As part of its Colorado Winter Tour, Boulder’s returned home Friday night to a rowdy sold-out crowd at the (the show was literally promoted with the hashtag #rowdytown). Soaring off the success of its new release, “Nocturnal” — a bass-heavy party soundtrack that skyrocketed to No. 2 on the iTunes electronic charts despite being available for free download earlier this month — the duo of Dominic Lalli (production/sax) and Jeremy Salken (drums) has reached a new level of both popularity and performance.
In addition to an expansive new lighting setup that showcases each musician inside of his own LED-framed pod, the night featured an array of heavy-hitting new material from “Nocturnal.” Tracks like “Rise and Shine,” “Beginning of the End” and “Hopscotch” expanded on what has come to define Big Gigantic’s signature sound — an odd yet captivating fusion of Lalli’s soulful sax melodies over a not-so-soulful foundation of dubstep womp and four-to-the-floor builds.
Throughout an unrelenting set, which did not exclude older hits like the break-beat of “Lucid Dreams,” Lalli laced his original productions with a variety of remixes and crowd-friendly samples. Highlights included Jay-Z’s “Dirt Off Your Shoulder,” Aloe Blacc’s HBO hit “I Need A Dollar,” and creative use of Notorious B.I.G.’s now legendary opening verse to “Notorious Thugs.”
The tracks were grounded by the booming hip-hop beats and flashy hi-hat work of Salken, whose kit cut well through the mix. His raw energy and improvisation provided a welcomed organic feel arguably absent from the band’s studio sound.
Despite cries that the duo has drifted from its jam roots (Lalli spent almost five years with local funk masters the Motet) for the lucrative nature of the growing dubstep demographic, one can’t be disappointed for very long (wouldn’t you?). In an electronic music scene that is increasingly plagued by an “anything goes” mentality, it is satisfying to see Big Gigantic — an act rooted in calculated composition and jazz sensibility — getting so much love.
Follow our news and updates on , our whereabouts on and our relationship status on . Or send us a telegram.
Nate Etter is a Boulder-based musician and a regular contributor to Reverb.
