Keys N Krates Throw Unforgettable Birthday Party

Birthday Parties are awesome; but they can also suck. Much like New Year’s Eve, they involve a ton planning, anticipation, and expense, all for a night that ends up being less than extraordinary. That is unless you’re electronic music trio Keys N Krates, then things are a little different. When they announced that they would be hosting a public Birthday party at Sunnyside Pavliion, they promised “a sick line up of talented acts, some wacky birthday party antics, good music, good weather (because we can predict that), and maybe even some cake.” Some pretty bold claims that were exponentially exceeded on Sunday night as they threw one of the best parties the city has seen. Just as they promised the line-up boasted an impressive range of acts including Just Blaze, Flat White, Tom Wrecks (Thugli), Tennyson, Ouici, and Harrison. The party antics were in full effect with party hats greeting guests, a cupcake table, snowcone machine, popcorn, and cotton candy all on the house. Not to mention the wild array of clowns and cartoon characters roaming the grounds, with everyone from Mickey Mouse to Buzz Lightyear and Barney in attendance. The music was phenomenal and just as they predicted, the weather was absolutely perfect (maybe a career in meteorology is on the horizon when they’re finished killing stages).

I arrived at the venue just before 4pm. Branded birthday balloons signaled the entrance and entering the venue was as smooth as possible. After descending the steps I walked into a beautiful courtyard with a lush canopy of trees providing shade from the bright sunshine. The stage was located at the back and Ouici was warming things up. The vibe was pretty chill. Most people were nodding to the beat, talking with friends and taking in the sites. Ouici’s set encompassed a hazy, almost dreamfilled downtempo feel; a trap subtext with a more cinematic sound. Amongst the sounds were familiar vocals from Kanye and Drake to keep it just a little bit familiar.

After some set-up and an introduction from Keys N Krates, it was time for Edmonton based duo, Tennyson, to take the stage and deliver their unique live experience. The drum kit and keyboard piqued the interest of many and a crowd began to form at the front of the stage. The start was intentionally slow, building anticipation with smiles stretched across their faces. During the opening, Jr. Flo came out front and vibed out while shaking hands and talking to fans. It didn’t take long for listeners to get lost in the futuristic jazzy vibe that Tennyson created. Their chemistry and live show was nothing short of incredible. Tess killed it on the drums, never missing a beat, while Luke freaked the synthesizer and plucked at the Ableton controller. Their level of energy was transcendent despite the relatively mellow nature of their sounds. While Luke’s mic skills between songs were clumsy at best, it was hard not to smile every time he spoke. ‘With You’ and ‘Lay-By’ were stunning live as was the entire performance. Every pause between tracks warranted a round of applause adding to a set that without doubt garnered a number of new fans.

As Tom Wrecks of Thugli took the stage and began setting up I thought, awesome, but what happened to Ganz? Wrecks warmed the crowd up with rich future bass before taking to the mic and announcing that the homie Ganz couldn’t make it across the border, but was here in spirit, dropping his ‘I Want You’ flip. The slight air of disappointment was short lived, as Tom had everyone getting turnt in less than 5 minutes. Showcasing his incredible DJ skills while blending hip-hop and trap never disappoints. With everything from LOUDPVCK to Fetty Wap, TroyBoi and Valentino Khan, Wrecks had the place lit mid afternoon. With Drake’s ‘My Way’ verse coming to a close he perfectly timed the “first off I’m start by saying…” into his own “Fuck Meek Mill” narration. Needless to say the Toronto fans loved it. Every time Thugli perform together or solo I’m amazed. The tranistions are seamless, the song selection kills and the scratch routines take it next level. Seeing Tom flip Rihanna’s smash ‘BBHMM’ with a scatched Drake sample “Bitch better have my money when I come for that shit like ODB” and then working it into ‘Worst Behaviour’ was just one example as to why.

