Since COVID, there’s been some huge changes in the music scene in the city of Chicago. Promotional companies going under or radio silent. Many of the most notorious clubs have changed their management and overall structure completely. Some loved artists politely decline to come back to the city because of the changes. It has been a confusing few years navigating all of this (of course, we’ll always have House music). But if you comb through Chicago EDM fan pages, there is a theme that is very easy to pick up on that all agree on: we want more Drum and Bass. There’s something insanely special about the genre to the people in Chicago.
So when it was announced in December of 2023 that the WORSHIP artists (Culture Shock, Dimension, Sub Focus, and 1991) were bringing their tour back to North America, and Chicago was one of the selected cities, these said EDM pages lit up with joy and excitement. Many still talk about the March 2023 performance and so to have the tour return but this time at the popular Radius venue, the days couldn’t go by fast enough. Now that’s over, we only wish we could go back and start the countdown all over again.
Beginnings
Set times came out for the Saturday show and it was immediately noticed that the music began right as doors opened. When that happens in Chicago, it can result in long and frustrating security lines as everyone gets there at once, especially for Drum and Bass. However, thankfully, it was an extremely smooth line with much PLUR and excited discussions about the merch and upcoming sets heard throughout the lines. Local artist CLB set the night off perfectly with some more Melodic/Liquid DnB. It welcomed every attendee in the perfect way; some ran to the merch line or grabbed drinks from the already head-bobbing and dancing bartenders. I spoke with a few that wanted to work the show specially because it was WORSHIP.
Wow.
I’ve been seriously brainstorming how I want to best approach the dissection of this show. Each artist brought it in their own unique way. 1991 was glued to the equipment in front of him. He was laser-focused on the intricate details of his set. I personally developed a love for DnB just over a year ago and right away, 1991 made the crowd feel welcomed and comfortable with playing his most recognizable tracks. The intensity picked up as fans who received special wristbands for on-stage access began hyping up the floor crowd and as Culture Shock took the stage. The energy was palpable at this point as most ticket holders had arrived by then, just as ‘Discotheque’ was played.
It’s hard to believe that Sub Focus has been in the industry since 2003. There’s something so remarkable about the way he performs let alone the other three WORSHIP artists. Sub Focus commanded the stage and made it look easy and he went through his most recognizable tracks and more from his latest album, Evolve, which dropped in May 2023. By this point, every single body in the venue was moving. And when Dimension took the stage to close and dropped ‘DJ Turn It Up’, the night officially received a stamp of approval.
Don’t Blink…
It’s remarkable how fast the night went by. 4.5 hours of nonstop music and insane heaters. Drum and Bass brings out the best people and therefore it was again one of the most enjoyable crowds I’ve ever experienced in my Electronic music career. People were respectful and brought nice and polite vibes while being fully immersed in the show and production. It’s only proper to bring up the popular phrase “Don’t cry because it’s over; smile because it happened“. Sigh. Do it — go to this show. Try something new or immerse yourself in the genre again. When the venue lights came on, not many people wanted to leave. Security had to do security things and start escorting the crowd out but they knew it was because they knew we were all just waiting for our heart rates to come back to normal.
The WORSHIP 2024 tour has just begun! They’re covering more of North America in just the next few weeks.
WORSHIP North America 2024 tour dates:
03/22 – Great Hall, Avant Gardner – Brooklyn, NY
03/23 – Echostage – Washington D.C.
03/24 – MAD LIVE – Miami
03/28 – History – Toronto, CA
03/29 – Mission Ballroom – Denver, CO
03/30 – Hollywood Palladium – Los Angeles, CA
Lastly, they’re all stopping in Miami this coming weekend for Music Week (March 24th)! Take a look here for more info and keep an eye out for tickets. Additionally, there will be a huge B2B2B2B2B takeover at EDCLV.
Follow along with all things WORSHIP at their website and check out the pre-orders available for the new 2024 merch as well. The inventory was cleaned out very quickly at the show!
