EOTO @ Roseland Ballroom 04.20.12 (BLOG)
Show Review 4/20/2012
Words: Katie
Pics: Steve O.
It’s not often that a concert occurs exactly where and when you want it to. This past Friday, 04.20.12, at the Roseland Ballroom, however, the EOTO show did just that for me. On this hippie holiday, one of the biggest party nights of the year for some, the super dark, packed dance floor was the perfect atmosphere for EOTO’s intricate beats and state of the art light show.
EOTO consists of Michael Travis and Jason Hann, also known as the drummers from jamband giants the String Cheese Incident, playing electronica. Now in its sixth year, EOTO has stepped up its stage show this spring by performing from within a giant lotus flower. This 17 foot lotus fills the stage and encompasses the band while providing the backdrop for an intense light show.
Perhaps the Roseland just accomodated the lotus better, but the light show and set up seemed to have evolved slightly since EOTO's show at Philly's Electric Factory a few weeks ago. The designs projected on the lotus change rapidly and encompass a broad spectrum of images, from a surrealist colored outdoor scenes, to a montster-like creature with giant teeth and hundreds of small eyeballs, to scenes taken straight from a party with everyone's hands in the air. The lighting effects are certainly impressive, innovative and beautifully achieved, but at times can be distracting from the music. Maybe that is the whole point though: the music and lights complimenting each other, taking turns as the focus of attention but neither ever completely dominating the other. As for the music, this show seemed to stay closer to the house end of the electronica spectrum. As always, EOTO was upbeat and danceable and I personally found it more easily accessible than other EOTO I have heard which can stray more deeply into dubstep.
The show was 18+ but most of the crowd seemed to be in their early 20's, as is to be expected at a show that also featured opener Phutureprimitive and headliner Shpongle with his DJ set, the Masquerade. I'd especially like to thank the sweet young lady who unexpectedly kissed me to apologize for bumping into me on the dance floor. In case you were wondering, EOTO's coming to your town this spring and they'll help you party down: http://eotomusic.org/upcoming-shows/
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[caption id="attachment_2191" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="EOTO - Stephen Olker -2012"]
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