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EDC Orlando Artist Spotlight: RL Grime

October 14, 2016 By Brian Schultz

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Another sunny blazing edition of EDC is upon us, with Orlando rounding out the year for the Electric Daisy Carnival in 2016. Mexico, New York, Las Vegas, and the UK are already in the books. It’s Orlando’s time to shine. The lineup is loaded with artists across every genre spectrum to get you salivating. From the feels of Above & Beyond to the kicks and drums of Friction, to the break neck bass of Bassnectar, the gang is all here, including RL Grime. The sometimes bass heavy, sometimes melodic, sometimes uplifting DJ and producer hailing from LA is set to perform for another incredible EDC set. We were fortunate enough to be destroyed by him at EDC Vegas this year, and well, we’re a glutton for punishment.

RL, AKA Henry Steinway likes to dip his hand in the cookie jar, so to speak. You may also know him as Clockwork, his name he uses for a more mainstage, big room sound, though we haven’t seen a release under this moniker since 2014. Or stem back to his roots with the WeDidIt Collective, where it all began for RL. He’s had multiple collabs with artists from the collective, which have also made a name for themselves, with some pretty popular artists coming from the label like Shlohmo, and Ryan Hemsworth to name a few. RL also released his full length studio album VOID through the label in 2014 with features from the likes of Big Sean and Boys Noize. It’s where the chameleon that is RL Grime arose, since his first track that appears on SoundCloud in 2011. He’s also released Halloween mixes every year since 2012 that are very critically acclaimed and sought after every holiday(usually posted the day or two before Halloween, so be on the look out in about 2 weeks!) He’s easily one of the best producers in the game, and has amassed a lot of airplay to prove it. From originals to remixes, it makes no difference for RL. Let’s get into some of our favorites.

RL’s edit to Nadus’ “Nxwxrk” is one of our all time favorites. RL didn’t shy too far away from the original, but added a little extra oomph to the build, and threw in some clashing hi-hats and breaks in the beat, giving it a little fuller body. Along with adding a few extra faint vocals to it, he really gives it that small boost you might have thought it was missing. “What ya waiting for? Put your back into it. Just a little more, girl you’re working it now…”

This track was everywhere in 2015, and still gets plenty of plays into 2016. If you haven’t heard this, you must’ve been living on an island for the past 2 years or so. And yes, it’s that good. It has built up 23.4 million plays to this day. The original track itself by The Weeknd has over 900 million plays on YouTube. That’s some serious views. It’s an already heavy and bassy track as it is, and RL touches it perfectly adding some dramatic synths to the build and the drop, with incredible drum lines and snares. This was an instant classic the day it came out.

The next track “Aurora” is an RL Grime original, and is his newest track, 2 years removed from his studio album. It also features this pretty dope video above. The video is of a Go-Pro rising up to the sky over a vast land as the song slowly starts to kick in and build. You watch as the view rises higher and higher, toward the clouds, and eventually surpassing them and rising above the stratosphere. As the second build comes in and the beat drops, you can see the weather balloon it’s traveling on, pop and watch as the camera view starts to plummet to the earth. A very simple concept, that somehow fits perfectly to the song, complimenting each other to make a pretty dope video.

Last but not least is a track RL did with What So Not (who at the time, was still Flume and Emoh Instead,) “Tell Me.” This track is also about 2 years old, but is still a classic that is played quite frequently to this day. It features a nice soothing build with lots of vocal samples, and drops into this bass-heavy, trumpet wielding masterpiece.

If you haven’t seen RL Grime yet, or even if you have, make sure you make him a priority in your time slot for EDC Orlando this year, because the guy never disappoints.

2-day tickets are $179 at the moment, or 2-day VIP for $349. Single day tickets are going for $99 or $189 for single day VIP. Catch us in just about 3 weeks going wild to RL Grime and check out the kineticTEMPLE stage premiered earlier this year in Vegas. Grab your tickets here.

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