- Red Bull Music Academy’s United States of Bass - July 19, 2016
- Red Bull Sound Select: Adrian Younge, No ID, Joey Dosik - April 14, 2016
- LA Red Bull Sound Select: Stormzy, Lizzo, and Kauf - March 28, 2016
Last week we got to check out a funky, soulful speakeasy-like party courtesy of Red Bull Sound Select and Art Don’t Sleep. This was another one of those great evenings at the Del Monte Speakeasy, with a DJ set by legendary producer and Kanye West sensei, No ID, and a great live set from Adrian Younge and Venice Dawn.
The intimate underground venue known as the Del Monte Speakeasy seriously has a throwback 1920’s vibe. Dim lighting, well-tailored barkeeps, and a few reserved booths makes this a very interesting place to see a show. Opening act Joey Dosik brought a cool Blue-eyed soul crooner energy to the room, singing accompanied only by his own guitar or keyboard chops on the Wurly. His sound was somewhere between early Maroon 5 Adam Levine, Sam Cooke, and Bobby Caldwell. The Kobe Bryant tribute “Game Winner,” was a cool tune, and with Quincy Jones in his corner, Joey Dosik has a lot of potential. I feel like he’ll be on tour with the likes of Mayer Hawthorne or Robin Thicke, it’s only a matter of time.
No ID, the legendary producer, the Chi-town God, the EVP of A&R for Def Jam. His DJ set started out with a mix of basically every black family reunion, cookout, and wedding jam ever…Marvin, Stevie, Michael, Maze, all of the classics. Eventually he delved into some more rare and interesting soul, electro, and dance jams. It was a cool to see him in that capacity, something that we rarely get to see.
Adrian Younge and Venice Dawn took the stage around 10:30pm, just as the venue was getting all hot and sweaty like a real 1920’s secret juke joint. Their sound was a distinct blend of that Stax-tinged soul and Black Keys’ Blakroc hip-hop rock mashup. Two guitars, bass, drums, and keys, their band played tracks from the new Something About April II, and some older tracks like “Siren,” which was most famously sampled by none other than Jay Z for Picasso Baby. One of the easiest highlights of their set was the drummer Dave Henderson, whose impeccable syncopation and power really drove a lot of the action that night.
Overall it was a great show at a pretty intimate venue that provided a platform for the audience to see a legend, a soon to be legend and an up and comer with lots of potential, all in one setting.
