Friday night, a lucky number of ticketholders said goodbye to DARKSIDE – the shortlasted collaboration of electronic artist Nicolas Jaar and guitarist, multi-instrumentalist Dave Harrington.
The event was held at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple – a beautifully detailed coffered ceiling with decorated chandeliers ornamented the main room, while the marble laden front room made for a welcoming entrance.
Valentin Stip opened with a short ambient set, getting everyone moving while the mainroom slowly filled up. He played an arrangement of tracks from his release, Sigh.
After a short intermission following Valentin Stip’s opening performance, the lights dimmed once again for the main spectacle of the evening. The duo that dominated a certain sound, blending rock and experimental electronic, since their inception in a Berlin Hotel Room back in 2011.
DARKSIDE took the stage, starting with a high-energy rendition of “Freak, Go Home”, and flowing through a medley of familiar tracks, culminating in a final goodbye with their album opener, “Golden Arrow”.
Every song was spot on, starting out as a familiar tune and seemlessly transitioning into a grungy jam usually led by a unique, funky distorted guitar lick. The only break was towards the end of the set, where Nico took a few minutes to thank everyone that made the DARKSIDE project possible, hugging his musical partner, Dave, as they played on to the end.
But the peak of the performance was when DARKSIDE played “Gone Too Soon”, a recent release on Nicolas Jaar’s private label “Other People”, a song they stated, “didn’t make it onto [Psychic]”. The emotionally driven electronic funk anthem only had listeners begging for more. Unfortunately, DARKSIDE is gone for now, but we’ll be keeping our ears open for future announcements from both Dave and Nico.
The full setlist for the show is listed below –
Freak, Go Home
Paper Trails
A1
The Only Shrine I’ve Seen
Gone Too Soon
Heart
Metatron
Golden Arrow