Skrillex: A Musical Timeline of Greatness

Skrillex: An (abbreviated) Timeline of Greatness

When it comes to releasing new music, Skrillex has been flying under the radar in 2017, though he did earn production credits on Incubus‘ recently released album 8. While Skrillex fans will surely devour new sounds on 8, some of us over here at DA are feeling nostalgic for some good, old fashioned releases of his own. As a means to sate our nostalgia, we put together a brief timeline cataloging some of our favorite Skrillex tracks — one for every year since he released his first EP in 2010. Take a trip down memory lane through cuts of canonized Skrillex history with some of our favorites listed chronologically below.

Featured Image via Michael Tullberg/Getty Images.

2010: The Birth of Skrillex

Skrillex’s debut EP, My Name is Skrillex was released via his MySpace page, which speaks volumes about how long he has been making vibrations on the electronic circuit. There is no greater track to highlight real, old school Skrillex then the title track of his first EP, that also serves as his official introduction, “My Name is Skrillex.”

2011: Skrillex and Ellie Goulding

“All great things must come to an end” is the only way to describe the end of the Skrillex and Ellie Goulding era. Yes, they were a cute couple, but their collaborations were what made this duo so special. “Summit” on Skrillex’s EP Bangarang is the obvious choice to feature from 2011. Even new electronic music fans will recognize as the drop, as the track has proven to have long legs and is still a common feature in many sets.

Photo by Rukes.

2012: Collaborating With A Marley

Skrillex was feeling tropical in 2012 when he collaborated with Damian Marley, the youngest son of the esteemed Bob Marley. “Make It Bun Dem” masterfully combines the signature Skrillex drop with Marley’s voice, which was an irregular combination at the time — though it is indicative of Skrillex’s knowledge of the genre’s history.

2013: Don't Leave

Skrillex dropped his 6th EP Leaving in 2013. If the title of this EP had anything to do with his breakup from Ellie Goulding, we at DA much prefer Ellie’s title response in the hope of another collaboration, which for those who don’t know, was “Don’t Leave,” released in 2014. Leaving showcased music that was slightly more formulaic that Skrillex’s hectic older releases, but it was great nonetheless. “The Reason,” which is versatile enough to be played on a Saturday afternoon on the porch or in the club, is our favorite track from this era.

Photo by Jas Davis

2014: The Best Recess We Ever Had

2014 marked the release of Skrillex’s first ever full-length studio album, Recess. Recess was a transitional album for Skrillex stylistically, and this is where we see him really start to experiment. Recess saw a wide variety of collaborations ranging from Chance the Rapper to Kill the Noise. We also witness Skrillex and Diplo’s first collaboration with “Dirty Vibe.” Our favorite track from this era, though, is “Ease My Mind.”

2015: Skrillon

Skrillex released 5 tracks in 2015, and one that definitely sticks out is his collaboration with Dillon Francis “Bun Up the Dance.” The track’s selection to represent 2015 serves as a plea for future Skrillex/Dillon (Skrillon) collaborations. 2015 is also the year of his Jack U and Justin Bieber collaborations, so the fact that Skrillex was still able to release 5 tracks on his own is no small feat. This upbeat track is definitely one that never fails to energize a club.

2016: This Bye Bye Isn't Pretty

2016 was another diverse year for Skrillex, where we saw him collaborate with artists from Elliphant to Rick Ross. ‘Purple Lamborghini’ was a chart topper, but our favorite track from 2016 is ‘Pretty Bye Bye.” NJOMZA’s vocals are entrancing, creating an immediate calm for the listener. The song is contrastingly smooth and melodic compared to previous releases, which shows the breadth of Skrillex’s production capabilities.

2017: ???

Now that we have gone through some of our favorite Skrillex history, the big question we the producer has in store that will represent 2017 on this list. Given his quiet start to 2017, so we can only hope that Skrillex has been in the studio crafting numerous of his own releases. For now, we will have to re-listen to our favorites — which we certainly can’t complain about.

Photo via Daniel Zetterstrom/Watchara.