L’Impératrice brings neon & nu disco to Los Angeles

Los Angeles got a taste of French nu-disco magic on Friday night, as L’Impératrice brought their US Pulsar Tour to The Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall. With a mix of funk and synth-pop, the Paris collective delivered an exciting performance that proved why they are one of the most stimulating live acts globally.

Before their West Coast part of the tour began, the group got a dose of hip hop excellence.

Erick The Architect joined the final eight stops of the tour and started the night in LA with an explosive opening set that had the crowd locked in right from the get-go. Brooklyn-bred, but now an LA local, Erick The Architect is a master of genres. His set was a radiant combo of groove-infused beats and east coast hip hop flows, all pulled from his latest album, I’ve Never Been Here Before: The Director’s Cut. Tracks like “CA$HMERE TEAR$”, “Shook Up”, and “Ambrosia” hit with the weight of someone who knows exactly how to do crowd work, (especially if you were a big Flatbush Zombies fan in the early 2010s, IYKYK.)

When L’Impératrice finally took the stage, it was a full-blown sensory experience. Performing tracks from Pulsar, their latest record that flip-flops between French and English songs, the band lit up the room with dreamy, vibey groove-lines. The energy of “Me Da Igual” had everyone amazed, while “Danza Marilù” transformed The Shrine into a big discothèque.

Midway through their set, the vibes of the show reached its peak when Erick The Architect made a return to the stage for their collaborative track “Sweet & Sublime”, a slick funk and fast rap flow that had the crowd going berserk.

By the time the final notes rang out and The Shrine turned on all their lights, attendees knew they had just witnessed something absolutely dope, especially SoCal being their last stop of the tour. L’Impératrice is re-defining the nu-disco wave and, with Erick The Architect on their final stretch of the tour, this show is exactly what you need if you’re overdue for a night of movin’ and groovin’.

Photography by Celeste Basich

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