STARSET - TRANSMISSIONS RECEIVED
“Lay your heart into my perfect machine, I will show you what you wanted to see” - “PERFECT MACHINE”, Starset, from “DIVISIONS”, released 2019
The visionary and auditory collective is the brainchild of enigmatic frontman and PhD candidate Dustin Bates, STARSET has taken the path of conduits of a message from the future., STARSET’s approach to rock is filled with cinematic thrills and catchy tunes with each song released stretching the confines of rock and metal wider than the known observable universe. Since the inception, Bates has teamed with his former members of Downplay such as bassist Ron DeChant, drummer Adam Gilbert (who also co-runs Drum Abuse with fellow concert photographer Zach Stepek), guitarist Brock Richards, the additions of orchestra duo violinist Siobhan Richards, cellist Zuzana Engererova, and pianist/synthesist Cory Juba to bring their cinematic “Demonstrations” to fans across the world.
If you’ve heard songs like “My Demons”, “Monster” and “Trials”, chances are you’ve been pulled into the universe that STARSET as a whole exists within. The band’s layered backstory, which evolves with each album and novel release, is told as such: “In the early hours of New Year’s Day 2013, a radio astronomer at the Allen Telescope Array in northern California discovered a mysterious signal emanating from a star within the Ophiuchus Constellation. Contained within the signal was a Message--of human origin--foretelling the details of man's imminent demise. The Message was brought to The Starset Society, who quickly realized the importance of its immediate publication. Risking extreme danger, The Starset Society commissioned a group of musicians and scientists to assist them in spreading the knowledge to a broader audience. This group became known simply as STARSET.”
The collective calls their live shows “Demonstrations,” as they serve to do two things in tandem: create an immersive journey into the realms of science fiction and sonic exploration and reveal pieces of the universe they created across music, comic books, novels, and more as part of their performance and immersive experience. Doing so, the band has gravitated their demonstrations to a full-on production that takes fans out of a concert setting and brings them on a journey to the alternate world inhabited by STARSET and the citizens within. The power of STARSET’s shows can turn your local venue into a full-blown planetarium with the full force of a dying star.
Coinciding with the release of a new novel set within the band’s fictional universe, “A Brief History of The Future”, the band has taken the year traveling across the United States and eventually Europe, showcasing their “Immersion: The Final Chapter” Tour. As a fan of the band since close to its inception in the early 2010s, the prospect of a closing chapter in the band’s storyline pulled me in like a black hole. Inside the halls of the Marquee Theatre, a long holographic display from The STARSET Society and the New West welcomes you into the venue, providing just enough information to provoke intrigue. For fans and newcomers alike, the show was a full-dive experience into the band’s unique universe. As the lights dimmed and the curtain dropped, the band delivered an unforgettable performance, featuring towering LED panels that soared into the air and holograms projected at the front of the stage. Dressed in futuristic costumes throughout, the band transported the audience into what felt like a dystopian sci-fi film. Between each song, mini movie vignettes played, weaving together a narrative of an alternate reality that seamlessly connected with their music. The experience was both visually and sonically unlike anything I’ve ever witnessed at a STARSET demonstration, with holograms that appeared repeatedly at the front of the stage added to the immersive sensation, making it feel as though the audience was inside a live-action movie unfolding before them. And believe me, this is STARSET at its finest on display.
The demonstration itself took the story from the new novel and made it immersive to all who attended as if the cinematic storytelling took on a life of its own. With small breaks between songs that incorporated film-esque clips that furthered the story being told combined with the songs themselves working to spice up the narrative, it felt immensely as if the audience themselves were partaking in the show. Each demonstration details an almost post-apocalyptic setting, in line with the story of the new novel, with the members appearing in armor, hiding their faces to prevent being tracked by the adversaries within their universe, a group called the “New East”, introduced during the album cycle of their 2019 record “DIVISIONS”. As the show went on, an intermission was given for the fans to get a breather from the nigh-unstoppable force of the narrative, but for those who stayed through, a new context was given for fans of certain aspects of the narrative as a whole.
This intermission also allowed the band’s crew to adjust the stage for a more intimate final act where the band themselves, freed from their disguises and the narrative, can interact with the audience and play some new material as well as fan favorites that don’t quite fit into the narrative of the core demonstration.
Walking into a STARSET demonstration is beyond anything you will experience at almost any other live event. While the demonstrations themselves don’t mimic a festival or arena setting, the closed and intimate venues the band has chosen to play work well to immerse the fans into the performances. The band’s lore works to bring in new fans while also not being necessary to enjoy the performance as a whole. That said, some familiarity with the overall lore is better than not. If you’re interested in the greater lore, the novels the band has released are available at their merch booth, giving an easy way for new fans to immerse themselves further in this thrilling tale.
STARSET doesn’t exist to simply record an album, tour it, write new music, record a new album, rinse/repeat. They are trying to say something about society with their entire catalog of music. Their stage show is the visual guide to what the meaning behind the music can be, though, like most great songs, it is often up to your interpretation. If we’re not careful, we can lose our autonomy as people and give too much of ourselves to technology. The human race has an innate freedom, and we should not give that up for anything. Take the time to enjoy life and be who you want to be. Though this tour is called Immersion: The Final Chapter, Starset is not done with their live Demonstrations, with new singles released since April already teasing their future album release. Remember their motto and remember it well: IGNORANCE: SLAVERY:: KNOWLEDGE: FREEDOM.
