Photos and Review by Sarah Smith
Galleries: Atmosphere, Pretty Lights
When I found out Atmosphere was touring with Pretty Lights at the Bank of NH Pavilion, I knew I had to be there. What I later learned upon arriving to the venue on a hot summer evening, was that it was a 2 night/Friday/Saturday “festival.” Which invited the concert goers to stay, bring tents and camp out for the entire evening. I knew it would be a night I would always remember as I walked past a sea of colorful tents covered in tye dye tapestry with a slew of empty beer cans across the grass. I immediately pitied the poor crew who was on cleanup duty Sunday morning as everyone would stumble and slowly trickle out of the venue.
I am a huge fan of Atmosphere aka Slug, aka Sean Daley, aka the real reason I went to this show. I don’t even like rap, or hip hop, all that much. But I can’t say enough how much I love listening to Slug rap, his lyrics actually leave me with chills up my spine one minute and my jaw slamming the ground the next. He knows how to get a crowd going by getting everyone to wave their hands in the air rapping back with him. “So I hear you guys are camping out?” Slug went on, “I dedicate this song to the way you all smell tomorrow morning!” And began to begin Sunshine a loved, highly relatable, hangover anthem. He also played more favorites, God Loves Ugly, and the super bassy, super catchy, Shoulda Known.
Pretty Lights took the stage next as the headliner. The stage went completely black as everyone in the colorful outfits and bodies covered in glitter began cheering. They began with an enchanting, slow moving, chime like sounds with relaxing lights. This created a surreal atmosphere as the members of Pretty Lights came out. This show really is amazing, coming from someone who doesn’t truly love electronic music. It is so many things, it’s hard to stay with it. To be able to connect to their listeners, Pretty Lights uses many, many lasers shooting across the stage, heavy smoke, heavy base lines, and the most interesting lighting show I have ever seen. Everyone was vibrating and buzzing as colorful shapes moved across the stage. The warm energy that flooded through the crowd was contagious. This is a must see show, to anyone who wants to forget reality for an evening.
Pretty Lights and Atmosphere at the Bank of NH Pavilion
