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Darkside (band)

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Not to be confused with The Darkside (band).
Darkside
Darkside performing in Singapore in April 2014
Darkside performing in Singapore in April 2014
Background information
OriginProvidence, Rhode Island, U.S.
GenresElectronica,[1] experimental, downtempo, ambient
Years active
  • 2011–2014
  • 2018–present[2]
LabelsClown & Sunset, Other People, Matador, Modular, Hostess
Members
Websitewww.darksidetheband.com

Darkside (often stylized as DARKSIDE) is an American band based in New York City. The band was formed in Providence, Rhode Island in 2011 by electronic musician Nicolás Jaar and multi-instrumentalist Dave Harrington, both of whom were students at Brown University at the time.[3][4] Their debut studio album, Psychic, was released in 2013 and was followed up by Spiral, released in 2021 after a lengthy hiatus.

In 2022, the band added drummer and percussionist Tlacael Esparza to its core line-up, ahead of the release of Live at Spiral House, an album consisting of improvised material recorded at the band's Los Angeles-based rehearsal space.

History

[edit]

2011–2013: Origins and debut album

[edit]

Jaar and Harrington first met while they were both students at Brown University. Harrington was recommended to Jaar by frequent collaborator Will Epstein when Jaar was looking for a third musician for his live band, with the three subsequently touring together to support Jaar's 2011 album Space Is Only Noise.[5] On an off day during the tour, Jaar and Harrington began recording together in their Berlin hotel room for several hours until a cheap converter caused their speakers to blow, filling their room with smoke; the song would later become A1.

Upon returning to the United States they continued to write and record together, developing their sound in Providence and New York.[6][7]

Darkside EP

[edit]

Their first release as Darkside, the three-song Darkside EP, was released on November 17, 2011 via Clown & Sunset. It was critically well received, receiving positive reviews from several publications, including The Fader and Resident Advisor, as well as an 8.0 from Pitchfork.[1][8][9] Jaar has described the project as blues-oriented and more guitar influenced than his previous work, stating in an interview with i-D magazine that Darkside is "the closest thing to rock & roll I've ever done."[10][11] Stereogum has described the duo's sound as "dubbed-out jazzbo junkyard fuzz."[12]

The duo debuted their live show in December 2011 to a sold out crowd at Music Hall of Williamsburg, stretching their three-song EP into an hour-long set.[13] They also played at the 2012 SXSW festival.[14] Pitchfork has credited the project with allowing Jaar to transition forward into a "proggier and more narcotic-sounding" space while still maintaining his unique aesthetic, in part due to Harrington's influence.[9][14] The Fader also noted Harrington's contributions, stating that he "adds weight" to Jaar's signature "airy" sound.[8] Darkside released their first music video in May 2012 for "A1", which was directed by Ryan Staake of Pomp&Clout and Clown & Sunset Aesthetics.[15]

Random Access Memories Memories

[edit]

The duo released their second collaboration Random Access Memories Memories on June 20, 2013.[16][17][18][19] The project, which was uploaded to a SoundCloud account under the pseudonym DaftSide, is a remix of Daft Punk's 2013 album Random Access Memories in its entirety.[20] The remix album received positive reviews from critics and was described as "a dark, nearly industrial romp through a disjointed abandoned disco" by Death and Taxes.[21] Pitchfork stated that the release was "a far greater work than standard remix albums" and praised the duo for their ability to balance originality and playfulness: "At times they're looking for nuances in the original, small threads they can pick up and take somewhere else. Elsewhere they're just having fun, acting on instincts, never over-awed by the material."[22] Sasha Frere-Jones listed the project as one of the "Best Albums of 2013" in his annual writeup in The New Yorker.[23]

Psychic

[edit]

Darkside's debut album Psychic was released on October 4, 2013.[24] The album was recorded over the course of two years between Jaar's home in New York City, Harrington's family barn in Upstate New York, and a space in Paris where they would stay between tours.[5] The band announced the album's completion on August 20, 2013, with Jaar and Harrington inviting fans via Facebook and Twitter to listen to the album with them at a small venue on New York's Lower East Side.[25][26] The band had to do two listening sessions to accommodate all of the people who showed up.[27][28]

"Golden Arrow", the album's first song, was made available as a free download on August 23, 2013 via the band's website and Jaar's label Other People.[29] The band originally billed the song as "the first 11 minutes of the DARKSIDE album" in posts, however, its title was revealed in a subsequent Pitchfork review, where the song was also named Best New Track.[30] Spin also gave the track a positive review, describing the song as "11 minutes of instrumental excellence."[31]

