Nero

On April 19, 2012 in Downtown Los Angeles, Club Nokia was packed full of people, anxious to see Nero, the dubstep group from London, England, on their Second Reality Tour featuring openers Dillion Francis, Sub Focus an Zedd. The 18+ concert consisted of many types of people but mostly people in their early twenties. Girls wore neon short shorts, fuzzy boots and very short shirts while the guys dressed casually, jeans and a tee shirt. From the moment the doors opened, it was evident that it was going to be a crazy show; and that it was.

After Dillion Francis and Sub Focus performed, Zedd, the young German electro house and dubstep DJ, hit the stage. Standing behind his small table with his Apple laptop and a few turntables, Zedd really got the crowd moving. Zedd performed some of his own hits including his 2011 single, Shave It as well as his remix’s including ones of Skrillex, the Grammy winning dubstep DJ who Zedd toured with in 2011. After Zedd’s one hour set full of jumping, the crowd was nowhere near tired or out of energy.

It was 11:00pm when Nero hit the stage. The two DJ’s, Daniel Stephens and Joe Ray, stood behind a monstrous wall consisting of speakers and video monitors and which said “Nero” on the top, in a white font. Inside, where the two DJ’s stood, were turntables, keyboards and more.

As their set began, the video monitors lit up with a scratchy video of a digital face, introducing the band and the tour. The voiced echoed and the crowd cheered, waving their glow sticks in the air and holding their phones out to record. Strobe lights flashed and every few seconds when they were bright, fans could see Stephens and Ray, standing behind the wall, both in black jackets and sunglasses, with serious demeanors. As soon as the bass “dropped”, as fans put it, everyone in the room started to jump and wave their hands. The ground was literally shaking throughout the night. Singer Alana Watson was seen after the first few songs. She came out onto the stage, standing atop of a lighting structure, singing. As the set progressed, Watson was constantly moving; from where the two DJ’s stood, to the front of the stage. Watson surprisingly sounded as good as she did on the album and the crowd sang along with her, to every word, especially for their single, “Promises”. The three screens at the back of the stage frequently changed, from different patterns, colors and figures, to one of Watson singing. The different color strobe lights were present throughout the entire night.

Overall, the concert was something to remember, in the best way possible. It seemed as though everyone at the concert was dancing and singing along; and many of them heard amazing new DJ’s that they may have never listened to. With it only being Nero’s second tour, they had a great production with the lighting and background images that aren’t seen with some other dub step artists who have been around much longer. For those who are into dubstep and electronic music; or even dancing, Nero is a great place to start. They only have a few shows left, so if they’re in your area, be sure to check them out!

03/29 Washington, DC 9:30 Club

03/30 Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory

03/31 New York, NY Roseland Ballroom

04/03 Boston, MA House of Blues

04/04 Montreal, QC Metropolis

04/05 Guelph, ON Guelph Concert Theatre (DJ set)

04/06 Toronto, ON Sound Academy

04/07 Chicago, IL Congress Theater

04/08 Milwaukee, WI Riverside Theater

04/09 Minneapolis, MN Minute Myth

04/13 San Francisco, CA Warfield Theater

04/15 Indio, CA Coachella