Suffering from uhntz-uhntz withdrawal? Well, your BFFs at Ultra Music Festival are hurting too. They’re just wracked with the painful physical and psychological symptoms of craving the lost companionship of 330,000 beat freaks. Even tweeting, “We miss you guys so much ;(” Desperate to alleviate the pain of silence and…
Some bands try to snag some buzz with a catchy name. Others become legends with their music alone. But when your band’s name is Kinky and you have been nominated for several Latin Grammys, you’ve definitely made it. We here at Crossfade caught up with guitarist Carlos Chairez just in…
The Río de la Plata (or River Plate) is a 140 mile-wide estuary that separates Argentina and Uruguay. It’s also the place of confluence for the diverse folk music styles Latin Grammy Award-winning Argentinian-Uruguayan collective Bajofondo began blending into their idiosyncratic Rioplantense electronic world fusion in the early 2000s. “What…
Genderqueer rapper Mykki Blanco will bite the head off a harpy, steal that bitch’s wings, and work ’em harder than any regular rap dame ever could. That’s because Blanco is no regular rap dame, and she certainly ain’t no regular rap dude. She is hip-hop’s new in-between, the great white…
So Microsoft hasn’t been cool since Windows 95 went obsolete on December 31, 2001, right? All the hip kids have been buying Macs and MacBooks and Mac OS and iPods and iPads for over a decade. Basically, ever since Steve Jobs (RIP) and company started building desktops that looked like…
How did the Stage suddenly become the best rap club in downtown Miami? Over the next month, this two-and-a-half-year-old Design District bunker that’s built its rep on roots, rock, and reggae will serve as the staging place for classic-era shows by former LOX member Styles P, booty bass pioneer Uncle…
“Give me a Borgasm!” No doubt, the youth of America are just a bunch of desperate beat freaks begging for the kinda “bass makes bitches cum.” And Israeli dubstepper Borgore is the dude with the deep rumble. After attracting ratchet pussy, doing jumpkicks, and climbing speakers at Ultra Music Festival…
A wise man once said, “Ain’t no party like a New Times party ’cause a New Times party don’t stop.” But why are our parties so awesome? The two-pronged answer is part of a longstanding tradition of histrionic revelry, dating back to the Socratic orgies of Ancient Greece: Dank food…
Traditions are kept alive by constant change. The roots music of the 21st Century is being created as much with electric guitars, sequencers, and laptops as with drums and flutes. That’s one of the ideas behind the Rhythm Foundation’s Heineken TransAtlantic Festival, whose 2013 headliners include Argentine-Uruguayan electro-tango group Bajofondo…
April has just begun, and no doubt you fell for some embarrassing news clip about Daft Punk’s album release being canceled or a zombie apocalypse — wait, never mind. But rest assured that the good music in this post is not a lie, trick, or gimmick. These incoming jazz musicians,…
How weird was it to wake up this past weekend and not immediately jump on the Metrorail bound for Ultra Music Festival? After two consecutive weeks of fist-pumping, (almost) naked raver bros, nipple pasties, and Molly, the earliest stages of rave withdrawal were starting to creep into our central nervous…
When Kendrick Lamar throws a college kegger, there’s gonna be “Swimming Pools” filled to the brim with drank. Everybody’ll be wilding out like they’re “A.D.H.D.” And Karmaloop, eMuze, and Neff Headwear will be footing the bill. This Thursday, Kendrick and Karmaloop’s Verge Campus Tour 2013 kicks off at Florida Atlantic…
The international electronic dance music scene in 2013 is deeply divided. On one hand, you have the fans of “EDM” or generic, commercial dance-pop designed for festivals and stadium arenas. And on the other hand, you have the underground electronic dance music snobs, bitching and moaning because their precious subculture…
Photo by Jacob KatelWhile the bass shook the pool water at the Raleigh Hotel, booties in short shorts bounced up and down. And so did Steve Aoki, who looked like a little kid at Christmas behind the decks. His Dim Mak label’s Winter Music Conference and Miami Music Week day…
Some 30 years after “Video Killed the Radio Star,” the Internet is destroying the CD business, systematically bombing away at the brick-and-mortar retailers that still carry compact discs. By 2016, record sales will have dropped by over 75 percent, according the Wall Street Journal. “Times have changed,” admits Day Music…
The ancient art of the laser show (much like figure skating and the intentional spread of infectious diseases) is a sorely underutilized medium in rock ‘n’ roll. Why did the synesthetic experience of fusing music and amplified beams of light hit its peak with Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the…
Winter Music Conference, Miami Music Week, and Ultra Music Festival are all over. But this is Miami. We don’t just part one week out of the year. We keep the beat alive all year long! Some of the DJs can’t stand to leave, and can you blame them? We’ve got…
Last year, the Rhythm Foundation and Heineken’s TransAtlantic Festival brought together the Afrobeat extravaganza of saxophonist and bandleader Seun Kuti and the modern-day cumbia stylings of Quantic and Combo Bárbaro. You might think it would be hard to follow that kind of lineup. But maybe that’s what makes the Rhythm…
If you survived the last ten days, you’ve probably had enough uhntz-uhntz to last you till 2014. Or at least the rest of the month. That’s why we’re taking time out to bring you five of the best chill, live performances happening this week. From hip-hop to electro fusion, post-punk,…
As Rev Sinister of Inspecter 7 explained, there’s one place in America that gives Miami a run for its money in being dark and sordid. That’s Asbury Park, New Jersey, the grimey land that the band basically comes from. And from the first horn blow, guitar chop, kick drum, bass…
Let’s get Kinky. We’re not talking about whips, fuzzy handcuffs, or hot body oil. Just the best current alternative rock crew from south of the border. “With bands, it’s a really interesting thing with names,” Kinky guitarist Carlos Chairez tells Crossfade. “We were developing our sounds for the first album…
“What the fuck does unicorn taste like?” Stardust. Rainbows. Maybe black-market horse meat from Miami’s C-9 basin. There’s really no way to know, though. Because this fabulous one-horned equine creature doesn’t actually exist. Except when you’re raving, raging, and tripping out at Ultra Music Festival. Here are 50 WTF quotes…