The album was met with glowing reviews, including a 9.0 rating and Best New Music designation from Pitchfork.[32]

2014–present: Hiatus and Spiral

[edit]

On 17 August 2014, the group announced they were "coming to an end, for now" and would play their last show on September 12 at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple.[33] The hiatus announcement was accompanied by the release of two new songs, "What They Say" and "Gone Too Soon," which were released together as a digital single and subsequently included on the Other People compilation Work.[34]

In late 2020, the band unexpectedly released a live album on Bandcamp, PSYCHIC LIVE JULY 17 2014, which documents one of their final pre-hiatus performances from Belgium's Dour Festival.[35] Just under two months later, the band announced new album Spiral.

Spiral

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On December 21, 2020, Darkside released "Liberty Bell", the first single from their second studio album Spiral.[36] The album was preceded by two more singles before being released on July 23, 2021, receiving generally favorable reviews.[37]

Live at Spiral House

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Darkside performing at Le Bikini, Toulouse, France on 11 June 2023. From left to right: Harrington, Tlacael Esparza and Jaar

On June 6, 2023 Darkside released Live at Spiral House, an album of material from their rehearsal place, Spiral House in Los Angeles. It featured new band member Tlacael Esparza on drums.[38] Esparza played as part of the band in their European tour that began in May 2023.

Line-up

[edit]
  • Nicolás Jaar - various instruments, electronics, production (2011–2014; 2018–present)
  • Dave Harrington - guitar, various instruments (2011–2014; 2018–present)
  • Tlacael Esparza - drums, percussion (2022–present)

Discography

[edit]

Albums

[edit]
Title Album details Peak chart positions
US
[39] 		US
Dance
[40] 		US
Heat
[41] 		UK
Indie
[42]
Psychic 163 6 5 21
Spiral
  • Released: July 23, 2021
  • Label: Matador
  • Formats: CD, LP, digital download, streaming
 — — — —
Live at Spiral House
  • Released: June 6, 2023
  • Label: Matador
  • Formats:
 — — — —

Extended plays

[edit]
Title EP details
Darkside EP

Live albums

[edit]
Title EP details
PSYCHIC LIVE JULY 17 2014
  • Released: November 5, 2020
  • Label: Other People
  • Format: Digital download

Singles

[edit]
Title Single details Album
"Heart"
  • Released: November 18, 2013
  • Label: Other People, Matador
  • Formats: CDr
 Psychic
"Paper Trails"
  • Released: March 13, 2014
  • Label: Other People, Matador
  • Format: CDr
"What They Say" / "Gone Too Soon"
  • Released: August 17, 2014
  • Label: Other People
  • Format: Digital download / MP3
 What They Say / Gone Too Soon
"Liberty Bell"
  • Released: December 21, 2020
  • Label: Matador
  • Format: Digital download / FLAC
 Spiral

