Blockhead w/ Arms and Sleepers @ The Big Dirty - Eugene, OR

Blockhead's been making points to stop in Eugene, OR on his Northwest tour legs over the last few years, and after a slight hiccup from COVID-19, he returned for his fourth show in the happening hippie town on Thursday, October 14th at The Big Dirty. On tour for his new record, Space Werewolves Will Be the End of Us All, the hip hop producer brought along his pals Arms and Sleepers and Shrimpnose to the brand new venue.

The Big Dirty, clean and cozy, caters specifically to shows of an electronic nature, or shows requiring a DJ table. The house setup boasts endless detail: Ornate woodwork, furnishings and facilities on top of an extremely dedicated sound and visual team. The stage itself is fitted with an elaborate mosaic of wood cuts and lights that form a symmetrical, psychedelic visual centerpiece.  

Followed by the ambient club sounds of Shrimpnose, Arms and Sleepers warmed up the stage for Blockhead with his own industrial, aggressive trip hop. Arms and Sleepers always have a refreshingly energetic presence for performing behind a desk. 

The atmosphere lightened up considerably for Blockhead's buoyant hip hop instrumentals. His live shows separate themselves from his usual MO of contented gloom. Normally composing music with a slower pace and minor keys wrapped in a blanket of whimsical glumness, the songs he produces live are predominantly more danceable. Blockhead always plays samples and outfits of tracks from the span of his career, but tends to crank the BPMs to a higher, groovier rate for his performances. In addition to making his songs more upbeat, he also sprinkles in pop music and hip hop references to create new experiences on the fly. This is all achieved in the form of a non-stop musical mashup contained in one track throughout the night. The only stops Blockhead made were to thank the audience for their patience with his sense of humor and to wish them farewell after his final tune.