- David August is a talented young individual. The 21-year-old from Hamburg already has a wealth of both DJing and production experience, not to mention widespread critical acclaim, mostly for his 2013 album Times. This month he played at LIV in Buenos Aires to a lively Argentine crowd and completely killed it.
LIV could easily be used in a modern-day remake of Saturday Night Fever. Ten enormous mirror balls hovered precariously above the dance floor like disco death stars, complementing warm-up act Ricky Ryan's spacey, synth-heavy set. Next up, the night's headliner quickly and efficiently took control of the tightly packed space. August's most striking feature is his total composure: his execution was calculated and methodical throughout.
Having seen Nicolas Jaar play in Buenos Aires a couple of weeks earlier, it was impossible not to draw comparisons between the two. Over the course of their short but illustrious careers, both have conveyed a passion for exploring diverse sounds. Throughout their performances, both improvised on keyboards, with August opting to play piano sounds over bass-heavy synth chords. And both performances had thought-provoking elements: Jaar took samples from a political rally, while August tried to explain the logistics of black holes to the crowd via a sexy narrator. Sometime in the early hours of the morning, August's performance reached a huge, unified climax with his remix of The Beatles' seminal "Come Together," catalysed by a flurry of green lasers bouncing off the largest spheres in the ceiling.