Scotland has Belle and Sebastian. Mexico has Julieta Venegas. If ever there were a twee Latin rock artist, Venegas would be its reigning queen. In 15 years of recording, Venegas has evolved, but she has always remained true to a delicate yet strong sensibility rooted in Mexican ranchera music. Her…
Slimkid3 from the Pharcyde screamed, “We’re doin’ this for Reefa!” and the crowd went wild. Later, Jay Swift, the group’s first producer, jumped into the audience, and they completely lost their minds. It was a fitting hip-hop tribute at the old-school-style block party, where the four elements of rapping, DJing,…
Miami, we may not agree on a lot. But one thing we can all concur that the 305 is the place to be when autumn rolls ’round. It’s the perfect (and only) time of year to sit under a tree and sip on a Shipyard Pumpkinhead, stay out partying all…
Dude’s an OG. In fact, those are his initials. Born and bred in Miami, Oscar Gaetan started DJing at 12. And he became internationally famous in his 20s, making megahit house bangers as one half of Murk, alongside childhood friend Ralph Falcon. So yeah, Oscar G is undoubtedly a godfather…
You know that amazing dream where you’re, like, chillin’ on some supercomfy sofa in a swank hipster bar, and then former LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy just — poof! — magically appears outta nowhere, plops down beside you, and commences to shoot the shit while punctuating his sentences with wry…
Does your wardrobe consist of parachute pants, shoulder pads, fingerless gloves, and huge earrings? Is your record collection dominated by bands like Flock of Seagulls, the Smiths, the Cure, Pet Shop Boys, the Psychedelic Furs, New Order, Run-D.M.C., Kool Moe Dee, Big Daddy Kane, and Boogie Down Productions, just to…
Timmy Thomas is in a Hialeah warehouse slapping palms with a Cuban Santero named Oba Frank Lords. In the back room, there’s an altar with a straw-hatted guajiro sculpture set down beside a sacrificial blade. Up front, in a 12-foot-by-12-foot production studio equipped with little more than a computer, keyboard,…
“We’ve got a name, but you’re not gonna like it.” That’s exactly how Uruguay’s Latin Grammy-nominated rock band came up with its well-known moniker, No Te Va Gustar, or You’re Not Going To Like It. “It was like a joke between the band,” explains drummer Diego Bartaburu. “The band first…
Wanna get caked?! Good. Because EDM superstar, Dim Mak label head, and master baker Steve Aoki has been slaving away in the kitchen, prepping hundreds of sweet, edible props for his Aokify America Tour with Brick Squad boss, rapper, and dessert enthusiast Waka Flocka Flame. Stevie’s been mixing up all…
Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde is one of the greatest classic hip-hop albums of all time. Ever since that slab dropped in 1992 on Delicious Vinyl Records, it has resonated with fans across the globe. And hits like “Runnin’,” “Ya Mama,” and “Who Is the Nigga in Charge” are so…
Everyone in this world is ruled by two emotions — fear and love. They can keep you in check or drive you insane. But without them, you wouldn’t even know you’re alive. Artists and musicians are no different, though it seems songwriters are more inclined to pen anthems in love’s…
At 9 o’clock sharp in downtown Miami, the Weeknd — also known as Abel Tesfaye — took to the microphone behind a translucent curtain hanging from the rafters above a nearly pitch-black stage. His repentant yowls chilled the packed James L. Knight Center as he opened with “Adaptation” from the…
Matias Aguayo is not your garden variety EDM artist. Not by a long stretch. In many ways, the Chilean-born producer is Latin America’s answer to UK sonic mad scientist Matthew Herbert, approaching the formulaic house and techno genres with an irreverent spirit of experimentation and unconventional studio techniques. Mirroring Herbert’s…
Hundreds of live-music fans packed Churchill’s Pub on Saturday night for hours of non-stop entertainment from Die Trying, Low Visibility, The Ruins, Hardware Youth, SSK, Bottom Shelf Warriors, and FWA. The bar ran through liquor like a freight train. The circle pit was a hurricane of flying limbs. And between…
Music must be magic. What else (besides maybe booze) can unite hipsters with large, thick-framed glasses and red lipstick, rockers with fishnet stalkings and leather jackets, models with little black dresses, and everyone else in between for the sole purpose of jammin’? Whatever it is, music’s got it. So let’s…
California-born, Tijuana-raised Julieta Venegas is a multifaceted singer-songwriter whose sound has clearly matured over the years. And that is especially noticeable on her 2012 release Los Momentos, which she is currently promoting with an extended U.S. tour that makes a Miami stop this week. We here at Crossfade recently caught…
Two months ago, Miami Beach cops tasered a kid to death over graffiti. And today, Miami and his family are still seeking Justice for Reefa. From October 3 to 5 at LMNT, local skaters, dancers, artists, and DJs will come together to celebrate Israel Hernandez’s life, raise money for his…
Ketchy Shuby might be a lot of things, but a flash in the pan is definitely not one of them. Even in an arid Miami indie music scene that doesn’t offer its artists a hell of a lot of opportunity, the band has stuck it out together for over six…
If electronic music can be called music’s final frontier — the veritable cutting edge of sonic innovation — then it’s artists like Move D (AKA David Moufang) who are its true trailblazers. If the German production veteran is still relatively obscure (as far as mainstream EDM hype goes), it’s only…
When listening to Julieta Venegas’ 2013 disc Los Momentos, longtime fans might have noticed a clear shift in her style — something that might have been informed by recently becoming a mother. “Time-wise, my days have changed,” Venegas says. “I have to accommodate my time differently, and also, I think…
STRFKR With Chrome Sparks and Feelings Grand Central, Miami Tuesday, September 24, 2013 Better Than: It was a Tuesday night. How did you spend yours? At one point during last night’s triumphant set by Starfucker (STRFKR), the bright lights that danced and coalesced behind band members cooled, and the stage…
Despite being a sly sarcastic joke, the band name Miami Horror nonetheless evokes our city’s essential duality — a glitzy, neon-soaked tropical paradise on the surface, with a dark, seedy criminal underbelly, as mythologized by Miami Vice and Scarface. “I liked the contrast of the two words — colorful and…
