GRYFFIN Leaves The West Coast To Hang Out

In the ever evolving world of EDM (Electronic Dance Music) the subset is those performers who play actual instruments in addition to manipulating sound through their consoles. Los Angeles based performer Gryffin creates his melodic house style music by employing both piano and guitar. His sound is more familiar to the uninitiated, and thereby accessible to a wide audience. This is likely because in addition to his classical training in piano, he has significant experience as musician and as a producer/songwriter. He has released two albums: 2019’s Gravity and 2022’s Alive.

EDM has really taken hold across the country. In almost every city on any given night there is someone holding the attention of a swaying crowd by manipulating sound and volume on top of mixing varied pieces of recorded music all a nearly uninterrupted set. In many places, the music never lets up as one DJ finishes and the starts up with nearly no dead air between the artist’s sets.

Gryffin’s music is different than that of many other DJs because of his formal training in piano, and the skills he’s developed as a record producer for other artists. The breadth of his work flavors the performances.

In conversation, Gryffin is personable and knowledgeable about his craft. He is in frequent rotation in Las Vegas at the Wynn Hotel’s Encore Beach Club and XS Nightclub. This has led him to take chances such as the well-received performance in front of 50,000 people on November 4^th of last year at the Los Angeles State Historic Park.

Gryffin is on the road now, appearing this weekend at the Hangout Fest on the Gulf Shores of Alabama. There, he will play a seventy five minute set on Friday, May 19^th, 2023. Hangout is a festival which appeals to a broad audience, mixing EDM performers with other well-known acts such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, SZA and Paramore. Later that same evening, Gryffin will play another set in Miami, FL, just one show more in a run of six over seven nights taking him from the West Coast to the East and back.

Also, Gryffin created a visually appealing film of himself performing in Kauai. This film is an excellent example of the way in which his sound has a more rounded and full sonic template because of the additional overlays of melody which are contributed as a result of his guitar and piano skills.

It is interesting to watch the progression as EDM moved away from instrumentation into synthesized electronic sounds, and now is moving back to incorporate the core elements of music derived from actual musical instruments. Music is an art which is never static. Innovation in music is never exclusively a new sound. There are still only eight notes in an octave. That said, the creativity of artists is endless.

Gryffin is building his base on melody, and that is something which is likely to remain attractive to a large body of fans. His talent when matched with his willingness to take changes and applied against his worth ethic is delivering innovative albums, videos and live performances. Gryffin is an artist whose evolution will be worth following. What he has already accomplished is worth celebrating. What he has yet to do is the secret sauce which will keep fans tuning back in.