Daytona Starsky: A hell of a concert in Purgatory, by Roderick Thomas

I walked into the colorful and dramatically lit club, Purgatory in Brooklyn. Everything about the space screamed Bushwick— offbeat aesthetic, yet not lacking any cool whatsoever. Daytona Starsky was performing tonight for an arriving crowd. I had the pleasure of speaking with both him and his management. More on his album, Reality Station, and live performance below.

Reality Station begins with distorted sounds that wobble and pan like a train approaching on the intro “En trance,” before moving into the funk sounds of “Mr. Action”

With all the production around Daytona’s voice, his punchy, clear vocals still shine through as the main act, so-to-speak, striking a delicate balance between style and talent.

Daytona Starsky’s voice sounds as if he is comfortable also singing other genres as well, or may have begun his career doing so—-in some ways reminiscent of multi-talented acts like Lenny Kravitz, Pink, or Pharell. Overall, Reality Station is a consistent mixture of mainly pop-rock, soul and funk, with moments of rnb vocals from Daytona, with my personal favorite track from the album being “Movie Star.”

From his album cover, music production to his live performance, Daytona Starky’s  image is very polished. After speaking with his manager Rich Morales, it became clear that Starky’s apparent ‘readiness’ isn’t a coincidence. My conversation with Rich and Daytona below.

(Rich walks over to the bar to meet me)

Rich Morales (Manager): Thank you for coming out  to the show

Roderick Thomas: It’s my pleasure

RT: I’m excited to see the show. Why this venue though?

Rich Morales (Manager): We wanted to do something intimate, and something that fit the feeling of the music.

(Daytona Starsky approaches the bar after his sound check)

RT:  Hi Daytona, you’re definitely very talented, and the album is well produced, how did it come about?

Daytona: We spent five years time working on the music, and honing in on the right feeling. This wasn’t an overnight process. The pandemic was an opportunity for me to be creative and make something meaningful.

RT: Artist development isn’t as common these days, but it’s clear you and Daytona have worked on the music and presentation of the art.

Rich Morales (Manager): Yes, we took our time. The music was an evolution. We could have put out music earlier, but it wouldn’t have been what it is today.

RT: How important is live performance to you?

Daytona: The studio is one thing. But a live show is an opportunity to let the music be heard in a different way.

(Daytona walks upstairs to prepare for the show)

I walked upstairs to the see Daytona perform. The opening act was cosing and the crowd was steadily growing in numbers. Daytona and his band stepped on stage, and shortly after a brief mic check, the music began. Immediately, I was impressed by Daytona’s stage presence, something he had clearly practiced. Notably, he sounded just as good as the recorded versions of his songs, perhaps more boisterous and aggressive too.

Daytona starsky performed what must have been a nearly hour-long set to an attentive and engaged crowd. Everyone, including myself, fixated on him and his band, as we listened to the music emanating from the stage and vibrating off the walls in the packed space. His live performance gave a new perspective to his album, and demonstrated that he has star power—-the coveted “it factor.”

Reality Station is a well crafted, cohesive body of work that possibly marks the beginning of a very long and successful career for Daytona. Check out Reality Station by Daytona Starsky on streaming platforms.

Roderick Thomas is an NYC based writer, filmmaker, and Host of Hippie By Accident Podcast.

(Instagram: @Hippiebyaccident, Email:  [email protected], Site: roderickthomas.net)