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Tag: ADULT.

  • The Tricky Thing About Vinyl DJ Gigs + Set List from Footsie’s 5/16/26

    Fontaines D.C. Romance on vinyl in DJ booth at Footsies in Los Angeles (Photo: Liz Ohanesian)
    The last song of the night at Footsies, “Favourite” by Fontaines D.C.

    It’s pretty rare that I play vinyl sets these days, but, last night, I packed up two record bags to play at Footsie’s for my pal Malvada’s party, Acid Rain. It was a good night. The rumor I heard while standing next to speakers was “blah blah blah punk show blah blah blah shut down” and so a bunch of people headed over to the bar instead. Footsie’s was packed, roughly, from 11 p.m. until the lights came on and the last note of the last song (Fontaines D.C. “Favourite”) played. 

    Vinyl is tricky to DJ for a lot of reasons, but the one reason people don’t really mention is that it’s a challenge to play a vinyl set that doesn’t sound retro. A lot of times, retro is the goal of the party, so it works. If you’re just playing a general alt/indie/whatever set on vinyl, that’s not the case. It happens, though, because used ‘80s records are still plentiful in L.A. shops and new vinyl releases, when you can find them, are pricy relative to what DJs actually make. (Also, there are people who get really rude when you don’t play KROQ’s greatest hits of 1986, but we’ll save that rant for another day.) 

    Point being, I usually only buy new releases on vinyl when they’ve become my personal favorites and when I feel like I can play them out at some DJ gigs. In the past few weeks, I picked up copies of the latest albums from ADULT., Dry Cleaning and Kneecap, so those all made it into last night’s set. 

    The upside of vinyl, at least for a DJ who has been around for a minute, is that you’ll inevitably come across some records that you haven’t played in a long time, or, maybe, ever. I pulled The Faint’s Danse Macabre for last night’s gig because, back when it came out, at least five songs off it were hits at the clubs where I DJed. It actually is an important album for the early 2000s, but one that’s been overlooked in the years since. The Bloc Party song in last night’s set, “Tulips,” is one I probably haven’t played since the ‘00s. IDK why. 

    Set list for last night is below. Songs from the past year or so link to other references here on Beatique. 

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  • ADULT. Captures Real World Dystopian Tension on Kissing Luck Goodbye

    ADULT. Kissing Luck Goodbye Album cover

    Maybe the best place to start talking about Kissing Luck Goodbye is at the end of the latest album from ADULT. Just when you think “Destroyers” is done, an electronic swoosh gives way to what sounds like traffic noise. Then, Nicola Kuperus’ voice reappears, singing, “We pay the price for those in power/Exploiting you, exploiting me/Consuming you, consuming me.” 

    I’ve had an advance copy of Kissing Luck Goodbye for a good minute and have now listened to it enough times to be somewhat haunted by the album’s finale. Listening to “Destroyers,” I think about how we’re literally paying the price for those in power every time we go to a store or restaurant and notice how things are ever-so-slightly more expensive than they were the week prior. We are being exploited, by politicians, by Big Tech, by virtually every corporate entity. We know this and, yet, it seems like there’s no way to stop it. 

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  • February 2026 Beatique Mix: New Tunes from ADULT. and Kneecap + More

    Beatique February 2026 mix cover

    It’s time for the February edition of Beatique, which is now up on Mixcloud and embedded here. Again, I’m not posting the full set list because some things should be a surprise, but it does include a couple new songs that I want to mention. Last week, ADULT. released “No One Is Coming,” the lead single from their forthcoming album, Kissing Luck Goodbye. There is so much tension packed into this song that it feels like being trapped inside a nightmare, which is probably also a good description America right now too. I have a feeling that’s the point. Also last week, Kneecap dropped “Liars Tale,” the first song from their next album, Fenian. It’s dark and it’s brutal and I love it. Between ADULT. and Kneecap, I think my rage soundtrack will be covered this spring. 

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