Laura Escude Is Oz Behind the Curtain

"There had previously been a guy on stage with ProTools who pressed play — it was linear, stagnant and took time to load," Escude says. "But if bands want to change a song in a set list, they want to do it on a dime. I help artists control their vocal effects in real time and be more precise with them."

During rare downtime, Escude channels the right side of her brain into the Alluxe project. Last year, she opened up for Garbage, spent time in the lab with Kid Cudi's producer Dot Da Genius, and performed at celebrated beat-scene hub Low End Theory. Video from that evening shows her blending violin jags with bone-bristling beats halfway between hip-hop and electronic dance music.

PHOTO BY SARAH SITKIN

Laura Escude, aka Alluxe

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She expects to release her first Alluxe album in early spring.

But her goals exceed recorded music. She wants to revolutionize the way large-scale tours can be done, with a holistic integration of vocal effects, lighting and visual projections. At the moment, few if any companies are operating in this space, and with her unique combination of artistic and technical ability, Escude's Electronic Creatives has essentially built a throne of its own.

"I've been learning what goes into a show for years, and I see where I can bring it. I want people to know they can come to my company and get artistic, creative programmers," Escude says. "There are so many people designing big tours from the very first day, and I want to be there with the designer, brainstorming about how the light show, sound, controllers and visuals can all interact with each other. I'm trying to push this in a new direction."