Skrillex - Winnipeg Free Press
The Guide to Skrillex
Let’s face it. Until he was nominated for five Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, the chances of you knowing who Skrillex was were pretty slim. Unless you have a teenager obsessed with dubstep who blasts it at home at all hours or you somehow stumbled upon an article online, Skrillex probably sounded like some sort of scouring pad you needed to pick up at the store.
That’s OK. Most people didn’t know who the man born Sonny Moore was, either. He’s not on the radio in any significant way and he doesn’t have a proper full-length album out, but he is riding the social-media wave (half a million Twitter followers and two million Facebook “likes”) and is seen by many as the prototype of the new generation of artists.
He has a rabid fan base, which he partially built the old-fashioned way, by getting on the road and playing for people. Moore is also connected to his fans in ways that the music industry is still trying to wrap its head around. He has given away free music and has used YouTube as another way to have his hybrid electronic, bass-heavy beats heard.
Considering he is nominated for the same number of Grammys as Lady Gaga and Katy Perry combined, it’s safe to say 2011 was a monstrous year for the electronic producer. From headlining a string of huge festivals and club dates, where he brought together rockers, jocks, new ravers, hipsters, screaming teen girls, adrenaline seekers and curious music lovers, to gracing the cover of Spin to being on the forefront of the rebirth of electronic music culture in North America, few artists — in any musical genre — had as significant a year as Moore.
While you might think his music is just pandering to the glowstick-waving masses, between Moore’s earlier life as a singer for post-hardcore act From First to Last and his skills in the studio (he has a collaboration coming out with members of the Doors and a list of other artists wanting to work with him), there isn’t much doubt about how much talent the 23-year-old Los Angeles-based producer actually possesses.
That said, he’s a dividing force in the electronic music community. People either love him or hate him; there is no in between. He is the new reigning king or the guy who ruined everything.
Despite what some electronic music fans think, Moore’s profile has done a lot to build bridges between genres and raise the profile of other producers and DJs.
The former hardcore singer seems to understand that the perception of electronic artists may be changing and he thinks it’s a step in the right direction.
“Whether it’s on an acoustic guitar or if it’s on a computer, music’s music, and the most important thing about music is the emotional impact it has on people and culture,” he says. “I’m only hoping that my nomination this year will carry on to the next year, and open doors for more people to come up and be noticed and recognized as actual musicians.”
Skrillex videos
IT doesn’t get much creepier than First of the Year, which has already been viewed nearly 25 million times on video-sharing sites. The kid in the clip is obviously someone you don’t want to mess with.
Moore understands the power of telling a visual story, even if MTV and MuchMusic are busy trying to be anything but video-driven networks. YouTube has been one of his best recruiting tools for bringing new fans into the Skrillex army.
Rock N Roll (Will Take You To the Mountain)
WHO says DJs can’t be rock stars? Shot over eight months while on tour, Skrillex’s chaotic, ADD-inducing, high-energy sets have been winning over legions of fans wherever he goes.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 22, 2011 E3
