After a brief foray into the oxymoron of corporately sponsored independent rock. I set off for 6th St., the main drag for SXSW, in search of club Barcelona or as referred to by LA’s DJ Flinch “The Bass Cave.” And that it was indeed. I could feel the beats surging up from the basement dance floor when I arrived courtesy of Gino Cochino, a native of The Los Angeles Dubstep scene. For all those who complain (including me on occasion) that Dubstep isn’t danceable, this DJ may just change your mind. He brings the driving bass drops from Dn’B together with the grinding syncopated distortion of Dub all set to wicked beats of which no one on the dance floor seems to be able to get enough.
The next set and the night belonged to the Austin’s very own Wolf-E-Wolf. Another DJ who has successfully taken Dubstep back to it’s basics and created music with an actual beat to dance to instead of just admire for it’s technical proficiency. Hip-hop, Trap, and even Jungle aspects were all present in Wolf-E-Wolf’s set, and the whole club was moving as was yours truly. If the east coast is drum and bass then it seems the Midwest and West Coast are definitely dubstep.
Back out on 6th Street, the crowd was just as packed as in the bar. I was beat and planned to head back to my room to sleep off the nights festivities, but it seemed that SXSW had other plans for me.
Stay tuned…
-Just Damien