If you are like me, old and cantankerous, then new things probably frighten and infuriate you. So you are prepared as I am to do whatever it takes, short of actually leaving your porch, to ensure that they stay off of your lawn and out of your headphones. For right-thinking people like us, the dubstep is the enemy, what with its newness, its loudness, its relentlessness, and its ubiquity…ness. It is a blight on musical culture; it is pure, unadulterated evil, and it must be avoided and decried, even if avoiding it means you’ll be decrying it without actually giving it a proper listen.
While you were wisely avoiding it, your humble correspondent took it upon himself, in the spirit of our own Tod Kelly’s encounters with politically unpopular movements (no politics!), to descend into the seedy underbelly (it’s actually pretty tame, and more like right on the surface) of the pop culture world in order to learn everything I could about the dubstep. For months now I have conducted surveys and interviews, read Wikipedia and Pitchfork articles, gone to shows, and listened to Pandora. I have now finally emerged from those dark depths, and here I will relate to you what I have learned. I believe the word hero is often overused, but…
The first step in my journey was the conduct a comprehensive survey of dubstep fans (n=2, my son and his friend Mario, who’s on the debate team), the results of which indicated that in order to even begin to understand the dubstep, you have to listen to something called a Skrillex*, which is some sort of long-haired, bespectacled creature that produces music characterized by periods of somewhat seductive computer bloops and bleeps on top of a simple beat, periods that are punctuated by moments of sheer madness consisting of bass layered over sub-bass layered over an aneurysm. Witness:
The two other dubstep essentials, according to my teenage sample, are a bit more palatable, if still mildly discomfiting. They are Flux Pavillion (here featuring Childish Gambino, whom some of you may know as Troy Barnes from Community):
And Diplo* (NSFW; this song is apparently about twerking, so if you don’t want to see twerking, do not watch this video):
With these three artists under our belt (and out of the way, thank God! No religion!), we have the basics of dubstep, again according to my teenage sample (of 2).
After that sonic onslaught, I thought I’d give your ears a bit of a break by telling you the story of my first dubstep show. Not all that long ago, some friends and I were roaming 6th Street, tired of standing in lines, and really just tired period, when we noticed a club with an open door and no line. I could see a DJ setting up inside, and since I like DJ music most of the time, or thought I did, I suggested that we pop into that club for a beer and a bit of a break. So in we popped, bought a round, and sauntered over to the stage, where we stood right in front of this cute, barely chest-high speaker that did not look the least bit intimidating, just as the DJ was starting his set.
The DJ, who looked to be in his mid-20s and was wearing a black cap and a Steelers jersey, began with a pleasant beat, then laid some samples over it, creating a nice, mellow electronic groove. Everyone in the club raised their hands straight up into the air and began to sway gently from side to side to the beat, and I thought to myself, I got my beer, I got my mellow beats, everyone’s having fun — this is relaxing.
About a minute or so in, the DJ began to jump up and down, and I remember thinking, “Oh, this cat is really into his DJing. Good for him.” Then I noticed that everyone in the crowd had started jumping as well, including my friends, and I wondered, “Should I be…”, but before I could finish this thought the DJ reached down and did something on his laptop, something which caused the speaker next to me and its twin on the other end of the stage to emit a “sound,” as if that term even began to express the complete assault on my senses, that I can only describe as being like the simultaneous rumblings of a hundred million elephants calling to each other across the vast plains of sub-Saharan Africa at a frequency just above the lower limits of human hearing. Right next to my ears. It was the loudest sound I had ever heard. I still have nightmares.
In the bottle I was holding, my beer began to jump along with the twenty-somethings who surrounded me, all of whom had a look of ecstasy on their faces that I can only assume was matched by the look of confusion and utter terror on mine. At the speed of light a succession of thoughts flitted through my brain, including: Am I having a heart attack? I think my spleen just burst. Can this ceiling hold? I want my mama. Why, God, why? Then, after what seemed like an eternity, though the few remaining portions of my brain that had not been completely liquefied told me it had only been 30-45 seconds, the onslaught was over, and we were back to the beat and the samples.
