Opening up for the night, but certainly not the only time we were able to experience, was Raw Russ and Fresh2Death, both of whom need very little introduction in the local electronic scene. These guys give it everything at every show they play, and this was no exception. Was it because they were opening for Big Gigantic? No it was not. If it's a Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, or in this case Friday, the group's sets are on-point and the in-set improvisations flow like water off a ducks back. If that duck happened to be standing in front of a cannon, it would probably mimic the thunder-rolling bass drops a bit better.
The anticipation for Big Gigantic has been building ever since the tour dates were dropped several weeks ago. The Fox Theatre show sold out in a snap, thus opening the door to possibly playing shows in Denver and Boulder before going on tour. Thursday night at Gothic Theater saw Jason Hann of Eoto throw down his personal workings (per a cohort who attended the show) and upon hearing that, I knew whatever was planned for the Fox, their home court, would be huge.
Around 11:30, the house lights dropped. Backlit by nine translucent light boxes stacked in the shape of an "M," Dominic Lalli and Jeremy Salken walked out and made it rain notes of musical joy onto the heads of all the heads. From the first drop, Salken fueled the fire that is Lalli's saxophone. The energy flowing from his pursed lips into his classic -- and incredibly weathered -- saxophone, seemed to magically flow from the bell into the space.
I want to say they opened with "Looking Back," off their most recent A Place Behind The Moon, but I can't be sure. The live production that Big-G puts on gives them so much credibility as artists. As Lalli casually exhausted himself on every note, Salken would be jumping up, ear-to-ear smile, wailing on the high-hat and dropping the hammer of Thor on his crash cymbal.
