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Chromeo’s Guitar Licks and Leggy Tricks Live!

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Chromeo, Chromeo! Wherefore art thou Chromeo?

For the 500 eager fans that filled up West Hollywood’s Key Club and waited with baited, electrofunk breath, Chromeo’s sole purpose was to blow their minds, and the band didn’t fail to deliver. The third installment in SPIN’s Ruby Series-sponsored by adidas Originals and Citi made it clear that Los Angeles has an insatiable thirst for David Macklovitch and Patrick Gemayel, a couple of Canadian boys who go by Dave 1 and P-Thugg while dishing out their licks behind hot-legged keyboard stands, and a neon sign with their moniker emblazoned in stripper pink.

VIP ticket holders were treated to a pre-party downstairs, inviting folks to fill up plush booths while noshing on cookies and cheese plates as complimentary Pabst Blue Ribbon beers beckened them to the bar. The status also gained VIPs access to the two roped off side sections, providing a little relief from the thumping crowd that would fight anyone in a heatbeat in an effort to catch one of P-Thugg’s discarded drumsticks.

Macklovitch, who moonlights as an undergraduate French professor at Columbia University, brought schoolboy sexy to the table with his sweater vest atop a white button-down shirt and tie, complete with Wayfarers. He made sure the crowd appreciated the fact that best friend “P” had rallied to perform, despite being really sick (but not too ill to rock a cheeky tribal print ensemble). Together, they sent the crowd bezerk with “Tenderoni,” “I Am Somebody,” and “Needy Girl,” and once it became clear how amped up everyone had become, Macklovitch announced “we’re gonna play the entire Fancy Footwork album!”

“Bonafide Lovin,” dedicated to all those who came with a special someone, thrust fans into a grope friendly tizzy, and Chromeo’s first attempt at closing the show (the audience would demand two encores with their war chant “CHROM-E-O…OHHHH-OH!”) had Macklovitch pondering “does anybody know how to two step?” before launching into the album’s title track. “Momma’s Boy,” an insane crowd pleaser, was followed by a brief segue into covers “Don’t Stop Believing” and “Your Love (The Outfield Song),” and when Macklovitch wasn’t asking everyone to throw up peace signs or clap louder, he was toasting the true fans for coming out with a Heineken in one hand and a giddy smile rarely seen on anyone over the age of five. The pair bid a fond farewell with “100 Percent,” and as the beat hungry mob pleaded for more, Dave 1 and P-Thugg moseyed off into the electric lighted sunset amidst a flurry of confetti.


Chromeo at the Key Club / Photo by Erik Voake


The Key Club Crowd / Photo by Erik Voake


Chromeo / Photo by Erik Voake