I endured a good half hour of this cycle of cool dance music followed by sonic defibrillation, during which the DJ was asked by one of the venues employees not once, not twice, but thrice to turn the music down. He complied with each request and still the “drops,” as the kids are calling them, remained well above Austin’s decibel limit. I know this because just as he was winding down, the employee asked him to turn it down a fourth time.
After the show, with only the sound crickets deep in my head to talk over, one of my friends said to me, “That bleh blebbedy bleh,” to which I replied, “IF YOU’RE TALKING, I CAN’T HEAR YOU. I CAN SEE YOUR LIPS MOVING, BUT I CAN’T HEAR YOU,” to which she replied, “THAT WAS DUBSTEP!”
Now that I’ve gone on too long, I must let you in on a secret. Please keep this just between you and me. As I’ve explored the world of dubstep and gradually learned that it’s more than just Skrillex, Flux Pavilion, Diplo, and their “brostep” ilk, I’ve actually come to enjoy some of it, as well as sub- and related genres, such as liquid dubstep (which I assume implies there is solid and gaseous dubstep as well, though I have yet to find examples of those):
and “post-dub”:
In fact, as someone who’s loved electronic music for a couple decades, I’m grateful for some of the incredible artists I’ve found exploring dubstep, like TNGHT, Joker (Jessie Ware is friggin’ awesome!):
Trifonic:
Nyabingi:
And Distance:
Especially Distance:
Now that I’ve alienated most of you with dubstep in my first real Wednesday music post, I hope those who remain will find something here they like, and maybe even let me know about some artists I may not have discovered yet, because it turns out, dubstep’s not so evil, and not so frightening (except live, where it is absolutely terrifying!). Some of it is in fact quite good.
*I actually mispronounced this as Skill-rex for months, until my son finally took pity on me.
**I mispronounced Diplo until today, when I realized it’s Dip Low.
p.s. If you like Skrillex, that’s cool. My son and his friends all do as well. I don’t get it, but I’m being harsh here strictly to remain in character. And I actually have some Flux Pavilion and Diplo (though admittedly always with other DJs) in my rotation, though not much, and I have to be in the right mood for it. For the most part, it’s just not my thing, and I won’t even pretend to be the arbiter of what is and what is not good in popular music.
For example, if this doesn’t keep you awake, nothing will (NparticularlySFW):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBoufiaXMbE&noredirect=1Report
Nooooo, you fooooool! Don’t you remember the Gret Dubstep Warz of 2013?
NVR 4GT
Dude, this is awesome. I particularly liked ‘bass over sub-bass over aneurysm’.
I will be listening to the rest of these as soon as I am back at my computer. Distance was something I had liked and put in my eMusic queue, but I never got to download before I cancelled my subscription (which I am starting to regret). Joker I’ve heard, but not this track. And this is maybe the second time I have ever (knowingly) heard Skrillex? I know it’s totally shallow, but the name and haircut are a bit off-putting. FWIW, I wasn’t a huge Prodigy fan either, though “Smack” remains pretty relentlessly irresistible (see what I did there?)
I read an interview with Skrillex a while back on P4k where he gushed about Aphex Twin, and specifically name-checked “Come to Daddy”.
After watching the above video…well, yeah.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUmNmpGnKp4&feature=youtube_gdata_playerReport
I have seen that video once before.
I did not enjoy it.Report
The first time I ever heard the brostep-style dubstep, my first thought was, “This is like Prodigy on meth.” And yeah, that Aphex Twins song is… it’s something.Report
Now I just want to have Millicent over for an Aphex Twin videothon.
NSFW (language, and uh…more), but a hilarious parody of bling videos (that dance routine!):
Definitely NSFS:CM-UT (Not Safe For Sanity: Contains Messed-Up Teletubbies):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnBpsUZDiQ0Report
Oh, the irony. Of all the songs I’ve listened to from the main post and in comments, that’s the only one I’ve actually enjoyed outright. [Edited to reflect that I also liked the video featuring Anna Wise below.]
