LAist: In my time going to shows in and around L.A., I’ve seen DJ sets all over — in parks, backyards, Thai restaurants, quinceañera venues, plus a few other spots I’m not going to blow up here.
But despite being a big Brian Eno fan, seeing a show at an airport was completely new for me, even though LAX puts on concerts and DJ sets about once every couple weeks as part of their “LAX Presents” performance series.
5 comments:
I VEHEMENTLY hate the airport. The airport and flying is so mind-numbingly boring and also a process with the least humanly designed infrastructure ever. Everything is so non-intuitive and so unpredictable. You have to get there two hours early because although it almost never takes that long to get from the parking lot to your gate, the one day you don’t show up ludicrously early will be the day that the line at security is miles long and some disgruntled TSA agent decides to pull every item out of your bag and it takes eons to walk to your gate. So, I think that this airport concert idea is pretty cool. It brings something else to the airport other than eating shitty food and buying overpriced snacks. It also is an area where lots of people happen to be, and they can be exposed to new artists and new artists have a captive audience who need entertainment. I like this idea and I think we should keep developing it.
Okay, so here's the thing about LAX. It sucks. It's so big. LAX takes everything evil and unholy about the airport and multiplies it by a million. It's impossible to get to. and navigate. I'd rather put toothpicks under my toenails and kick a wall than hang out there. Except that, recently, California has been making strides to make its airports less miserable. The new SAN terminal is beautiful. The food is good. There's art everywhere. It's become much more relaxing to be in. Los Angeles, in and of itself, is a more exciting place to be, so I think that the DJ set will do a similar thing to LAX as the new art is doing to SAN. Part of me thinks, however, that a DJ set is not the most appropriate for an airport. What about some soft rock? An orchestra? something to relax the airport goers, make them hate their lives a little less and calm down.
I hate to be a debbie downer (I actually do not, it brings me much joy), but I hate this idea with a burning passion. If hell was on earth it would be at Los Angeles International Airport. Don’t get me wrong, the actual interior of the airport is not too bad. The real issue I have is the layout of traffic. When going from Pittsburgh to Los Angeles, it is faster for me to get a layover and then fly to an airport an hour farther than LAX to my house than sit in the sixteen hours of traffic it takes to get out of the infinite loops of gridlock. Los Angeles International Airport’s speed is rivaled only by the speeds of the Santa Monica DMV. Why would anyone subject themselves to a concert in space where souls and hope of going home in a timely manner go to die? I hate LAX and not concert would ever make me like it more.
I’m mixed on this. On the one hand I love live music of all kinds, and I really like when public places make space for them. I remember walking through the Vancouver International Airport and seeing multiple designed spaces for musicians to play, replete with space and outlets for amps and other equipment. I like places that are full of music, and I think having free concert experiences in public places where so many people have to go is awesome. On the other hand, as a reserved, often cranky person, I think if I had to catch an early flight and there was a techno band bumping bassy music in my gate it might push me over the edge. Just being realistic, I’m sure there are many people who feel the same way, but as long as the concerts are kept out of the gate seating areas, I am all for this.
This is the most Los Angeles I have ever heard, and a really interesting idea. A lot of people, well, hate the airport and are stressed the entire time. This is the reason why some airports don’t even play music. Having a DJ in the airport is just going to stress out the majority of the people there, along with potentially harming other things like emotional support animals, or animals just going on the flight because the owner wants them to. It just does not seem like a good solution nor does it solve any existing issues, rather just makes the situation worse. LAX is already an extremely busy airport in its very nature, serving one of the largest cities in the country, and the world, you’re going to feel packed. Loud music, regardless of what it is, will stress people out when they are packed together, especially if you’re trying to listen to your own music.
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