ACL Highlights: Crystal Castles
Although I often find that electronic music loses a lot of its luster in the live music setting,Toronto-based Crystal Castles were a hit at Austin City Limits last weekend. Having never seen them perform before, the band really exceeded my expectations.
Made up of Ethan Kath and Alice Glass, this duo of lo-fi experimental musicians put on arguably the most high-energy performance of all three days. With heavy bass, billowing smoke, and an intense light show, the duo had the audience going crazy. Ethan kept things relatively low-key as he hovered over his keyboard, but the front woman Alice stole the show. Dressed in all black with straight bangs and bright blue hair, she was stage diving, pumping her fists, and frantically swinging her microphone stand around.
Headlining on a secondary stage on the very last night of ACL and competing with the Red Hot Chili Peppers for a portion of their set, Crystal Castles were probably as surprised as me to see such an incredible turn out. I was particularly surprised because not only is their music electronic and lo-fi, but it’s also quite melancholy. At any rate, it’s clear to me now that they make up for their melancholy tone with their incredible high-energy live performance.
I would even say that of all the shows I saw over ACL, Crystal Castles was the most entertaining. Even if you are not a fan of electronic music, I recommend checking them out if they ever come to your city. They put on an impassioned live show, and the perfomance will stay with you for days.