Chapter one: the blog-house explosion (2006)
The Looks (2006) — the duo's debut — arrived at the exact crest of the electro boom: "Easy Love," "Work on You," the title track — songs engineered for maximum impact, blog circulation, and DJ sets. The blogosphere (see our features) did what it did with genuine newness: it passed the tracks around until the world knew the name.
Chapter two: the remix economy
MSTRKRFT's real product was the remix: the duo's remixes for international acts (see our blog-house feature) became the currency of the era — the name that producers dropped, the sound that influenced a generation of electronic production. The original records (Fist of God, 2009) continued the voltage; the festival main stages (see our features) kept calling.
Chapter three: the receding
The blog-house wave receded (see our features), and MSTRKRFT receded with it — the duo's later years quieter, the legacy secure: the loud wing of the Canadian electro wave, the Keeler connection (see our DFA1979 feature) bridging the rock and electronic worlds. The blog aggregators are gone; the tracks still bang. The Loud Era holds its place.
Frequently asked questions
Who are MSTRKRFT?
A Toronto electro duo — Jesse F. Keeler (DFA1979) and Al-P — the loud wing of the blog-house era.
What is MSTRKRFT’s best album?
The Looks (2006) — the blog-house landmark.
What happened to MSTRKRFT?
The blog-house wave receded; the duo's legacy secures the Loud Era's place.