Above and Beyond Live at Marquee

Much can be said about the globetrotting trance trio, Above and Beyond. For those who have never had the pleasure of experiencing A&B live, it is difficult to accurately explain in detail. The sensory saturation one suffers while standing in their presence is not merely limited to hearing the music. The veteran music appreciator will take note of the story told through lyric-less sounds, embracing the emotional journey of the show. This particular music journalist has been to hundreds of concerts, massive and minuscule, hearing all styles and genres, and I must confess that Above and Beyond definitely rank among the top 5 live performances.

First, the only way to experience an Above and Beyond performance is at a venue with a killer sound system. Luckily, Marquee inside the Cosmopolitan Casino in Las Vegas has an enormous, clean, and well-placed series of speakers and subs throughout. Unfortunately, the lighting could be better. Wagging colored lights and lasers flailing around seemingly at random – there are venues with much better lighting out there, but respectively, there are also much, much worse.

Once would expect a grandiose concert like Above and Beyond to be playing at venues which embody the height of epic. Marquee gives this a good run, but ultimately falls flat. The staff are empty minded guard dogs akin to Epsilons found in Huxley’s “Brave New World”, security, hosts, servers, and even the bathroom attendants. None are the least bit helpful for a damned thing. Otherwise, the crowd at Marquee is not unlike that found at any posh Vegas nightclub – haughty and introverted with a penchant for stimulants. Dance floors are packed elbow to elbow, creating more of a standing-room-floor than anything else. In due course this proves a detractor from the overall atmosphere of the show.

If one could look past all of that B.S., there is absolutely a profound concert happening. The synergy of their performance style is supernatural. Each song flows into the next seamlessly, giving the illusion that their set is one long, blissful track. Beats thump away, giving rise into the next progressive layer of electronic melody in an ever peaking crescendo. The bass is often heavy, but not overly so. Their trance leads spray over building beats like ocean waves of sound before heavy breakdowns; then it repeats, and yet it never gets repetitive. This is the music Goldilocks would listen to is she went clubbing.

For those who enjoy trance music, you will worship Above and Beyond. Those who dance will adore these guys. For the electronic music cynic with an open mind, you may be surprised at how much you enjoy listening to Above and Beyond.


People also view

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *