Photos by Allen Ying
Check out an excerpt and some outtakes from our upcoming zine feature on Dreamcrusher
We’re primed for a seismic shift in America right now, and it makes sense that New York’s music scene reflects that sense of desperation and simmering violence. One of New York’s most exciting live acts right now is Dreamcrusher. The non-binary noise performer makes self-described “queer revolt music” and has been screaming in white guy’s faces for years. Their songs retain a sense of beauty despite the damage they do to subwoofers, and the moshpits that erupt during their shows are some of the most joyful places I’ve experienced.
Dreamcrusher understands how music can be the light at the end of the tunnel for marginalized people. “I am a gay black person from the midwest, so Prince was God to me,” they told me. This understanding of the relationship between music/nightlife and visibility/acceptance comes out in their live shows, which eschew genre-based lineups and focus instead on forging feelings of togetherness. There’s not a level of snobbishness or elitism, which is perhaps why Dreamcrusher shows feel wild and judgment-free. We talked about fostering community, their striking performance style, and consent in the pit.
I like the idea of voids and how I’m able to create a void using whatever space is given to me. For right now it’s like the most effective way of doing that and it’s really interesting what happens when people are taken out of where they are and put where you are, or where you want them to be. I want people to escape. Because I feel like you paid money to, what? Stand around and look at me? No, you’re an active participant in this thing. I’m trying to force you to do that, like, in as many indirect and direct ways as possible.
Read the full feature in Issue 8 available to pre-order here and see Dreamcrusher in person this Thursday, August 8th, at our zine release party at The Broadway! Tix here
