As the lights go down, the crowd throws their hands up and cheers louder than they have for the past two and a half hours.

Gramatik, rocking a snapback, walks out onto the stage with a guitarist. Clearly, the former is the man they’ve been waiting for. They keep making noise through the opening beats of the first song while Gramatik takes over the DJ booth.

“Syracuse, what’s good?” Gramatik then shouts into the crowded Westcott Theater, where he performed on Tuesday alongside guitarist Andrew Block. Syracuse was the fifth stop on the electro-soul DJ’s latest world tour, “Epigram.”

The tour is named for his soon-to-be-released EP, which he is promoting with this tour. Opening acts Big Wild and BRANX also made their way to Westcott.

 

BRANX, also known as David Carls, started off the show at 9 p.m. to a mid-sized crowd.

That crowd grew slowly during BRANX’s hour-long opening. He began without introducing himself, although it was apparent he didn’t need to when concertgoers began to dance wildly at his first beat.

Throughout his set, BRANX experimented with volume, tempo and pitch, but had no vocals until one of his finals songs. This worked for the crowd, though, which kept moving until BRANX hit his last note and they sent up a cheer.

Big Wild, also known as Jackson Stell, introduced both BRANX and himself before beginning his set. Then, over the course of an hour, Big Wild showcased his talent at both mixing and playing instrumentals. He moved seamlessly between his computer, electronic drums, keyboard and cajon — a box-shaped percussion instrument.

Vocals were another major part of Big Wild’s set. He remixed both rap and pop songs but avoided overdone tracks. Most notably, he used lines from Kendrick Lamar’s “Swimming Pools (Drank),” which the crowd ate up.

By the end of Big Wild’s set, the theater was a packed with fans. Although older concertgoers stayed towards the back of the house, every corner was packed veteran ravers and newbies alike. He gracefully exited the stage with a “thank you” to the crowd, which screamed their appreciation for the up-and-coming producer.

When Gramatik didn’t immediately come onstage, the crowd started to get antsy. Despite their shouts, the headliner didn’t come on for another 20 minutes, during which the Westcott staff played rap music, which didn’t seem appropriate for an electro-funk concert.

The audience cast all that aside, though, when Gramatik finally swaggered onstage with Block, his guitarist. After he finished his greeting and got into his set, the entire theater burst into uncontrollable movement.

From that point on, Gramatik had the crowd firmly under his control. Big LED screens with the “Epigram” cover art and other punchy graphics lit up kept all eyes on the booth, while booming beats and sharp squeaks made bodies move without thought. They danced when he wanted, they paused when he wanted and they cheered when he wanted.

Gramatik kept moving, too. He threw his hands up, bobbed to the beat and began to smoke something on stage, which is a part of the carefree persona he projects.

A half-hour into the set, the headliner brought out The Shady Horns, the brass section of the neo-funk group Lettuce. With Ryan Zoidis on saxophone and Eric Bloom on trumpet, the duo added another layer of jazz to Gramatik’s style. In the small venue they were easy to hear and Gramatik made sure they stood out, making their influence on the music even greater.

In true rave spirit, the crowd kept on smiling through it all. Every square foot in the room was filled with someone getting down in their own way while the people around them gave them their space.

Ciara Bethel and Eliana Roney, sophomore communications design majors, could be seen shimmying along with the crowd all night. They said Zoidis, the saxophone player and Bethel’s family friend, gave them free tickets.

While Roney said she liked Big Wild’s creativity, Bethel said she liked Gramatik’s spins on old classics because he brings them to a younger audience.

“He really knew how to pump up the crowd,” Roney said.

Published on September 16, 2015 at 9:16 am

Contact Delaney: dovanwey@syr.edu