Other acts to watch at the 7107 Music Fest

The 7107 International Music Festival’s main draw this weekend, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, may be last to play but some of the foreign support acts listed below should keep the crowd stoked before the culminating act.

EMPIRE OF THE SUN

Who: The Aussie duo of Luke Steele and Nick Littlemore has two million-selling albums under their belt and a huge hit single in the anthemic “Alive” whose cry of bliss resounds with “Loving every minute of it ‘cos you make me feel so alive!”

Why should you care: On their second album “Ice on the Dune,” the duo flashes moments of pop genius in a varied palette of soft rock, bright sunny pop and glorious dance music. Watch Luke Steele in his elaborate get-up and the essence of glam comes into the picture too.

KASKADE

Who: The Chicago native started as a DJ and A&R director before becoming a current fixture in San Francisco’s dance music scene.

Why should you care: He draws inspiration from techno icons Skrillex and DeadMau5 and puts his imprint with slashes of rock and chill to his soulful house.

KENDRICK LAMAR

Who: He made a name for himself making mixtapes that entered the Billboard’s R&B/Hip Hop charts. His first album “ Good Kid, M.A.A.D City” in 2012 is hailed as one of the best hip hop debuts since Nas’s “Illmatic” in 1994.

Why should you care: Kendrick delivers gangsta rap with a soulful slide and soul ballads with a gangsta edge. As one review stated, “it’s pimp rap with a cracked soul.” How’s that for festival-sized entertainment?

KID INK

Who: After releasing four mixtapes between 2010 and 2011, Kid Ink was named to the Freshman Class feature for 2012 by the influential XXL magazine. His recent debut album has been cited for bridging mainstream rap with the stylistic changes of current street music.

Why should you care: If you like a mashup of primetime rappers Drake, Lil’ Wayne and Chris Browne bellowing across booming production, you’d have a monster fun time with this upstart. He’s got some new wave tendencies in his bones also so there’s the added toast to the unkillable ‘80s.

ALVARO

Who: Born in Lima, Peru, this 26-year-old Dutch DJ aka Jasper Helderman made his presence felt in the global electronic music scene incorporating the indigenous sounds of his birthplace and the rolling thunder of post-millennial progressive house music.

Why should you care: Alvaro’s fans include former world’s top DJ Tiesto and his current heirs Afrojack and David Guetta. This means Alvaro deals in massively building dance music that keeps not just hands pumping in the air but bodies jumping around like headless chickens. Prepare yourself for an adrenaline-filled encounter with dance music’s next superstar.

LUCIANA

Who: Crowned the Queen of Electro, Luciana’s budding reign is marked royally with a Billboard chart-topper in “I’m Still Hot” in 2012. A previous smash hit, “I Like That”, on the Australian charts has become a global anthem and to date, has generated over 11 million hits on YouTube.

Why should you care: Luciana sports a feminist, almost punkish attitude in her lyrics that generally deals with the battle of the sexes. She claims to be all-woman on stage and in the bedroom and she’s reputed to coat her sexy lyrics with a quilt of attractive pop and rock ear candies. The summer of love redux?

RED JUMPSUIT APPARATUS

Who: This foursome rebuilt its emo-core roots into crowd-drawing alt-rock that led to a Top 40 hit, “Face Down,” and repeated performances on the Warped Tour.

Why should you care: They’re the other rock band aside from the Chilli Peppers or even the sole rockers in the Festival line-up so that’s one reason to see them play. They are also the essence of a post-hardcore sound to have reached a mass audience. Just don’t peg them as sell-outs before you even hear a note from them.

RIDDLER

Who: Born Richie Pangilinan in Chicago, Riddler is the first Filipino-American mix show DJ on commercial radio from Houston to NewYork. He has sold over 1 million copies of his own dance remix compilations released on various labels like Tommy Boy Records and MCA Records.

Why should you care: His remixes feature the likes of Sneaker Pimps, Toni Braxton and Paula Cole. Expect expansive euphoric party music resounding with bold hooks and warm melodies you can sing along to. And the guy’s got Pinoy blood so hail to the Chief!