World revelers

SINCE the Crystal Method released its third album, “Legion of Boom,” in January, the dance music duo of Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland has played virtually everywhere except its home base of Los Angeles.

There were shows in Australia, Hong Kong and even Malaysia -- almost.

“Kuala Lumpur ... we got there, then at 6 p.m. they call up to say they couldn’t get our work visas, so we can’t play,” Kirkland recalls. “We’re like, ‘Oh, we’ll just play it. It’s not going to be a big deal.’ We were told, ‘We can’t take that chance.’ Lo and behold, the immigration people showed up at the show ready to take us off the decks and arrest us if we did play. We were told we would’ve spent a week in jail.”

Says Jordan: “Bet that jail would’ve been fun.”

Now home free, the Crystal Method has a different adventure on the horizon -- a gig Sunday as headliner of the electronic music night of the KCRW World Music Festival at the Hollywood Bowl. The eclectic bill features Mexican dance music act Nortec Collective, plus two respected artists from Britain, Sidestepper and Nitin Sawhney.

KCRW-FM’s Jason Bentley, the DJ who helped assemble the bill, says the Crystal Method was suited to follow in the footsteps of Paul Oakenfold, who headlined the festival’s first electronic music night last year. The duo did, after all, capture multiple DanceStar Awards in March for “Legion of Boom” and the single “Born Too Slow.”

“They’re A-listers in the dance world, they’re very active on the road, and they have a relatively new album,” Bentley says. “Plus, the Bowl is a big venue to fill up, so bands like Crystal Method that do have mainstream exposure via radio are an obvious fit.”

Though Jordan and Kirkland originally hail from Las Vegas, both men understand what it means to play one of L.A.’s most prestigious venues.

“Even someplace as far away as Australia they recognize the significance of playing a show at the Hollywood Bowl,” Kirkland says. “We have family members coming in from different parts of the West Coast.”

The Crystal Method’s rock-infused breakbeats have made them one of dance music’s most popular duos, and their reputation as a live act has been elevated by touring with rock acts such as Korn and Limp Bizkit.

Although the duo has proven repeatedly, as they did at this year’s Coachella Valley Music Festival (where they led a packed dance tent), that they can share the bill with their electronic brethren, the Bowl show is, in some ways, a stretch. Or as Jordan says, “This is kind of going the other end of the spectrum.”

Bentley says he wasn’t looking just for the standard Crystal Method show. “It’s an opportunity to challenge the audience on the level, but it’s also a chance to challenge the bands themselves,” he says. “So we’ve encouraged Ken and Scott to meet the bands halfway in incorporating world music elements.”

Taking up that challenge, Jordan and Kirkland promise that the Bowl appearance -- which will be recorded for a live DVD the duo intends to release late this year -- will be a one-of-a-kind gig.

“This particular show we’re going to do ‘Trip Like I Do,’ ” Kirkland says referring to one of the band’s early hits. “We’re going to bring in all these different elements to help sort of add the world to the electronica festival thing.”

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KCRW’s World Electronica

Who: The Crystal Method, Nortec Collective, Sidestepper, Nitin Sawhney; hosted by Jason Bentley

Where: Hollywood Bowl, 2301 N. Highland, Hollywood

When: 7 p.m. Sunday

Price: $11.50-$76

Info: (323) 850-2000 or www.hollywoodbowl.com