SoundIsRed

A SoundIsRed set is as disarming as it is rare: behind every one-man track there is a pounding arsenal of flashing lights, frenetic lasers and dream-like fog, all driven and skillfully administered alongside an organic live beat and backed by a storyline that traces a group of interstellar characters. Performance influences apparent in the show flit between oddity-greats Gorillaz to Deadmou5 to the Blue Man Group–mold-breaking inspirations that inevitably move every SIR show beyond tired, old-news antics toward its own decidedly fresh and fictional universe. Because the project is populated by a small arsenal of flamboyant characters, SIR shows aren’t complete until each appears on stage like an interspace apparition, dripping a strange kind of rapture onto the pulsing crowd. Meanwhile, helmeted land stick-spinning, the lead man SIR flashes between kit and synth like a circus-landed spacemen, issuing a heavy-handed trance with every click and hit. This crazed marriage of visual and audio feasts transcends the typical one-dimensional bounds of the dance/electro scene: SIR pounds out an enthralling 70-minute set that fuels the hungry imaginations of the enraptured crowd, ensnaring them in his hopelessly fated world of electro-galactic dance.

Now well-versed in the ways of kits, production and performance, project creator Kevin DePree could boast his first production at the young age of 10. Dedicated and talented, he established himself quickly in the local industry, and by 19 he was touring with various groups across the U.S. and Europe. Thanks to hard-won skill and experience, DePree is a respected member of the vibrant coastal Michigan scene, making him well-poised to begin his climb to the ranks of electro industry greats like Daft Punk, Skrillex, and Benny Benassi. It doesn’t take long to notice that he’s already well on his way; as the youthful mastermind behind SoundIsRed, DePree is transporting fans to another realm, and his story is just getting started.