Low End Theory at the Airliner
“What part of town is this? This is Lincoln Heights”

There’s been an under-the-radar, beat-thumping musical revolution going on right here in Lincoln Heights. More specifically, it’s been happening at The Airliner, a popular music venue on North Broadway. It’s where a collective of DJs, who favor beats over vocals, has been putting together shows for the past few years under the banner of “Low End Theory.”

As a frequent listener to NPR, I got a thrill out of them mentioning Lincoln Heights in a recent piece they put together about Flying Lotus, a Low End Theory DJ. Here’s an excerpt:

Ellison began creating new-school hip-hop in his bedroom. For years, he traded tracks with other budding DJs and played music in nightclub parking lots. Then the scene got organized, at a club in L.A.’s Lincoln Heights neighborhood.

“Eventually, there was this party started called Low End Theory, which was geared toward this sound,” he says. “It was more of a producer’s lounge, basically. If you got talent and you got tracks and you hang out enough at Low End Theory, eventually someone will hear something and you can do something.”

Visit the site to hear clips of the music and interview with the DJs.
Flying Lotus: ‘Beat Music’ And The Coltrane Family Tradition

Continue reading →