Lighting and sound at electronic dance music (EDM) events are not just decorative—they're essentials. While the behind-the-scenes crew at these events are not who the fans come to see, they are crucial to the overall experience.

EDM relies heavily on bass, mid and treble frequencies being tuned to a T, and making sure the top-notch sound systems dole out clarity and depth of sound. The marvelous lights also help communicate the energy and vibe of the music, which keeps the crowd engaged.

When ravers experience the beats visually as well as sonically, it creates a deeper connection with the music. The fusion of high-quality sound with lasers that match the music's tempo transforms the DJ's tracks into a euphoric experience and an unforgettable live spectacle. This takes an enormous amount of work from the light and sound crews—from investments in the latest equipment, heavy lifting and expertise to set everything up, to manually tuning the sound and synchronizing the lights with the music, enhancing the journey that each song takes you on.

Ezekiel (Zeke) Stevens and Matthew (Yada) Yadegari give greater insight into their work as long-time staples of the EDM community in Salt Lake City. Both Stevens and Yadegari are multi-talented industry professionals who have worked their way up from throwing their own parties, to taking on a variety of production tasks, as well as technical and creative roles for various musical acts and events.

Stevens remembers his introduction to music as an industry: "I went to my first concert when I was 15, and I realized that people were working. I realized that this could be a career, and I started throwing my own parties to the point where I was booking venues, hiring DJs and selling tickets as a 16-year-old."

In the wake of gaining experience as a lighting designer for old underground spaces like the Control Room (where Quality Control had the first 360 degree stage in SLC) and Switch, Stevens now works as a stage manager, production lead, backline tech, audio engineer and audiovisual specialist for acts like BLAQ VOID, V2 Presents, Occult Cats and Lake Effect. Working both in the underground and mainstream festival scenes gives him a unique perspective on the differences in scale and production requirements.

"On the larger scale you have a lot more of the appropriate tools, more options and more defined positions," Stevens observed. "On the smaller scale, there's a lot more 'use what you got and make it work.'"

Stevens also produces his own music, spanning genres like house, U.K. garage, experimental bass and hard techno, in addition to performing as a DJ (NO NICE THINGS) with his festival debut at Get Lucky this past March. His behind-the-scenes experience gives him a comfort level and understanding of the production side that adds to his artistic performance.

"I have such a deeper understanding of the gear that I can play at a greater capacity," he said, "which gives me the freedom to play with every single knob on the mixer and the CDJs and do different tricks, have more fun and be more interactive versus just playing a track."

Currently, Yadegari works as the production manager at Gem Nightclub, where he has been able to apply his extensive experience and creativity to rebuild and revitalize the venue. The Sandbox SLC is the newest EDM venue in town, and has been Yadegari's passion project over the past year.

VS VBOVE SO BELOW hosted an event at Sandbox during the last weekend in March, where Yadegari was in action as a lighting technician. He incorporated a smorgasbord of lighting styles to boggle the mind; lasers cut through the fog, illuminating the crowd in mesmerizing patterns, perfectly on-beat to complement the auditory experience, making every moment richer and more layered.

Yadegari began as a DJ (YADA) in college, and knew he wanted to be involved in the industry in other ways as much as possible. He was inspired by the creative freedom he witnessed from the Skrillex Mothership tour in 2011 at The Great Saltair. "It was the first time I saw a projector being used instead of LED panels, and I was mind-blown that you could actually achieve that from just a projector," he said.

Park City Live was where Utahns went to experience live EDM in the 2010s, which is where he got his start. Over the years, Yadegari's been part of several underground parties, worked for past production companies and venues like Fallout, Last Call and The Yard (and present ones like Jaguar Occult) and was the creative designer and curator for Takeout, a venue that was located on State Street.

It's been a long journey for Yadegari in the music industry, experiencing his fair share of challenges, but he's remained passionate about it throughout. "I love this shit, and I don't think I'll ever stop doing it," he said. His passion to create memorable experiences for audiences and his desire to continuously innovate and improve the production aspects of events is clear.

"It's a job. It's work," Yadegari adds. "And if you go to the events all the time, people look at it like, oh yeah, you're just having fun. It's like, oh man, there's a lot that goes into this to make sure that you have fun."

The EDM scene in SLC continues to flourish, thanks to not only the talent on stage, but the talent behind the stage as well. You can read about it all day long, but it's really something you need to experience for yourself.