Written by Lily Clayton Hansen
“This is ART” is the brainchild of musician and performer Art Webb. While the bass-driven, electronic, and hip-hop music is a product of manipulation, his ingenuity is real. Art’s moniker sets the paradigm for a full-bodied experience. His performances engage all five senses by transporting listeners from the outside in. Etched into it all is his personal ethos: “to take a mindful and purposeful approach to all that we do.”
“I want people to think about the truth and beauty they are listening to,” he explains.
By means of a bass guitar, laptop and synthesizer keyboard, he unravels a psychedelic journey. They are his vernacular and method for mangling and manipulating sounds until they are no longer recognizable. Live instrumentation and melodies play together against a gritty, rhythmic backdrop. Figuratively, he invents new instruments on every track.
He infuses his kinetic performances with a lighthearted camaraderie. Audience members exchange hugs, high-fives and collectively chant “om” together. The only rule is to enjoy the music created from a place of sheer passion and pleasure.
This is ART has claimed performances opening for prominent EDM acts such as Pretty Lights, Big Gigantic, Lotus, Ghostland Observatory, Bonobo, and Emancipator, just to name a few. Art has also garnered praise performing Camp Bisco Music Festival, Pretty Lights’ Illumination Fest, and Official Afterparties for Bassnectar and STS9.