2017 proved to be another monumental year for music producer Derek Vincent Smith and his latest musical project, Pretty Lights Live. Smith, accompanied by Borahm Lee (Keys), Alvin Ford Jr. (Drums), Chris Karns (Turntables), and Brandon Butler (Keys), played major music festivals throughout the country. They also put together another successful season of Episodic Festivals where Smith’s massive fan base (Pretty Lights Fam) congregated to take part in the special two-day mini-music festivals at some of the most scenic venues in the United States.

One of the largest milestones of Smith’s musical career came in the form of the announcement of his inaugural destination festival, Island of Light, which was set to take place in Puerto Rico. Unfortunately, the event was canceled due to the massive devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey and Irma. After the cancellation, Pretty Lights Live began working with the non-profit United for Puerto Rico, and the group gave fans the option to donate money towards relief efforts incentivized by free webcasts of their New Year’s Eve run as well as their Texas run in September.

To close out the year, Pretty Lights Live played four consecutive nights starting with a two-night run at The Fillmore (Detroit) with guests Too Many Zooz and So Down. They then packed up and headed east, making a stop in Minneapolis where they headlined Saturday night of the Snowta New Year’s Eve Festival. On New Year’s Eve, Pretty Lights Live was joined by Jade Cicada for a sold-out crowd at The Fillmore in Philadelphia.

Pretty Lights Live opened up the first set with the classic cover of Pink Floyd’s “Time”, during which lighting designer Greg “Lasershark” Ellis showcased his renowned talents and drowned the Fillmore in a sea of green lasers. Throughout the first set, Pretty Lights Live displayed their improvisational talents on songs both old and new. A stand-out moment in the first set was a version of the infamous Pretty Lights song “Finally Moving”, during which the entire venue sang along to the iconic chorus, “Sometimes I get a good feeling, a feeling that I never ever ever ever had before!”. Fans were treated to an emotional “Cold Feeling” that sent chills to many. The first set came to a close with the newest Pretty Lights single “Rainbows and Waterfalls”.

The band returned to the stage at 11:51 PM, as fans chattered with friends about what the last songs of 2017 would be. Much to everyone’s surprise, the band began to play a cover of Europe’s “The Final Countdown”. In typical Pretty Lights Live fashion, the song was flipped, as members of the band improvised together to change the shape of the song. The band jammed on the song up until just before midnight at which point they seamlessly layered on a sample of renowned American producer DJ Shadow’s “Midnight In A Perfect World” followed by a countdown officially ringing in the new year.

The band kicked off 2018 with two unreleased Pretty Lights songs, “The Sun Spreads In Our Minds” and “Eternalessly”. Following this, Derek Vincent Smith shocked the crowd by inviting his life-long friend and fellow producer Michal Menert on stage, and the two performed their feel-good tune “Summer Love”. The biggest highlight of the second set was the iconic “High School Art Class”. The song was deconstructed on a level that left jaws on the floor as the band built up to the chorus.

With curfew soon approaching, Smith led a chant, “I say life is, you say too short”. After this, the main sample for fan favorite “Hot Like Sauce” was cued up, and the band took flight one last time. As the last notes were played, fans screamed as Smith thanked everyone for coming out reminding each other that life is about “Establishing some sort of interconnectedness. Go out and meet some people”.

The second set contained even more of the now-hallmark Pretty Lights Live flips in which each member displayed their extraordinary musicianship. Having wrapped up their second year of playing together, it was clear at how much the band has progressed and how well they are able to play off each other. 2018 started off in an exciting fashion in what is sure to be another incredible year for Pretty Lights Live.

Setlist: Pretty Lights | The Fillmore | Philadelphia, PA | 12/31/2017

Set One: TIME (Pink Floyd cover), WHERE IM TRYING TO GO > FLIP, IS THERE ANY LOVE, UNDERSTAND ME NOW > FLIP, FLY LIKE AN EAGLE (Steve Miller Band cover) > FLIP, DONT BE SURPRISED > FLIP, IT MUST BE LOVE (Motif cover), SOLAR SAILOR (Daft Punk remix) > FLIP, FINALLY MOVING, FOREVER LOST, COLD FEELING, RAINBOWS & WATERFALLS > FLIP

Set Two: FINAL COUNTDOWN (Europe cover), THE SUN SPREADS IN OUR MIND, ETERNALESSLY / PRELUDE 4, SUMMER LOVE (MICHAL MENERT ON STAGE), I CAN SEE IT IN YOUR FACE >FLIP, GAZING AT THE GLARE > FLIP, HIGH SCHOOL ART CLASS FLIPPED INTRO > MAIN DROP/CHORUS > FLIP W/ ANALOG, SHINING BRIGHT DESPITE THE PLIGHT, COLOR OF MY SOUL > FLIP, STILL NIGHT > FLIP, WHO LOVES ME > FLIP, WHYNNEL – YOU KNEW, I BELIEVE IN MIRACLES, HOT LIKE SAUCE > FLIP

[photo: Cait Falc Photography]