"Come and Watch the Pretty Lights"

Pretty Lights attendees enjoying the view at Syracuse Oncenter 4/16.

   If you're ever up for an entirely different concert experience, check out a Pretty Lights show near you. I was recently introduced to the music from electro artist Derek Vincent Smith & decided on a whim to see the show last night at Syracuse Oncenter. I was unsure of what to expect & just assumed only E-tripping hippies would be there. I wasn't entirely wrong. But whether or not most of the concert goers might have been

 hallucinating is irrelevant. Because you really don't need to be high to enjoy a Pretty Lights concert; the show in itself is like an organic psychedelic experience. The venue was packed with college scenesters & curious new fans, all coming together to take in the stellar sights & hypnotic sounds. The music started & thus began the combination of an aesthetic lights show with music & a plethora of concertgoers dressed head to tow in neon. Pretty Lights mixed samples from current hip-hop with funky old school & bits of downtempo with trance synth lines. Then at one point the music started to pace at a single beat & the lights dimmed out while a sea of glow sticks illuminated the stadium. "Slowly Moving" started up & the crowed roared as we all simultaneously chanted the lyrics while swaying to the beat. Overall, the show was visually stunning & uniquely entertaining. Although Pretty Lights is a step outside the norm of my typical artist preference, I could still appreciate the innovative style & auditory affects of the music. So I guess you don't have to be an electro-psychedelic-ecstasy-popping-superfreak to enjoy the show. But they have a good time there, too.