7 Mind-Bending Photos From Excision’s Audiovisual Spectacle, Thunderdome 2023

by Michael Ryan · Published March 8, 2023

Excision continued to push the boundaries of sights and sounds in electronic dance music.

Excision and his team have an unfathomable gift for breaking ground on what lasers, music and pyrotechnics can do. Their labor of love is a headbanger's paradise: a neck-breaking, face-scrunching, miniature Disneyland for those who throw elbows.

"Everything is proceeding as I have foreseen," Emperor Palpatine greeted the audience with a cackle.

Excision's opening number at Thunderdome 2023 was an ode to Star Wars. The visuals of Palpatine and Darth Vader were enough to draw a reaction from the audience, but Excision did not settle for a cheap pop. He used a combination of blue lasers, red lasers and white flashes—and nostalgic whirring sound effects—to recreate a live lightsaber duel for the audience.

A furious X-Wing scene followed and put the audience in the pilot's chair of an intergalactic space assault.

Thunderdome is theatre. That's why it evolved into a destination for those in search of an electronic spectacle. The February 3rd and 4th dates sold out so quickly that Excision added a third consecutive day, which packed the Tacoma Dome in Washington.

Black Tiger Sex Machine, SVDDEN DEATH, Liquid Stranger, Wooli, Sullivan King, Virtual Riot and Ghastly were some of the heavy-hitters who threw down. All were fitting appetizers for Excision's main course.

Whether you're here for seconds or getting your first taste of Excision's annual feast for the eyes, enjoy these seven snapshots from Thunderdome 2023.