Big Gigantic @ Red Rocks

Big Gigantic’s Rowdytown will always hold a special place in my heart. More so than ever after attending year twelve. The first year Big Gigantic headlined Red Rocks was also my first time at the iconic venue. At the time, I was still living in Chicago. My best friends and I drove all the way out to Colorado for the show. It was quite an adventure and the show itself was another experience in its own. I’ve attended three of the eleven yearly Red Rocks shows that the duo puts on. This has by far topped the other two.

Intro

Leading up to the 28th there was an underlying excitement that I don’t feel very often. I knew there was something special about this show, I just didn’t know what that was yet. Little did I know that night would be a night that I would remember forever. Before I knew it, I was headed out the door to Red Rocks.

I got there a bit after doors opened, though I had intended to get there a little earlier. When I arrived Jeremy and Dom were near the middle to end of their opening “chill set”. I headed up the stairs to meet up with a friend who was running the Lil G’s booth. This is when I stopped to take a breather. I have asthma so between my lungs AND my legs burning I needed a minute. When I stopped I met another photographer that was also shooting, that I became instant friends with. It was the best way to start the day.

I continued to head up the stairs, with my new friend alongside me. As I hit the top step I was able to see the tent that was right in the center. I walked over and found crowds of people in front of the tent, as well as two other setups that were meant for photo ops. Several Lil G’s welcomed attendees and handed out little gifts. These included decorated clothes pins, rubber ducks, chapstick, snacks and even water. The entire team was super sweet and I made several additional friendships throughout my time visiting this fun little area.

SunSquabi

About five minutes after I had reached the top, the chill set had ended and there was about a twenty minute intermission before Sunsquabi came out. The stage had already been preset for the most part, so the crew really only had to switch out the instruments from Jeremy and Dom’s platform to replace it with the bass and synth on one, guitar and keys on the other, with their drummers set already in place. After what only felt like ten minutes to me, the trio took the stage. I had never listened to Sunsquabi before, though I had heard of them.

Not really sure what I expected, especially since Big G has different (although similar) variations of sets/sound. I really liked their set, sound and vibe. They had a heavy electronic vibe which included a variety of sounds from various instruments. It was very chill, however their guitarist Josh’s energy stood out just a little bit more than the other two as he moved around the stage the most while headbanging on occasion.

The Floozies

After the hour-long set came to an end, the crew flooded the stage again to wheel away one of the three platforms and replaced the remaining two with the drummers set on one and the guitar and soundboards on the other…all in preparation for The Floozies. About a half hour later, brothers Mark and Matt Hill took their place on stage and started their set. Like Sunsquabi, I had only heard of The Floozies before and never listened to them.

Until this show, I thought they were more of a punk rock group. I have no idea how or why I had thought this for so long since they’re most definitely electro-funk. They were an excellent complement and supporting act for the headlining duo. I really liked the lighting during their set – for example, the way the white light would beam down on Matt (the guitarist) throughout the set was captivating. He would look up into it as if he was absorbing some sort of magical energy. Mark (the drummer) had a great energy that complimented their set really well.

Before I knew it, another hour had flown by and The Floozies were thanking the crowd and departing the stage.

Big Gigantic

Twenty-five minutes later, Dominic and Jeremy were walking onto the stage and the crowds cheer filled the venue. The guys walked past their large set up and took center stage before Dom spoke into the microphone and welcomed the many fans in front of him. Jeremy had caught and was holding a small drone that had been circling the venue as Dom gave his short speech. As the speech came to an end, Jeremy let the drone go ever so gently as if it was a bird he was releasing back into the “wild” and the men walked up onto the set up behind them and started off with a bang.

Needless to say, they held onto that energy and then some throughout the entire set. This was by far one of the best Big Gigantic sets I had ever seen (and I’ve seen them outside of Red Rocks). Maybe it was the energy of the crowd, maybe it was Dom & Jeremy’s energy, maybe it was the production – or maybe even a combination of that and everything else I didn’t mention yet. The production was on point – gorgeous bright colors and complementing visuals with a well put together laser show. It was just an overall good time and it was so good that I wish I could go back and relive it and there’s not many concerts that I feel that strongly about that I wish I can go back and experience again.

They brought out a couple of guest artists, one being Probcause (who I have only ever seen live during Griz’s sets) and also has out of this world energy. Probcause came out on a few different occasions throughout the set, dancing around with the guys as he provided vocals during a few tracks he’s collabed on with both Big G and Griz. Another guest was Dominic’s son, Nico. He stood alongside his dad as he shook some kind of instrument and Dom played the tambourine. Nico was adorable, as he has been every year since Dom started bringing him out during Rowdytown.

Dom and Jeremy really outdid themselves on Rowdytown XI. I feel their energy was unmatched compared to the years prior. They both had several interactions with their guests, especially Probcause and Jeremy a few times more with his drone friend (I absolutely loved this, I’ve seen artists do this before but Jeremy with a drone is just so wholesome). This show just stood out so much in so many different ways.

I met so many amazing people and I had such a good time that when the set ended I couldn’t believe it was over. An hour and a half was not long enough, whatsoever – even with an encore. It’s only been a small handful of days since the show and it makes me sad knowing I have to wait a whole year before RowdytownXII, planning I’ll be there. I keep looking back at my photos reminiscing the moments and reflecting on the new friends I’ve made – this is what post concert depression feels like. This is exactly the feeling that you get after an insanely good concert. Big Gigantic is and will always have a very place in my heart, and this experience is another added reason why that is.