Remixes

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  • Daft Punk – "Random Access Memories Memories" (2013) (Remixed album as Daftside)
  • St. Vincent – "Digital Witness" (2014)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Worthy, Stephen (December 8, 2011). "Reviews: Darkside - Darkside EP". Resident Advisor. Retrieved July 2, 2013.
  2. ^ "Darkside Announce New Album Spiral, Share New Song "Liberty Bell"". Pitchfork.com. 21 December 2020. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  3. ^ "DARKSIDE -> Spiral". store.matadorrecords.com. Matador Records. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
  4. ^ "Nicolas Jaar and Dave Harrington are Darkside | Crack Magazine". Crack Magazine. Retrieved 2018-05-12.
  5. ^ a b Fitzmaurice, Larry (September 5, 2013). "Update: Nicolas Jaar". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved September 7, 2013.
  6. ^ Dummy. "Darkside interview: "What are you gonna argue about if you make good music together?"". DummyMag. Retrieved 2022-01-23.
  7. ^ "DARKSIDE". We Like It Indie. Archived from the original on October 19, 2013. Retrieved July 2, 2013.
  8. ^ a b Bravo, Amber (November 18, 2011). "Stream Darkside's New EP". The Fader. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  9. ^ a b Howe, Brian (December 9, 2011). "Darkside: Darkside EP: Album Review". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  10. ^ Jonze, Tim (February 1, 2012). "34 minutes with … Nicolas Jaar". The Guardian. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  11. ^ McMahon, Milly (November 7, 2011). "Welcome to the Darkside, Nicolas Jaar". i-D. Archived from the original on August 30, 2013. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  12. ^ Breihan, Tom (June 21, 2013). "Stream Darkside's Remix Of Random Access Memories". Stereogum.com. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  13. ^ Stolman, Elissa (December 2, 2011). "Nicolas Jaar, Dave Harrington @ Music Hall Of Williamsburg". Cmj.com. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  14. ^ a b Fitzmaurice, Larry (March 18, 2012). "SXSW: Darkside". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  15. ^ Bravo, Amber (May 16, 2012). "Video: Darkside, "A1"". The Fader. Retrieved July 2, 2013.
  16. ^ "random access memories memories". SoundCloud. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
  17. ^ Hurston, Benjamin (June 21, 2013). "Listen to Nicolas Jaar's Darkside Remix of Daft Punk's Random Access Memories". Paste Magazine. Archived from the original on June 26, 2013. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  18. ^ Milton, Jamie (June 21, 2013). "Nicolas Jaar's 'Daftside' Project Remixes Daft Punk's 'Random Access Memories'". This Is Fake DIY. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  19. ^ Poppins, Bary (June 22, 2013). "Nicolas Jaar & Dave Harrington Remix Daft Punk's Random Access Memories". Stoney Roads. Retrieved July 3, 2013.
  20. ^ Liszewski, Laura (June 21, 2013). "Listen To Nicolas Jaar's Remix Of Entire Daft Punk Album". Mixmag. Archived from the original on June 24, 2013. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  21. ^ Hepburn, Ned (June 21, 2013). "Someone remixed all of Daft Punk's 'Random Access Memories' to sound industrial". Death and Taxes. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  22. ^ Neyland, Nick (June 28, 2013). "Daftside: Random Access Memories Memories". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved July 1, 2013.
  23. ^ Frere-Jones, Sasha (December 9, 2013). "Best Albums of 2013". The New Yorker. Retrieved January 13, 2014.
  24. ^ "Darkside Announce Debut LP 'Psychic'". Modular Recordings. September 4, 2013. Archived from the original on October 22, 2013. Retrieved October 19, 2013.
  25. ^ Battan, Carrie (August 20, 2011). "Nicolas Jaar's Darkside to Premiere Album in New York Tonight". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
  26. ^ Sy, Tatiana (August 22, 2013). "Nicolas Jaar shows his Darkside in NYC". Pretty Much Amazing. Archived from the original on January 14, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2013.
  27. ^ "Nicolas Jaar's Darkside recorded their debut LP, holding a listening party in NYC tonight". Brooklyn Vegan. August 20, 2013. Retrieved August 26, 2013.
  28. ^ Milton, Jamie (August 21, 2013). "Nicolar Jaar's Darkside Project Premiere Album In New York". This Is Fake DIY. Retrieved August 26, 2013.
  29. ^ Pelly, Liz (August 25, 2013). "Hear 11 Minutes Of Nicolas Jaar's New Darkside Album". Stereogum.com. Retrieved August 28, 2013.
  30. ^ Gaerig, Andrew (August 26, 2013). "Darkside: "Golden Arrow"". Pitchfork.com Media. Retrieved August 28, 2013.
  31. ^ Martins, Chris (August 26, 2013). "Nicolas Jaar's Darkside Share 11 Minutes of Instrumental Excellence". Spin.com. Retrieved August 28, 2013.
  32. ^ "Darkside: Psychic". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  33. ^ "Announcement of hiatus". Facebook.com. August 17, 2014. Retrieved August 17, 2014.
  34. ^ Renshaw, David (August 18, 2014). "Darkside reveal two new songs and announce band is 'coming to an end'". NME. Retrieved August 21, 2021.
  35. ^ "Darkside Release 2014 Live Show Recording". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2020-11-06.
  36. ^ Ruiz, Matthew Ismael (December 21, 2020). "Darkside Announce New Album Spiral, Share New Song "Liberty Bell": Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  37. ^ "Darkside: Spiral". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  38. ^ "Darkside Announce New Album Live at Spiral House". Pitchfork. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  39. ^ "Darkside – Chart history: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved October 19, 2013.
  40. ^ "Darkside – Chart history: Dance/Electronic Albums". Billboard. Retrieved October 19, 2013.
  41. ^ "Darkside – Chart history: Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Retrieved October 19, 2013.
  42. ^ "2013 Top 40 Independent Albums Archive". Official Charts Company. October 19, 2013. Retrieved October 19, 2013.
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