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James Murphy is bringing his 50,000-watt disco sound system to NYC

Written by
Ro Samarth
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LCD Soundsystem lead man James Murphy is touching down at Ridgewood's Knockdown Center this month with some very special gear in tow: a unique, custom-made high-fidelity sound system (LCD's not included) known as “Despacio.” Built back in 2013, the system consists of seven 11-foot-tall stacks of McIntosh amplifiers delivering 50,000 watts of power—a hefty 30-ton setup that usually only gets aired at festival environments due to its enormous transport costs.

On the rare occasion that Despacio does get taken out on the town, you can expect an optimal disco dance floor experience. Alongside legendary audio engineer John Klett and mashup masters SoulWax (David and his brother Stephen Dewaele), Murphy designed the system with the intentions of re-prioritizing “dancing” in a mainstream “dance music” culture that has been ironically losing focus on the field's titular intentions.

Audiophiles can experience the system across three nights at Knockdown, from March 29–31, as Murphy, Stephan and David each take over the decks for eight-hour sessions that run from 8pm to 4am. If it's anything like Murphy's Despacio set at Panorama in 2016, you can expect some serious dance-floor decimation. Grab tickets on the official website here or via Time Out here.

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