Arriving an hour before doors, my energy was high—Dom Dolla’s performance marked my first time back inside Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium in the post-Covid era. Amazingly, this energy was shared by seemingly everyone attending. Fans waited in anticipation, playing his discography from their phone speakers and dancing in line. The countdown was on. Nine o’clock, doors opened and the night was a go. Taking my first steps onto the Shrine’s familiar, sticky floors was surreal. The tunes were bumping and the people were dancing.
Ladies of Leisure were first up, bringing atmospheric, melodic yet techy beats. Previously unaware of the group, I was impressed with their diverse selection of sounds and lively stage presence. The music was invigorating and refreshing, leading me to hit a few sneaky Shazams throughout their performance. With the crowd steadily building, it was exciting to see a “headier” set being well received by each new face entering.
Ending their set with a more experimental, half-time tune, the transition from Ladies of Leisure to Torren Foot was flawless. Picking up on the vibe, Torren kicked off his set with some uplifting breaks and launched into a well-crafted, tech house set. Only thirty minutes into his set and the venue was packed. With the crowd’s size and energy building, Torren knew exactly what to play to light up the party. My favorite moments came as Torren dropped F Physical, A. Doremi, and Sax P’s “La Banda – Club Mix” [Spinnin’ Records] and Torren Foot’s very own “More Life (featuring Tinie Tempah & L Devine)” [FFRR x Sweat it Out]. Torren’s ability to read the crowd was stellar. Everyone was losing it!
Time was flying and before I knew it Torren had played his last song. After a quick echo out, Rebuke slammed in with driving techno. The brief moment without music seemed to reset the room, maybe a little too much for my liking. However Rebuke quickly reeled the audience back in with his hypnotic, peak-time beats. Rebuke has an immense track record of diverse label releases from Adam Beyer’s Drumcode, to Patrick Topping’s Trick, to Nic and Marc Fancuilli’s Saved Records. Rebuke’s range is incredible. Singing that iconic synth in Rebuke’s “Along Came Polly” [Hot Creations] and holding their arms around each other for Kx5’s “Escape (Spencer Brown Remix)” [mau5trap], the crowd was in for the ride. It is safe to say, Rebuke brought on a master class of balance between his own sounds and taste.
Finally, the headliner took the stage. The crowd erupted, and we were shoulder to shoulder on the dancefloor, the upstairs balconies, and on stage. Phones rose high in the sky to capture the opening moments. With only a few stage lights active, Dom Dolla hops on the mic with one promise, “I got some brand new music for you guys tonight.” Filled with unreleased music, classics, his own discography, and more, Dom Dolla proceeded to burn the house down with this set. Paired with the best light show I’ve ever seen, this was the ultimate music experience. Primarily, Dom Dolla played tech house, while occasionally splashing in sounds of techno and future house. Recently coming off a Beatport #1 with Clementine Douglas, “Miracle Maker” [Three Six Zero Recordings] received the biggest crowd reaction of the night.
Erupting with every drop, chanting an occasional “woop, woop,” and dancing nonstop, the crowd’s energy was truly electric. With every song, the crowd became more and more energized. I loved every moment of it. Leaving the AMF-stained floors of Shrine behind as Dom Dolla’s set concluded, I had a smile from ear to ear. I could not help but feel energized seeing a sold-out audience so excited and receptive to sounds in house and techno.
Unfortunately, the sound at Shrine Auditorium is extremely bass-dominant and muddy. The acoustics of the building are most likely unadjustable. Shrine was originally a temple built in the 1920’s after all, there’s no way the original construction team anticipated electronic music lining the halls. However, the event was well curated, every act played amazing music, flowed perfectly into one another, and brought some really awesome vibes. The crowd was extremely friendly and welcoming, having gone to the event by myself, I left having made a few new friends. The visuals were stunning, particularly the lasers. The song selection was on point from each and every artist, I’m not afraid to admit I had Shazam out a few times for each act.
Overall, the experience was quite amazing. Whether you’re new to the sound or a longtime fan of house and tech house, I’d highly recommend catching a Dom Dolla set as soon as possible.
Dom Dolla’s North America Fall 2022 tour concludes December 17.
Make sure to follow Dom Dolla on SoundCloud, Rebuke on SoundCloud, Torren Foot on SoundCloud, and Ladies of Leisure on Instagram.
Reporting by David Cedar
Saint Audio 