Zeds Dead Turn Music History Into Living EDM Show on New Tour

Channel-Surfing Through Decades of Sound

Zeds Dead are music history students, but they might be even better teachers. The Canadian duo has turned its latest tour into a living archive of the music that shaped them. Jazz, soul, hip-hop, rock, electronic music, and everything in between are chopped, sampled, and stitched into a show that spans generations. Zeds Dead don't hide their source material. They want you to hear it.

The ethos of their sophomore album, Return to the Spectrum of Intergalactic Happiness, is the foundation of the new tour. They're channel-surfing through time. There's a certain Quentin Tarantino quality to how they piece together different cultural fragments—suitable for a group named after a Pulp Fiction scene.

From Ella Fitzgerald to Destiny's Child

The show features iconic jazz vocalist Ella Fitzgerald on "One of These Moments" and legendary soul singer Ann Peebles on "Sweet Memories." One standout moment was their mash-up of "Alive" and "Say My Name" by Destiny's Child: songs from different centuries and genres that blended seamlessly, but only minds like Zeds Dead's would think of pairing them in the first place.

Their remix of Blackalicious' "Alphabet Aerobics" was a lesson in hip-hop literature. They covered all the primary school necessities, including their unreleased "Alphabets" and "Blue & Red" IDs.

Deathpact Opens in Vancouver

Deathpact opened the show, which took place at the new Freedom Mobile Arch in Vancouver on September 26. Their placement certainly won't temper fan speculation that Zeds Dead are part of EDM's best-kept secret. Deathpact was a fitting prelude to Zeds Dead's cinematic tempo, but perhaps for that reason, the performance felt less dynamic than previous Deathpact sets.

Trying to categorize what followed would be futile. You cannot label Zeds Dead. The Canadian duo prides itself on that fact. They've built their entire careers around that identity. But their range extends beyond blending genres within electronic music. They blend eras, too.

Advocates and Recordkeepers of Art

Music is cyclical; everything old eventually becomes new again. Follow the lineage of your favorite songs, and you'll inevitably arrive at something that came before them. The beautiful thing about Zeds Dead is they don't simply find inspiration in the past. They celebrate it.

They don't take credit for something that isn't solely theirs, burying the source material in the song credits. Zeds Dead show you the lifeblood of their art. They love music, and they want to share their discoveries with you. Beyond streaming numbers and ticket sales, that is their greatest accomplishment. Zeds Dead are advocates and recordkeepers of art, keeping voices like Fitzgerald's alive long after their death and introducing them to audiences who may never have found them otherwise.