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Manic Focus collaboration on Friday night at Mill City Nights

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RL Grime @ Mill City Nights 11/20/14 - Review

12:56 PM

Varying sound in an EDM performance is essential to holding the attention of an audience all the way through a set. Henry Steinway, aka RL Grime, did just that in his show at Mill City Nights in Minneapolis last Thursday night. Technically, RL did not start playing until early Friday morning, just after midnight. Before he took the stage, Branchez and Lunice each had sets close to an hour and a half. Branchez gave the audience a big taste of pop mixes. He also shared a new song that Loudpvck (Loudpack) just sent him, exciting everyone that recognized the name. His two signatures, remixes to Rihanna’s “Stay” and What So Not’s “High You Are,” were the clear crowd favorites. Whether the audience knew these songs before or not, Branchez increased his fan base with this sharp performance. Soon he gave way to the Kanye-esque performance that belonged to Lunice.

The 25 year old from Montreal brought more than enough energy with him. In fact, throughout much of his performance, Lunice seemed to be enjoying his music more than his audience was. The lack of enthusiasm from the crowd did not stop him from running back and forth between his dj stand and center stage. His hip hop-remix heavy set was entertaining, but the show he put on was a cute preamble to RL’s set. What RL Grime gave Mill City Nights last Thursday turned out to be one of the best EDM shows I have ever seen. His transitions were seamless. He had a perfect feel for his audience. He had a perfect balance of popular song remixes and original sound.

Opening with his song “Scylla,” RL Grime mixed in a hook from Wiz Khalifa’s “We Dem Boyz,” setting things off right. After his first song, RL never looked back. He played off of Lunice’s hip hop theme by spinning all of his hits. From Chief Keef’s “Sosa,” to Kanye’s “Mercy,” Grime dished cut after cut. He was essentially obligated to play his remix of Satisfaction, and in turn the place lost it. I myself lost it when he mixed Kanye’s “Blood on the Leaves.” No doubt, there was a lot of Kanye throughout the night, but you will never hear me say too much Yeezy. When it comes down to it, RL Grime knows what people like and knows how to remix those tracks to become dance hits.

Henry Steinway, Mr. RL Grimes, is just a kid at only 22 years old. He has spent time as a music business major at NYU. He has a record deal with the more-than-notable, Fool’s Gold Records. He has already topped multiple electronic music charts. This guy is a blast to see live and, judging from his performance last Thursday at Mill City Nights, he is just getting started. Don’t miss another opportunity to see him live, you will regret it.