Gladiator takes us behind their high-energy two-side, Club Up! / Bonk

No strangers to the ever-changing world of EDM, LA-based duo Los Angeles have darted and dashed between genres, whether it be hard-hitting trap bangers with artists like LOUDPVCK and QUIX, or festival-ready deep-house thumpers with names including Sleepy Tom. That said, their new release, a short-yet-sweet two-side out through EDM mega-promoters Insomniac, takes this to the next level. With guest slots from Florida club queen TT The Artist and Trinidad's Metric Man, Club Up! / Bonk takes Gladiator to a place you wouldn't really expect from two dudes well-known for their EDM-leaning, main-stage trap and bass. Club Up! takes the duo to their Baltimore Club roots, with quick-firing stabs of bass shooting underneath TT The Artist's infectious, hyped-up vocal work whose energy is only matched in the festival stomper Bonk, which matches a dominating production with commanding vocals from the reggae and hip-hop regular.

As previously mentioned, it's a bit of an unexpected move from the duo. So, to help explain things, we got Gladiator themselves to explain the inner working and influences behind each of the singles.

Club Up!

Baltimore Club music always enticed us with its powerful kick lines and excellent sample choice. B-More influenced our earliest productions but continues to show itself in bits and pieces throughout our newer tunes as well. Club Up! began with a classic B-More drum line to help craft the syncopation of the lead sound that drives the first drop. We always intend to do something different with our second drops and this one was particularly inspiring, to the point where we knew this song needed a high-energy vocalist do drive us into that second chorus. We’ve been a fan of TT the Artist for a while and when we heard her work with Baauer on Make It Bang, we knew she’d be perfect for our track. As the queen of club music and a Baltimore native, the pairing made perfect sense. The tune was at its best with TT on board.

Bonk

Bonk had a similar progression, a tune so thumping to us that it needed a vocal of equal calibre. Our intent with this tune was to explore what inspired our love of house music. Artists like Gessafelstein, Boys Noize, Deadmau5 all made large impressions on the both of us and what our view of house music came to be. This song is a tribute to the dark-yet-large bass knocks that drove us crazy at the EDCs of years past. Metric Man coming on board with his large, booming voice and call to the dance floor gave the tune a truly massive feel that makes it perfect for the festival stage.

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