What do you get when you combine two guys from Brown, EDM and science fiction? Douchiness is probably a given. But also, some really good music you have to listen to. Darkside is a collaboration between producer Nicolaas Jaar and guitarist Dave Harrington that sounds kind of like blues in space. In fact, their sound is all about contradictions—dubstep but disco, rock but pop, dance party but only 80bpm.
Putting out trippy electronic rock, calling yourself Darkside and then denying any connection to Pink Floyd is about as cocky as it gets. If it’s not cocky, it’s at least a set–up for failure. No music can compare to Pink Floyd, and anything that can isn’t listenable—one of those bands you read about on Pitchfork and try really hard to like but can’t because it’s really just a bunch of artsy noise and it gives you a headache. This is not one of those bands. If anyone has pulled it off, it’s Darkside.
The duo followed its 2011 self–titled debut EP with an album full of remixes to Daft Punk’s “Random Access Memories,” a project naturally named Daftside. For an album that began as a few days of fooling around and a couple of tracks uploaded to SoundCloud, it’s pretty impressive. Instead of just cranking up the bass and throwing in some loops, they took the entire album and inverted it—sad and slow becomes happier and faster and vice versa. They even manage to turn “Get Lucky” from a song that makes you want to sucker punch a child to one that actually makes you want to dance.
Their newest album “Psychic” is the perfect balance of active and passive listening. The hypnotic beat of “Golden Arrow” fades in the background while studying or generally zoning out, but the weirdly great combination of cymbals, chimes and jungle drum in “The Only Shrine I’ve Seen” demands full attention. Admittedly, there’s something unsettling about Darkside. Closing your bedroom door and putting them on gives you a strange feeling that you can’t quite name. This music is...Deep? Heavy? And then you find a word that fits. This music is important.
Bottom line: Darkside may be straight out of the Ivy League, but it’s not some Vampire Weekend pansy pop–rock. It’s the real deal, it’s gonna be in Philly on February 6th, and you can thank me later.
