Darkside

• Gent Jazz
  Thursday 16•July•2026
  21:30•

Darkside - the project of Chilean-American experimentalist Nicolas Jaar and American multi-instrumentalist and producer Dave Harrington — is music that must be experienced to be fully understood. With their debut Psychic (2013), they explored the shadowy world between electronica, psychedelic rock, ambient, and improvisation. In this uncharted territory, the duo gave free rein to repetitive, subtly layered compositions that linger long after the last note — tracks with quiet menace and barely restrained tension, teetering just below the boiling point. Music so full of cliffhangers that it leaves the listener craving more.

But a year later, the duo announced their retirement. A hiatus that lasted until 2021, when they returned with Spiral. The sound was less mystical yet no less intense. More organic and even more hypnotic. With last year’s Nothing, Darkside redefines itself once again. Drummer Tlacael Esparza joins as a full member, and the compositions unfold with freer, more ecstatic energy, evoking the spontaneity of a live performance. Anyone who has ever seen them on stage, knows that the experience is physical, where the climax is subordinated to continuous joy. It’s the journey, not the destination.

For fans of: Moderat, Andy Stott, Floating Points, Mount Kimbie