Photos: Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort

Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
Black, white and red composite of Pretty Lights performing at Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, NV...

It has only been about a year since I had the happy accident of coming across the music of Denver, Colorado based Pretty LightsDerek Vincent Smith, the man behind the moniker, has seamlessly crafted one of the most unique electronic music hyperniches that I’ve had the pleasure of coming across in my musical exploration known as life.  Take the crate-digging elements of past hip-hop sampling gods a la mid-to-late 90’s DJ Shadow and mix with the likes of A.D.D.-friendly electro mashup groups like The Glitch Mob and sprinkle in a dash of old school Philadelphia soul and you (essentially) have the music of Pretty Lights.  The music however, cannot even begin to describe what takes place at a Pretty Lights show here in late 2011.

The lighting is mindblowing, pure and simple.  For reasons beyond my journalistic prowess, I can only assume that the creators of this interactive organic lighting entertainment system have indulged in multifaceted psychedelia and aim to entrance concertgoers in ways never before achieved.  Photographing this madness was no easy task, but I was able to walk away with several shots that make me proud to hold my Nikon D7000 DSLR.  The attached Nikon 50mm f/1.8D lens was fast enough to slow down the mile-a-minute lighting programming, while still communicating the excitement and elemental balance of the man at the helm.

The settings which I did keep static were the aperture and shutter speed at 1.8 and 1/250th of a second, respectively.  The ISO was something that I manually adapted to each stage as the lighting programs were unleashed, successfully utilizing a range of 100-3200 to achieve many favorable captures.  I invite you to view the full Pretty Lights gallery and share your favorites here and with your social networks; and for those of you who haven’t been to a Pretty Lights show in the past month or so — this is all brand-new — so get out there and rage on!

VIEW THE FULL PRETTY LIGHTS GALLERY HERE

Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
Pretty Lights taking the stage at GSR...
Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
Slightly reminiscent of Daft Punk's Alive 2007 tour...
Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
There are few words for how beautiful the interactive lighting was that evening...
Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
BOOM! Pretty Lights delivers a punch...
Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
Pretty Lights? Check. Lens Flare? Check...
Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
The man in the mist...
Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
A wider angle take on the sensational Pretty Lights live performance...
Pretty Lights Crowd @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
Silhouette of the raging Burning Man decompression crowd...
Pretty Lights Crowd @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
A spotlight washing over the sold out audience at Grand Sierra Resort...

 

Camera(s) Used:

Nikon D7000

Lens(es) Used:

Nikon 50mm f/1.8D


Go On, Treat Yourself to Something Nice!

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Super-Happy Fun Bonus Pics!!!

Pretty Lights @ Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV 2011-09-06
The happiest man ever...

PANTyRAID, Mikey Thunder @ WüRK, Reno, NV

 

Mikey Thunder @ Wurk, Reno, NV 2011
Mikey Thunder of Pretty Lights Music busting a move betwen records at Wurk...

Mikey Thunder – Act a Mad fool (MagneticMan vs LiL Jon)

As a preemptive note, a lot of the photos in this gallery are a bit on the ‘dark’ side of the lighting spectrum.  While this may be a deterrent to some, we think that the luminary quality of the images matches the musical vibe quite well actually.  Please share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.

Having arrived at WüRK to find the club packed full of twenty-something year old Nevadan partygoers, all of which were beyond ready to get their wobble on, we knew right away that it was going to be an evening to remember.

At a couple minutes past 11 on the evening of Saturday, April 9th we discovered Denver, CO’s Mikey Thunder (Pretty Lights Music) already upon the decks, working the crowd into a bass-fueled frenzy.

As he pounded through thugstep track after thugstep track, the nail-biting, grit and grime-infused sounds were overpowered by one thing and one thing only … BASS.  Thundering Monstrous Bass.  Bass so low, we felt as if we were in a Maxell commercial.

On top of what turned out to be something like a two and a half hour marathon DJ set, Mikey Thunder was able to consistently pull out quality tracks, mix them down and be on to the next at a heroic pace.  The drinks were flowing, the crowd was primed and five hundred sets of eardrums were ready for sheer annihilation.

OOAH (The Glitch Mob) & MartyParty aka PANTyRAID @ Wurk, Reno, NV 2011
OOAH (The Glitch Mob) hailing the crowd as PANTyRAID takes the stage at WüRK…

PANTyRAID – Minimix 2010

Taking the stage somewhere close to 1AM were the evening’s headlining act, PANTyRAID, an electronic music duo which fuses elements of  hip-hop, dubstep and modern day dance culture into a bass heavy, primal genre of music to be classified as ‘somewhere in the uncharted territories of future electronica’.

What happens when two completely different personas come together in a collaborative effort?  Mutual evolvement and the forming of an unspeakable bond.  There was plenty of evidence of this duo’s growth reaching new levels during this explosive set, and if our readers are so inclined, we recommend picking up a copy of The Sauce, and destroying any available speakers … immediately!

OOAH (The Glitch Mob) & MartyParty aka PANTyRAID @ Wurk, Reno, NV 2011
MartyParty of PANTyRAID surfing the apex of sound; fists to the sky in an almost carnal offering...

Both OOAH (The Glitch Mob) and MartyParty were quite fun to shoot, and each in their own separate way.  OOAH, for example, had a multitude of different colored neon light beams blasting through his blonde hair, which when combined with his aloof manner made up the cool, relaxed side of the stage for most of the 90 minute set.

OOAH (The Glitch Mob) & MartyParty aka PANTyRAID @ Wurk, Reno, NV 2011
OOAH catching the light just right while enslaving the crowd with bass at WüRK...

Conversely, the other, darker side of the stage was inhabited by MartyParty for the evening’s performance.

The raw, animalistic music used MartyParty as it’s vehicle to escape the depths of the digital underworld from which it was spawned and manifest before human eyes.  Once released onto the dancefloor, and in one fell swoop this otherworldly force bombarded Reno’s partygoers with an electric sine wave of never before experienced magnitude.

OOAH (The Glitch Mob) & MartyParty aka PANTyRAID @ Wurk, Reno, NV 2011
MartyParty saluting the crowd while he takes a sip of a refreshing, glowing, alcoholic beverage...

Call it a tsunami of sound if you wish, for this is neither a man-made nor organic force to be reckoned with … it is something much greater.  It is completely, and utterly, awesome.

More excerpts from PANTyRAID @ WüRK

OOAH (The Glitch Mob) & MartyParty aka PANTyRAID @ Wurk, Reno, NV 2011

OOAH (The Glitch Mob) & MartyParty aka PANTyRAID @ Wurk, Reno, NV 2011

OOAH (The Glitch Mob) & MartyParty aka PANTyRAID @ Wurk, Reno, NV 2011

OOAH (The Glitch Mob) & MartyParty aka PANTyRAID @ Wurk, Reno, NV 2011

VIEW THE FULL PANTYRAID + MIKEY THUNDER GALLERY HERE


Camera(s) Used:

Nikon D7000

Lens(es) Used:

Nikon 50mm f/1.8D

Go On, Treat Yourself to Something Nice!

Do you buy stuff online? Do you buy camera stuff online? If this post or anything else on ishootreno.com was helpful to you, please consider supporting this site and making your next photo gear purchase through one of our affiliate links:

Every time our readers buy new gear through our affiliate links, it helps us bring to the table more of that which brought you here in the first place — the ‘money’ shots!

The best part?!  It doesn’t cost our readers anything extra to show their support!

If our readers do pick up some new gear, please drop us a line … we always love to hear about your new additions!

Comments, Praise, Feedback?  We’re all ears!

Please let us know what you thought of this post on ishootreno.com!