Keys N Krates return to Toronto with an intimate live tour

On Saturday night Keys N Krates returned to Toronto for an intimate set at Velvet Underground. Their debut album CURA dropped early 2018 and kicked the band’s year off with a tour, a live recording from which you can now listen to on Spotify. Wrapping up the year, and kicking off 2019, the trio is back on the road with a Closer We Get tour. 

You all remember “Dum Dee Dum,” with the amount of shows the band embarks on it’s more than likely that track had you dancing at least once. The new work is more melodic and baselined, and we are way past “Dum Dee Dum” with tracks like “Glitter” and “Something Wonderful” that speak to a wider range of audience and offer a lot more listening opportunities. CURA is Keys N Krates maturing in the musical world. 

This most recent show was possibly one of the smallest they’ve had in Toronto. The tiny stage was barely enough room for them all to be comfortable, the lack of space also made it a rather a-typical set up for them – no one in the center, everyone equal, everyone cozy. A tight crowd of plus-ones lined up behind the stage leaning on a metal fence while the rest of the room was getting sweaty on the dance floor. 

The set covered all the basis: the bass-centric sound, the live scratching, teasers and samples, a bit of dub, a bit of hip-hop and generally a whole lot of beats dropping. Halfway through the night, the trio jumped on the Latin bandwagon with their own take on Cardi B, Bad Bunny and J Balvin’s “I Like It” which the crowd, naturally, went crazy for. Hey, who wouldn’t want to party with J Balvin, pick a time and place, we’ll be there. By the time we got to “Treat Me Right” and “Keep it 100,” the floors were sticky and almost everyone in the room has switched their gear to “rave mode.”