I do not know what “bling” videos are, so perhaps I missed the amusing elements of the parody. I found the video, unsurprisingly… not enjoyable.
Millicent loathed it. I can hear her muttering something along the lines of “pointlessly disturbing and disturbingly pointless” somewhere near my amygdala.Report
Tell me Millicent at least liked the Aphex-branded umbrella. She could get some good whappin’ in with that thing.
By “bling” I just mean that “party/conspicuous consumption” video thing, especially common to rap videos, where the protagonist rolls around in some luxurious auto, with beautiful scantily-clad women and champagne everywhere, possibly with cash and gold falling like manna from heaven, often in slow-mo (and sometimes fish-eye lens).
In the second Aphex video, it’s the repeated emphatic hip thrusts that get me. It’s just so WRONG.Report
Millicent has a very low tolerance for children used as props in entertainment for disturbing effect. She finds it both hackneyed and vaguely exploitative.Report
Thank you for this. I have found myself wondering from time to time “What is this thing called ‘dubstep’?” And now I know! It is a thing of which, at best, I am not especially fond. And clearly I am Ancient Beyond Description, because those first three selections (particularly the third) were… unpleasant to me.
Your description of the dubstep show, however, was a thing of beauty.Report
Russell, I picked the first 3 specifically because they’re jarring. If you are a fan of electronic music, I recommend checking out some of the later ones. Distance and Blackmill, in particular, are really mellow. They sound nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing, like Skrillex.Report
I listened to both Distance songs, and while I found them pleasant enough, they’re not my thing. I prefer a stronger melodic line generally speaking.Report
Ah, maybe I’ll get you next week. In fact, that will be my goal. In order to facilitate this, let me ask you really quickly, what do you think of this (this is related to the direction I was thinking of going next week):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-tlDZw7egE&noredirect=1Report
Well, it’s unambiguously (at least in my opinion) beautiful. Her voice is gorgeous. It’s a bit melodically amorphous for my preference and a little down-tempo than I usually pick, but I would happily listen to it again.
I fear my tastes are too pedestrian for this lot.Report
Ah, I think I have you. Next week! Mwahahahaha… cough.
Wise’s voice is so mesmerizing that I have to not listen to it or I will fall down a rabbit hole and listen to it all day. I cannot figure out why her band (that song is her working with a DJ; her band sounds rather different) is not listened to by more people.
Then I play it with my girlfriend in the room and she says something like, “This is what you’re going to write about? Are you sure? This may just be a Chris thing. I’m not sure anyone else will like it.” Then I tell her to go listen to some Drake or something, and pout.Report
Poo. I cannot find anything by Ms. Wise on Spotify. Now I must see if I can find something she’s done with her band.Report
Sidenote, but if anyone else was having an issue with Spotify crashing constantly, they seem to have rectified that with their most recent updates. I put Spotify on the iPad finally last night, which was cool because I can easily throw it from there to my AppleTV (which means I can listen to it on big-ass speakers). I got occasional dropouts, not sure if that was due to my WiFi or what.
I THINK if I upgrade my OS, I can throw Spotify audio directly from my desktop to the AppleTV, which could mitigate dropouts; but not sure how I could remotely control the app itself then.Report
Russel,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ff5HY06FfJ0&noredirect=1
Just kidding. Though I admit, as fans of both the rappers and the singer, I enjoyed that immensely. She also did a song with Kendrick Lamar.
Anyway, if you can’t find anything by her band, just wait. Next week post may be entirely about Sonnymoon, because I’m quite serious, once I start listening to her voice I cannot stop.Report
Sonnymoon! Yes! I thought I had heard her voice before. You posted one of their videos before in comments somewhere, didn’t you?
My recollection is that it was truly lovely.
[Edited to add: Yes! They DO have Sonnymoon on Spotify, and I think the song was “Just Before Dawn.” I’ve got it playing now, and it. is. gorgeous.]Report
Russell, that was the song! The video is beautiful as well.
