Gesaffelstein, the French techno producer and musician who’s worked with the likes of The Weeknd and Kanye West, stopped at the Kia Forum in Inglewood last Friday, Nov. 8, in support of his new album Gamma.

A Gesaffelstein show is a full sensory experience — big, thumping anthems; cinematic smoke, stage and lighting; and The Dark Prince himself at the center of it, clad in a larger-than-life reflective suit and helmet that replicates his visage. His mask has lights around the eyes, and at times the whole stage would go dark behind him, leaving the two sinister lit-up circles darting in the ether.

Gesaffelstein wearing his iconic fit at Coachella, April 13, 2024 (Amy Sussman/Getty)

Opener The Dare set a tone — It feels horny in here,” someone commented online — closing his set out with his indeed horny hit Girls.”

Taking the stage, Gesaffelstein delivered a signature set, stacked up top with older hits like Opr” and Pursuit” and several cuts off Gamma like The Urge” and Hard Dreams.”

If you ever dreamt of attending a vampire rave like the opening scene of Blade, the vibe of a Gesa show is about as close as you’re gonna get (without all the blood and pushing).

Two-thirds of the way into the set, the tempo was upped into a more disorienting hardstyle with tracks like Orck,” and the increasingly overwhelming onslaught of sound and red light made me — a full grown man — lose my cool and get scared, if for just a moment.

It turns out having my fight or flight triggered made the final act all the more satisfying as Gesa wrapped the show with a few dancey jams, including the new wave inspired Digital Slaves.”

Gesaffelstein doesn’t make a ton of appearances in LA outside of the occasional festival, but the LA crowd seems bloodthirsty for more.

SET LIST
00 – INTRO
01 – THE URGE
02 – OPR
03 – DOOM
04 – HARD DREAMS
05 – PURSUIT
06 – VIOL
07 – HATE OR GLORY
08 – THE PERFECT
09 – HELLIFORNIA
10 – TYRANY
11 – PSYCHO
12 – ORCK
13 – MANIA
OUTRO
DIGITALSLAVE
OUTRO
FIN