Deltron 3030 performs during the Rock the Bells Festival in Devore on Sunday, Sept. 8 ,2013. (David Bauman/Staff Photographer)
The most interesting act at Rock the Bells is likely Deltron 3030. Del tha Funkee Homosapien, Dan the Automator and Kid Koala were backed by not only a full band, but a string section, a brass section and backup singers.
As the sun set over the hills of Devore, Deltron 3030 took us n a journey to outer space.
Kid Koala showed up on stage first, looking the most modern of the trio, wearing a baseball cap and a T-Shirt as he manned the turntables.
Dan the Automator, on the other hand, was looking fancy with a tuxedo jacket (with tails) as he conducted the musicians on stage as well as the crowd.
Del looked the most like he came from outer space, wearing a blue helmet with a visor and reflective sunglasses behind it. He also sported a white track jacket and cargo shorts, but those were way more Earth-based.
Fun fact: Deltron 3030 had the most women on stage at Rock the Bells. I counted nine between the backing vocalists and musicians.
A good chunk of the set was dedicated to material on a forthcoming album, the long-awaited “Event 2,” due out Oct. 1.
One of the new tracks, “Nobody Can,” required crowd participation.
“Deltron is our hero, if he can’t save us nobody can,” Dan the Automator taught the crowd.
Another highlight of the new material was “Melding of the Minds,” which features Zack de la Rocha, of Rage Against the Machine fame, on the hook. Sadly, he didn’t appear on stage as a surprise guest, but to be fair, the stage was already really crowded.
However the highlight of the set is the closing song, Gorillaz’ “Clint Eastwood.” (Both Dan and Del have been part of Gorillaz.)