Quaranstreaming: the best live streamed gigs and sets (so far)

You may have noticed that live streams have blown up in a big way since COVID-19 arrived to piss on the world's proverbial bonfire.

As the world went into lockdown, live streamed performances, often staged in the homes and studios of the artists, have quickly become a means of bridging the gap between musicians and fans, a way to continue to share music, lift spirits and raise funds.

And Skiddle is all over it.

We kicked off our period in isolation with a belting b2b set from two of electronic music's biggest talents, Hot Since 82 and Michael Bibi, followed by live streamed performances from All We Are, Josh Butler, Gardna, John Morales, Terminal V Festival, Beatport...there's loads more to come too. 

So before we all become sick of this live stream lark and opt instead to sit in the cupboard under the stairs banging a wooden spoon off the saucepan on our heads, here's some of our favourite live streamed performances so far...

 

12/04/20

John Morales - Liverpool Disco Festival

The Bronx-born disco mix legend performed a set from his home for Liverpool Disco Festival's lockdown live stream, on the same day he was due to play at the event in Merseyside. You can watch all of the LDF live stream sets here.

 

11/04/20

Terminal V: In Lockdown Festival

With plans for their five stage, 20,000-capacity Easter event in Edinburgh - featuring the likes of Bonobo, Nina Kraviz, Richie Hawtin and Honey Dijon - scuppered by COVID-19, organisers set about planning a virtual event, featuring both live and pre-recorded sets from Maceo Plex, KiNK, Alan Fitzpatrick, Luigi Madonna and Rebuke - watch them here.

 

10/04/20

Defected Virtual Festival 3.0

Part three of the respected house label's online festival features sets from Calvin Harris, Roger Sanchez and Claptone - you can catch up on all of Defected's virtual festival shows here.

 

Rod Stewart and Family

If anyone can make things seem a bit better, it's Rod the Mod. Jamming at home alongside his daughter Ruby, they performed songs including 'Ooh La La' by Ronnie Lane, 'Dirty Old Town' by Ewan Maccoll, and 'Swing Low, Sweet Chariot' on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO) and Global Citizen.

 

04/04/20

Seasick Steve - Live to an Empty Room

Though Seasick Steve's romantic hobo myth might have been outed, you can't deny the reinvented Californian blue collar bluesman has some serious tunes. Here he is playing to an empty room somewhere in Cornwall... where he lives, by the way.

 

03/04/20

Biffy Clyro

Biffy Clyro frontman Simon Neil has been performing a series of acoustic sessions from his home in Scotland during lockdown, encouraging viewers to dress up and down for the NHS - you can donate their NHS fundraiser via their Facebook page here.

 

29/03/20 

Elton John and co.

Featuring performances from artists including Alicia Keys, Billie Eilish, Billie Joe Armstrong (Green Day), Camila Cabello, Dave Grohl, H.E.R., Mariah Carey, Sam Smith and the man himself, Elton John's 'Living Room Concert' has so far raised over $8m for the Feeding America and First Responders Children’s Foundation Covid-19 campaigns. 

 

Yousef

Skiddle teamed up with the DJ and Circus chief to share this three and a half hour Sunday evening set from his home in Liverpool, playing only unreleased music (in order to avoid Facebook's pesky copyright restrictions).

 

28/03/20

DJ EZ

The London DJ and UK garage don put in a mammoth 24-hour individual shift in partnership with My Kind Deed, encouraging people to engage in acts of kindness and to "please stay at home and be safe!". The show has clocked up an equally mammoth two million views.

 

27/03/20

Beatport

What began as an already fairly ambitious international, day-long DJ marathon to raise money for the WHO's Coronavirus relief fund grew into a 34-hour epic clocking up millions of views and over £150k for the cause. Featuring sets from the likes of Carl Cox, Pete Tong, Paul Oakenfold, Nina Kraviz and La Fleur, there's enough here to keep you going for weeks (you can catch up on all the sets via our Facebook page).

 

Defected Virtual Festival

Much-loved house label Defected went all out with a twelve-hour virtual festival from the Ministry of Sound Club on Friday 20 March, featuring sets from the likes of Darius Syrossian, The Shapeshifters, Sam Divine, Joey Negro and the Defected bossman himself, Simon Dunmore.

 

26/03/20 

Gardna

The Bristol-based underground bass MC and Boom Sound Recordings boss teamed up with Skiddle to present his first ever online session, live from his flat in the city centre.

 

25/03/20

Josh Butler

We teamed up with Liverpool-based indie radio station and events programmers Melodic Distraction to beam house music talent Josh Butler directly to your living room, from his.

 

22/03/20

Henge

We had to include this one from the Manchester-based cosmic drossers because... well, because it's just f**king bonkers.

 

21/03/20

Calvin Harris

Exemplary use of the green screen here by the world-conquering DJ/floating head, who used his 80 minute 'Love Regenerator Livestream' set to demonstrate an impressive rave game. 

 

All We Are

We hooked up with Domino Records, Vessel Studios and Polyphonica to present All We Are live in Liverpool, just before the government cranked up it's isolation strategy.

 

20/03/20

Hot Since 82 & Micheal Bibi

Kicking off Skiddle's isolation stream series was tech-house hero Hot Since 82 and Solid Grooves honcho Michael Bibi, who went back-to-back in HS82's kitchen for an hour long set. Check the cups of tea and hand sanitiser...

 

Disclosure

Disclosure's Guy Lawrence performed a 'Self Isolation F.M.' set live from his apartment in L.A. while in lockdown (unfortunately, his brother Howard was in the U.K.)

 

19/03/20 

Erick Morillo b2b Jamie Jones

The platinum-selling hitmaker went back-to-back with the Welsh house music heavyweight from his pad in Miami, as they began quarantine together. We've no idea if JJ is still there...

 

17/03/20

Marc Rebillet

Our pal and self-proclaimed 'one man idiot' Marc Rebillet has been at it again... but then he's always at it. Our favourite from his isolation sessions so far is 'QUARANTINE F***ING TONIGHT' (see below), but we're sure there's plenty more to come. You can also get to know the American 'Loop Daddy' more here in our 2019 interview.

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16/03/20

Christine & The Queens

Parisian pop star Christine has been live streaming a series of shows via Instagram from her studio during lockdown, promising 'guests' (from a distance we hope) and 'weird concepts'.

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Yungblud

"Let's turn a bad situation into a good one" shouts the eccentric, 22-year-old Doncaster pop-rock star, as he begins a manic gig/talk/game show featuring guests Machine Gun Kelly, Bella Thorne and Oliver Tree.