Before The Killers, before Imagine Dragons, before Panic! At the Disco, there was The Crystal Method. The electronic dance music duo was one of the first popular music acts to come from Las Vegas, with members Scott Kirkland and Ken Jordan initially cementing their musical bond when Jordan was the music director at UNLV’s student-run radio station. These days, Las Vegas is one of the global centers of DJ and nightclub culture, but when Scott Kirkland and Ken Jordan started performing in the late ’80s and early ’90s, they were pioneers, spinning their electronic dance music in any venue that would have them. They might have moved to L.A. in order to chase success, but still named 1997 debut album Vegas. That album spawned hit singles “Busy Child,” “Keep Hope Alive” and “Trip Like I Do,” which helped club music first break through into the mainstream, alongside acts like The Chemical Brothers, Moby and The Prodigy. These days, The Crystal Method are elder statesmen of the genre, having paved the way for the explosion of EDM acts that now dominate pop music. Although Jordan retired from music in 2017, Kirkland carries on The Crystal Method name and legacy, still doing his hometown proud.
Hard Rock Hotel, 9 p.m. Sept. 28, starting at $22.94 plus tax and fee, 18+. 888.929.7849 AXS
