In which Sach O comes to grips with his Canadian ancestry.
Between the excellent Sukh Knight/Komodo Dubs show and a couple of alcohol and drug-fueled Dubstep raves, November was already lining up to be a banner month for Bass music in Montreal but last Saturday’s Organized Grime event sealed the deal. Though it lacked the star-power of a London Selecta or the anything-goes-anything-consumed vibe of a warehouse party, the MTL Grime sponsored showcase brought out some Fantastic DJs playing a connoisseur’s choice of tunes for a devoted and appreciative crowd: my kind of show.
First up was event organizer, Intoccabile, whose name is familiar to anyone following bass music in Montreal. Generously taking the opening spot (they should have closed those house-lights earlier!), Fyutchaflex’s founder used the situation to his advantage taking the opportunity to play spacious, progressive head-music as the crowd filled in and copped some beers before transitioning to heavier stuff. With so many DJs these days playing strictly tear-out, it was nice to vibe out with the crew and really LISTEN to tunes the way they were meant to be heard.
Guestlist and Living Stone went next, filling the floor with smart but powerful bangers that played up Dubstep’s potential to out-crunk Lil Jon without veering towards self-parody. I probably can’t say the same for myself since I pretty much lost it on the dance floor at this point, unleashing a strange mix of Elaine Benes at an office party and Carlton Banks on Speed. To the DJs credit, I was actually sober. Apologies to anyone on the receiving end of bows and cheers to the guy who tactfully avoided stepping on my shades after they flew off my head in an ill-advised bout of headbanging.
Headliner Reality kept things going, unleashing a blistering series of Nero tracks before ending the night on some high-powered future Jungle that provided a fitting end to a successful night. I’m not usually one for Jungle, but at this point it seemed like a natural place to go after 3+hours of 130BPM madness. With the year coming to a close, it’s amazing to think about how far Dubstep and bass music have come in Montreal. As if to prove my point, the city’s biggest trance rave (the one I attended last year) will now have a “Forward Music Room”, a clear sign that Dubstep has crashed the party like RUN DMC and Aerosmith. Still, it’s nice to know there’s still some low-key events in town playing the music for the devoted and that Montreal’s Dubstep scene isn’t just getting bigger, but also better.
I may even have to stop complaining about this city.
Music:
Intoccabile@Soundcloud
Living Stone@Myspace
