of hardcore for the first time, or at least the first time live.
In fact, that was the interesting thing, all along the tour. In the early rave days, we were introducing a hodge-podge of music to the crowd, blending it together and making something new. Hardcore EDM, or techno if you like, harkens back to that pivotal moment in rave history. It was the point where the ravers made their own sound. That sound is an alternative sound to the mainstream, so that in many ways the evolution of hardcore is unrecognized in the mainstream, and why it feels so fresh and exciting when the curious party-goer stumbles upon it, or searches and finally finds it. It feels different when you are there, and you know it.
I started off the night playing some new tracks created by Subterranean and Nickolai, remixes of my old “Playing Echoes in Your Head” EP from 1996, a 20 year old record that still sounds fresh today, and now even fresher with the updates. I was followed by Buzz Fuzz, SRB, Meccano Twins and then Tommyknocker. Tommyknocker really knocked it out of the park last night, his set was spot on, tight and driving. No disrespect to myself, SRB, Buzz and Meccano, we all played nice sets, but the crowd finally arrived during Tommy’s set and he made sure they got their money’s worth once they stepped on the dance floor. Up next was the crowd favorite, hardstyle heroine, DJ Stefanie. She had the crowd bopping away, and was probably the most popular last night.
Dr. Peacock at Trauma Live’s Harder Styles Tour 2016: PittsburghMC RTSier of Rotterdam Terror Corps at Trauma Live’s Harder Styles Tour 2016: Pittsburgh
Dr. Peacock was up next, and played what might have been his best set on the tour so far. I didn’t think he could surpass the Denver show, but his sweet melodies and international flavor really enraptured the crowd last night. I might be tempted to say he had my favorite set of the night, but it would be a close coin-flip between all the stars. Let’s put it this way: last night I started to understand what all the buzz was about Dr. Peacock. He’s doing something different, and the crowd is getting into it.
Rotterdam Terror Corps assaulted the stage next with their trademarked brand of chaos. Huge kick drums, terror noises, scary make-up and gabber strippers whipped the crowd into a frenzy. Then, as has been the tradition on the tour, Rob Gee wrapped up the show with his recent tracks, and then ended with a classic, “Ecstacy, You Got What I Need,” which is coming up on its 20 year anniversary. Apparently there is going to be a number of remixes coming out this year by top hardcore artists. The icing on the cake was when Rob made sure to do a final encore for the fans.
I hurried up to the door, and passed out the last few copies of The HARD DATA, and then kicked it with some of my homies from back in the day. Next up, the home of USA hardcore, Brooklyn, NYC. Until then, remember…
The rhythm is life and death!
-Deadly Buda
Dedicated to the harder sound of electronic dance music.