Once again, Keys N Krates took the stage to introduce to Flat White and encourage fans to say hello when they see them around the event. A true testament to their down to earth nature, Jr. Flo was personally handing out cookies to fans that were complete with the >l< logo. Flat White aka Virgil Ablo is known as Kanye West’s longtime creative director and collaborator. That said he can definitely handle himself on the decks. He instantly changed the tone of the party, opening with an ethereal deep bass sound. The darkness eventually subsided as he warmed things up with Fetty Wap, several Kanye cuts, and some Skepta. Bringing the chill back in, Abloh allowed James Blake to creep in before bringing out party classics like ‘Crank That’ and ‘Trophies’. Returning to where he started, things got dark once again with a sinister spacey club sound to close things out.

With the sun beginning to set, legendary hip-hop producer and DJ Just Blaze took control of the crowd. A fittingly high energy opening, Blaze unleashed Jay Z’s ‘PSA’ into ‘U Don’t Know’. From there it was a barrage of hip-hop anthems with everything from Dipset to Freeway and Pharoah Monche. Flexing his sample chops, Just rinsed out ‘Superfreak’ then proceeded to freak the loop into the Rick James sampled ‘Kingdom Come’. After another round of hip-hop bangers, Just Blaze decided it was time to trap it out. Dropping classics like Flosstradamus’ ‘Original Don’ remix and Bro Safari’s ‘Scumbag’. From there Just bounced from jersey club to rap anthems including an all time classic in Beastie’s Boys ‘Intergalactic’. His hand skills were on point and his mic game was right with it, getting the crowd turnt to a whole another level. Giving a shout out to the weed smokers, Blaze dropped a minimix of chronic infused anthems that included Styles P’s ‘Good Times’, Ye’s ‘Get Em High’ and his collab with Baauer ‘Higher’. Add to the fact that he mixed Yeezy’s “Can we get much higher” sample in between each of those joints, it truly seemed that we couldn’t get much higher. That said, the billowing smoke clouds throughout the courtyard begged to differ. Nearing the end of his set, Just Blaze cut the music to shout out fans including a dude rocking a Wu-Tang mask. After some convincing the fan tossed the mask up to the DJ who immediately threw it on and dropped Wu-Tang’s ‘C.R.E.A.M’. Truly lost in the vibe he proceeded to mutter “aww fuck it” before playing out Celine Dion and adding a touch a trap at the end to go out with a bang.

With the sun down, the anticipation had reached its climax and Keys N Krates walked onto the stage with a sense of sure determination as they took their place behind their instruments. Truly reppin’ their city, Jr. Flo rocked an OVO tee while David Matisse adorned an I <3 T.O. tank. After a steady build sparked a new level of electricity, the drums began to intensify leading into a massive drop that was timed with the first major hit of the lights, leaving fans blown away. It wasn’t long before they kept it 100 dropping the Grandtheft assisted smash with some live tweaks. I’ve seen and written about Keys N Krates several times and every time I find myself at a strain to fully capture the magic that makes their sets so special. There’s something about the way that they put their live set together; the chemistry, the openness for improvisation and the energy, that can only be heard and felt. From Adam’s fervent drumming, to Matisse’ swag on the synth and Jr. Flo raw DJ cuts, the trio create an experience that is truly unmatched in today’s electronic music landscape.

After just under an hour of playing they cut the lights and left the stage leaving fans to wonder “is it really over?” all while praying that it was not. After a few minutes of disjointed chants, cheers, and failed renditions of happy birthday, the hometown heroes returned announcing that they had to play a little longer, it is their birthday after all. A strong conclusion to a stellar day saw them playing out their recent single ‘Save Me’ and debuting their upcoming release ‘I Know You’ to a mob of immensely excited and grateful fans. The victory lap included the anthem ‘All The Time’ and an invite for every artist who performed that day to join them on stage to turn up to ‘Yes We Faded’. The stage was as wild as the crowd and it looked like one of the band members’ dads was up there for the revelry.

Though I don’t personally know Keys N Krates, I felt like a welcome guest and got to experience one of the best Birthday parties I’ve ever attended. I look forward to returning and seeing how they intend to top a near perfect event. Here’s to next year, Happy Birthday!

For more photos of the event be sure to check out our gallery on Facebook.