The Chemical Brothers Galvanize Seattle

It’s been years and years that dedicated fans have been waiting for the return of The Chemical Brothers in Seattle. With their announcement at Coachella and being able to fill in the week between sets, it all worked out for them to play WaMu Theater. The electronic duo formed back in 1989 by Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons, are considered pioneers in bringing the big beat genre to the mainstream. There was so much excitement around this show, people were planning the night for months in advance.

The British trailblazers took the stage kicking off the night with hit “Block Rockin’ Beats,” a track that still has one of the most memorable bass riffs. Then followed “Go,” and “Mad As Hell,” along with incredible visuals. If you have not been to a CB show before, know that you are missing out, not only on some good dancing but on some of the best visuals created for a show. Their show directors, Adam Smith and Marcus Lyall have designed some of the most aesthetically pleasing art, marrying the sound with impeccable vision.

We heard favorites, “Hey Boy Hey Girl,” “Dig Your Own Hole,” “Keep On,” Do It Again,” and “Swoon.” For “Under The Influence,” the famous large red and blue robots appeared on the stage paired with laser beams. What an incredibly well curated show, everything was next level on the production side. It was so hard to look away for more than a second in fear that you might miss something.

For the last track of their main set, “Galvanize,” their massive hit and Grammy winner, the lights formed what looked like a cage. The digital human inside danced around as the track progressed looking like it was trying to find a way to escape. Towards the end of the song and much trying you see them braking through and dancing free. Perfect vision for the words, ‘World, the time has come to…Galvanize.” It took some time but it was worth the wait to have the Chemical Brothers back in town.

Words and photos: Sophia Barkalakis @s.barkalakis