Now I definitely know what I’m writing about next week. At the very least, I can tell my girlfriend, “Hey, Russell likes it too. It’s not just a Chris thing.” Though “Just Before Dawn” is still pretty different from much of their stuff, which is more jazzy/soul-ly.Report
I’m squeezing in songs during breaks in studying, and I am loving it so far. “Greatness” is glorious.Report
Dude, by listening to this music you are ruining next week’s post! Ruining it!
(I’m kidding, of course. I’m actually very glad you’re enjoying it.)Report
Crap! I can stop! I have actually only gotten to “Greatness” so far, having been sidetracked by other tasks and pastimes since.Report
Russell, no no, listen away. I was just being silly. My parents in town this weekend, so I may not be able to do Ms. Wise and my crush on her voice justice next week, so it may have to wait another week anyway.
I recommen ‘Kali,” “Goddess,” and if Spotify has it, “Elizabeth” after “Greatness.” “Near Me” is also pretty awesome.Report
That Trifonic vocalist has a very pretty (and very, very familiar – it’s driving me crazy) voice. Not sure what makes it dubstep though, it just sounds like dance/pop/club musi….oh wait, THERE’S the wub.
Yeah, I def. like Distance; of all these tracks, it’s got the most dub in its step (well, it and that Nyabingi, which I see is on Scuba’s label).Report
Amelia June is the name of the vocalist on the Trifonic song. I don’t really know much about her other than that she’s featured on songs by a few other artists I have in one form or another.
Also, the Trifonic song is specifically a dubstep remix. Trifonic does do some explicitly dubstep stuff pre-remix, but I include them mostly as dubstep-related rather than as dubstep proper. I definitely discovered them through dubstep.
Here’s the original “Lies”:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekqfvyE6YxY&noredirect=1Report
Your teenage mentors forgot this one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2iBlItVeW4Report
I know my son listens to Datsik, and I thought about using the Datsik remix of the Diplo song, but man, 3 is enough of the “basics.”
That particular track is incredibly disorienting. I’m imagining it live, and I can almost feel the lining of my stomach peeling off with the vibration. Talk about “sub-bass.” That takes you down to near liminal frequencies.Report
i think brostep is best understood as when trance went back to junior high, rather than a dumb u.s. version of the children of grime.Report
I remain unconvinced that trap isn’t basically a US take on grime.
And I kind of alluded to this the other day, but I’m not sure there’s really that much conceptual difference between, say “Stigmata”, and Prodigy, and Skrillex.
At heart, it’s all music for teenage boys who wanna break stuff. That I like “Stigmata” and not those two others quite as much is probably primarily a function of age.Report
A lot of the DJs who do trap and dubstep (sans brostep) also do grime anyway. In my ear, they end up bleeding together a lot of the time. If I here the wub wub, I just say dubstep. Everything else, I just guess.Report
Despite how utterly charming it is, I am looking at your old man getting off the lawn pose in this post with a really big o.O because dude. This is the music I started listening to right after I got out of college. (Alienation that makes you want to dance is REALLY good for late nights when your new husband is at work in your new town where you don’t know anyone, everything closes at 9 pm, and you’re not even from this country.) I listened to dubstep more back then than ever since, and Jaybird and I are *thisclose* to our 15th wedding anniversary, so this post does not compute.
Age- wise that is.
Musically it computes just fine. Will be working my way through all of this tomorrow (though I expect to turn off the Skrillex about 5 seconds in. Maybe it’s one of those things like the cell phones that only teenagers can hear, where if we could pick up those higher frquencies, it’d be tasty??).
Also, other people who think of dubstep as “the music of my twenties” might enjoy this hour-long mix by Pinch – no track newer than 2007.Report
I hope you enjoy the stuff after the break, and that Skillrex doesn’t cause a filling to pop out.
Thank you for the Pinch. I’m enjoying it now at work.Report