If you’d asked me back in January whether I’d bet that the former singer of a post-hardcore band from LA and poster child for Myspace self-congratulatory emoting* would make it into the top producer list here on the Beatery, I would have said “stop making fun of me”. But I’d have been wrong, and sometimes being wrong is super awesome.

*no offense

Sonny Moore is Skrillex. After quitting his (pretty successful) band From First to Last, he turned to dirty-ass Electro House and dubstep (often in the same track, omg) as a solo career, and made hands down my favorite EP of 2010 in the process. Though I had zero clue about his hardcore pedigree, once I learned of it I can’t say I was that surprised. Thehe touchpoints are obvious: Growly, distorted bass, frenetic rhythms, and mosh-worthy plodding (seriously, check out the video down below) are all things I enjoy on their own, but I can certainly see their appeal to the metalcore camp. The instruments are different, but the energy isn’t. And I know I mentioned multiple genres already, but seriously. In this one post about one brand new artist, we have Electro House, Dubstep, some kind of insane pop, and Drum n Bass. Contain yourselves. I know it’s hard.

Kill Everybody

Father Said (as Sonny Moore)

At any rate, after a bunch of (kinda so-so) demos and digital EPs he blew out the gate in October with an EP on Mau5trap, and immediately snatched 8 of the Beatport top 10 slots. These days, if you’re gonna drop a debut, you can’t do much better than having the weight of Deadmau5’s personal imprint behind you. He’s not just riding on coattails though (”tails”, get it?), these tracks bang. They are so crushing and heavy yet also unapologetically melodic and catchy. These hooks really get under your skin, and it’s a surprisingly rare combination in dance music. Usually producers mistake atonality as the best tool for evoking intensity and darkness, but Skrillex blows this notion completely out of the water.

“Holy shit this is the best song you’ve played all night!”
- dude in the crowd to me when I dropped Rock and Roll… as a closer in my Bootie set

Rock and Roll Will Take You (to the mountain)

Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites

While I hesitate to declare Skrillex the new Justice, he’s definitely doing a shockingly good job of filling the hole that Justice ought to be plugging right now with a second album (where the f*ck are those guys, anyway?) with dirty, dirty beats that evoke a moshpit as musch as a rave.

Seriously, peep this insanity:

Skrillex Webster Hall 11/12/10 from Jason Ano on Vimeo.

To wrap this up, I’ll say that Skrillex can wield a bass hammer for sure but he’s got a sensitive side as well. Check out this little palate cleanser and try not to wish it was on the last Daft Punk album:

With Your Friends (Long Drive)

Lastly, it was practically a tradition during last year’s SYTYCB to end with a few remixes, and since I didn’t really have anywhere else to put them, here ya go:

iSquare - Hey Sexy Lady (Skrillex remix)

Twin Atlantic - What is Light, Where is Laughter (Skrillex remix)

Skrillex is on tour with Deadmau5 RIGHT NOW. Don’t forget your ear plugs, and don’t forget to vote for for your favorite SYTYCB artist of 2010!

PLAY ALL