This review is a collaborative effort between veteran show goer and DoD staffer Nadine Obeid and Matthew Dunn, also a DoD staffer and well known DJ and promoter in the Texas electronic dance community:
Perspective One: The Party Goer and Music Enthusiast
Saturday, March 7th, 2015, I went to the Above and Beyond show with my mom and sister. I was so excited to show my mom one of the artists I have been listening to for the longest time as well as show her why my sister and I fell in love with attending shows regularly. I had previously shared this moment with my sister back in 2012 when they performed at Stereo Live as my sister’s first look into the electronic music scene in Houston. That show was life-changing as many Above and Beyond shows for me our and it definitely made our sisterly bond after that super strong. Above and Beyond is definitely known for their melodic trance drops paired with super emotional lyrics. The only times I have seen them were during their Group Therapy tours which feature the members of Above and Beyond (Jono Grant, Tony McGuinness, and Paavo Siljamäki) typing heartfelt messages to their audience through the backdrop screen.
The show was at Bayou Music Center which I thought was a better and bigger venue than the traditional venues in Houston for electronic music shows. Anjunadeep artist 16 Bit Lolitas
(dutch duo Peter Kriek and Ariaan Olierook) opened for Above and Beyond on this leg of the tour; however, only Ariaan Olierook took the stage to open. I was really interested in catching them for the first time because I am a big fan and avid supporter of all things Anjunadeep. He started the night off as expected with a very bouncy, deep house vibe; however, as I kept listening to the set, I found myself very un-impressed. Opening for artists takes a certain level of skill and the right music selection, which I think 16 Bit Lolitas fell short with. The beginning and ending of their set sounded okay but I totally lost it in the middle. The middle of his set was categorized as “ambient, sleepy time” music as my family and I could not stop yawning. Not only was his music inappropriate for who he was headlining, but the transitions between selections were absolutely horrid; there was actual silence in between songs and I seriously couldn’t tell if they just stopped playing or not. Sometimes, producers should keep to their craft or actually learn how to DJ because the required skills for both are completely different. Needlessly to say, the crowd agreed with me and they were ready for Above and Beyond to finally take the stage.
Above and Beyond, thank the Trance Gods, did not disappoint. Although, only one member, Tony McGuinness, performed that night, he still kept the overall spirit of Above and Beyond throughout his set. Tony opened with their new track “We Are All We Need” which was pretty expected as that was the name of the tour. The first hour of his set mostly consisted of their new tracks while the second hour followed with most of their long-time hits such as “Alone Tonight,” “Sun and Moon,” “Black Room Boy” and “You Got to Go,” just to name a few. The crowd teamed up belting out these lyrics straight from their hearts and raising their hands in praise. I always joke with my sister that shows like these are reminiscent of worshipping at church (#church). He surprised the audience with a remix of Delerium’s “Silence” as Sarah McLachlan’s magical voice filled the venue. My sister and I had mixed feelings about the set overall, but I think it’s mostly because the time we had seen them together before was so hard hitting.
– Nadine Obeid
Perspective 2: The DJ and Musician
It’s been a hot minute since I’ve been able to enjoy a large scale show purely as a spectator. Typically I’m either playing a supporting set, or promoting for a/the show, but this night, I was doing neither. I was 100% spectator.
I arrived early with some friends and was greeted by what felt like almost everyone in the Houston dance music scene buzzing about the venue in anticipation of the night’s show. I wanted to get there early enough to catch 16 Bit Lolitas as, I like my fellow DoD member Nadine, am a fan of the Anjunadeep label and its artists. I hadn’t seen A&B since 2013 when they were at Stereo (a show I opened up for), and I very much liked the new album. Like most people in attendance, I was acutely aware that it would just be Tony playing as Jono’s sister recently passed away and he had temporarily left the tour to be with family and grieve.
The 1/2 of 16 Bit Lolitas that opened just fell utterly flat for me. Granted, as a musician and DJ, my ear has been forever soured on being able to listen to music without any kind of “critical ear” without some effort, but the opening set was just … bad. The volume was obscenely too low (even for an opener). The transitions were mostly sloppy at best, but I felt the track selection would have been decent with some rearranging of when certain tunes were dropped.
Finally, Tony took the stage, he started things off with the instrumental tune from the new album “Quieter Is Louder” straight into “We Are All We Need”. As Nadine mentioned, the night was full of expected sing along moments and a few surprises, but the set was definitely enjoyable. It felt a bit “harder” than previous times I’ve seen A&B but that could have been a bit of Tony’s own personal taste shining through without the others there to temper it with their own.
Overall, the night was nothing short of a good time, and a memorable experience for new comers and “die hards” alike.
Matthew is a well known and respected DJ and promoter based out of Houston, TX. Dunn has well over a decade behind the decks, played alongside some of the biggest names in dance music, and is a fixture in the EDM community both on local and international level.
