UTG PHOTOS: Flume & The Chainsmokers (4/14/14)

April 19th, 2014

Kellie Gannon

Under The Gun sent photographer, Kellie Gannon, to Highline Ballroom in New York City to photograph MTV Presents: Artists to Watch featuring The Chainsmokers and Flume on April 14, 2014.

If by now the phrase “LET ME TAKE A SELFIE!” isn’t stuck in your brain on repeat for no apparent reason, let me accidentally-on-purpose ingrain it in there just one more time. On a beautiful Monday spring evening in the city, Flume graced the stage at Highline Ballroom, with support from our friends in The Chainsmokers.

This show was part of the MTV Presents: Artists to Watch Live series, which provides fans a front row seat to the hottest current emerging artists. This music discovery initiative was launched in 2013, and has featured an eclectic mix of artists with live showcases, with past shows featuring the likes of Zedd, Hunter Hayes, Twenty One Pilots, and more.

The Chainsmokers have experienced an explosion of success following the 2014 release of their dance pop EDM hit, “#Selfie.” The NY DJ duo, made up of Alex Pall and Drew Taggart, have an expansive resume of shows under their belt already along with a slew of excellent remixes, but it was “#Selfie” that skyrocketed their career overnight. This silly song, mainly a monologue of girls getting ready to go out set to an EDM beat and accompanied by a fan-based video, was the focus of their set for the night. They mixed an array of tunes but the crowd really got into it during this song as the finale of their set. They launched Polaroid cut-out frames into the crowd so people could do exactly what the song title was directing them to do… you guessed it. A crowd full of simultaneous selfies.

After a brief intermission, Australian native Flume hit the stage. Flume, aka Harley Streten, is an electronic producer/beatmaker extraordinaire. Opening his set with “Ezra,” he launched seamlessly into his double platinum selling hit, “Holdin’ On.” The sold-out venue was teeming with fans eating up song after song, including a remix of Lorde’s “Tennis Court,” but overall Flume mostly stuck to his own originals, including an epic remix of his tune “Insane” which features Moon Holiday. Flume ended the energetic and crowd pleasing evening with an encore that included “On Top” featuring T. Shirt.

Flume will hit the mean streets of New York again this summer with a show at Terminal 5 on July 18. Until then, keep an eye out for Flume in your city — his beats are a force to be reckoned with and not to be missed! Check out the photos below from a fun evening with Flume and The Chainsmokers!

THE CHAINSMOKERS