The Voodoo Music and Arts Experience

Reignwolf: Casually entering the stage with his bright red electric guitar in hand, lead singer and guitarist Jordan Cook quenched my lifelong wish to travel back in time and see the legend Jimi Hendrix perform right in front of me. Coincidentally hailing from Seattle as well, the 29-year-old up-and-coming rockstar jumped off the stage during his first song and did a guitar solo from the stage speaker before laying back down and giving the crowd just a sample of the bone shattering guitar performance that was yet to come. Next thing you know, the Julian Casablancas look alike is sitting at the drum set with one hand on the guitar neck and a drumstick in the other, playing both instruments flawlessly as the rest of his band-mates entered the stage to finish off the performance. The artist opened with his song “Are You Satisfied,” a ’60s rock influenced blues song featuring ear-melting guitar riffs and harsh, well-fitting vocals. Surprisingly, the artist is unsigned, but you can find out about any upcoming shows and releases on his website.

Delta Rae: With a sound similar to that of The Lumineers, Of Monsters And Men and Imagine Dragons, Delta Rae took the Ritual stage mid Saturday afternoon and filled the park with relaxing energy as their roots rock and gospel influence tunes echoed through the grounds. The two female members of the band interacted onstage in between solos and despite the fact they were on the main stage, you felt like you were at a warm summer afternoon concert at Red Butte Gardens. You can find out more about this North Carolina based band here or download their debut album Carry the Fire (Sire Records) on iTunes.

Mystery Skulls: I’ve seen a lot of DJs do some cool stuff. Just a few weeks ago Krewella combined hard hitting dub beats with a live vocal performance onstage at The Great Saltair, but never have I seen a DJ sing and mix at the same time (and be good at it too). I walked up to the Le Plur stage as the artist was performing his single “Paralyzed,” and he paused to say, “Alright, let’s do this shit, Voodoo. Fuck it,” before dropping into a synth heavy electronic funk beat that sent the crowd into an uproar. EDM shows get a little boring after a while, so when a DJ does something on the stage that sets them apart from everyone else, it makes them particularly memorable. Mystery Skulls currently has a self-titled EP out which you can check out on his bandcamp profile. Mystery Skulls will be performing at this year’s Art Basel in Miami, Florida, but does not have any tour information out.

Rudimental: Drum and bass played from live instruments? That’s cool. The first live instrument band to play on the Le Plur stage all weekend, Rudimental began their set on a strong note with funky, jungle-bass beats and jazzy vocals from the male/female lead singer combo as the emcee danced around the stage muttering a few rap lyrics here and there. “I’m surprised there are no drum and bass artists here,” I mentioned to my friend just before walking up to Rudimental’s set. Nevermind, here they are. The female singer, with a strong jazzy blues voice, looked like a more stylish Miley Cyrus and had a stronger sound. The band’s onstage presence exuberated energy onto the small afternoon crowd and quickly became one of the better performances I had seen that day. Rudimental’s debut album, Home (Warner Music) can be purchased on iTunes and you can find out more from the band here.

Big Gigantic: The Colorado native duo took the stage, saxophone in hand, for one of their famous high energy and original performances. The group played an all-original hip-hop and jazz influenced set that included their song “Sky High,” as well as others from their album Nocturnal. Although the group just took their tour to Salt Lake City’s The Complex, I won’t be missing the chance to see them next time they’re in town.