Pola and Bryson
September 13, Red Room
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It was fitting that my first event back from Taiwan was a dnb special. In Asia, you’re dancing to three things: kpop for the gays (an enjoyably sexy break from being guaranteed to hear a bass-boosted mix of “Titanium” every time you went out), decade-old throwbacks for the expats (seriously, the exact same songs, sometimes in the exact same order), or hours of middling techno that, in combination with the questionable-bordering-on-deceptive genres being advertised, lead to a few nights of disappointment.
Back in Vancouver, Pola and Bryson’s few deep rollers I’d listened to on the computer translated well into a short solo set at Red Room, but nothing that I couldn’t have looked up on YouTube.
Let It Roll
September 19, Harbor
Branded events travelling from overseas are always liable to be hit-or-miss. In this case, Let it Roll, billed as the world’s largest dnb festival, takes place annually in Czechia with offshoot events across Europe. Their debut in North America included didn’t include the kids of OG headliners as in Europe, but was enticing enough to coax Owen and I out the house to brave the backrooms of Harbor.
The night of, we agreed that we were particularly excited to see Sigma, and while enjoying some drinks around the Expo 86 plaza, struck up a conversation with a gentleman in a giant panda head and their brother (twin?)‘s disembodied voice coming from the overflowing car they had parked outside the venue. Mr. Panda was in the middle of cooking up a concoction whose exact ingredients were unclear to all, but importantly included dry ice, a rag-wrapped bundle of which was extracted with great care from the car’s innards.
We decamped prior to consuming the beverage (which, I feel now, would’ve turned us into whatever had happened to the other brother in the car), and headed in to catch the beginning of Mozey, whom we quickly realized was going to absolutely clear the night. As the pink-cowboy-hat-wearing DJ finished his set, Owen and I agreed that if Sigma was at all not up to the newly-set Mozey Standard (ISO 4445:7), we would immediately head out.
Sigma lasted all of seven minutes before we headed home to bed.
Voltage & Chimpo
September 27, Red Room
I’d started listening to Voltage after discovered Kings of the Rollers on Spotify, and had listened to a couple of his sets online - with great detriment to the progress of whatever homework was being completed in the moment.
At another solo adventure at the Red Room, Voltage threw down punchy, hard hitting drops with a signature rolling baseline throughout the hour and a half he played. Chimpo, unfortunately, came on after 2:00PM, and I didn’t have quite enough energy to stay more than 20 minutes.
Skepsis
October 18, Harbor Theatre
Almost a year ago to this day, Owen and I experience our first hit of the kind of jump-up dnb that had left us fiending for more to this day. When we saw Skepsis’ ten year tour pop up on edmtrain, there were no questions asked before buying tickets.
It only got better from there. In a fit of collective madness, we managed to convince Jung Yi, Rita, and Liam - who had flown in from New York a day prior, to attend with us. The promise of substances goes a long way.
We gathered at the skate park under the Georgia Viaduct on a classic Vancouver-drizzly evening, and I commenced to parcel out what I eyeballed as reasonable doses of mother’s little helper on the back of Owen’s iPhone. Using Rita’s fruit-roll-up tek, I realized we’d gone just a little heavy when we were already bouncing on the short walk up the side stairs to Harbor Theatre.
Oh, that’s right - Harbor Theatre. For the uninitiated (as I was), there is another venue above the main harbor ballroom - a small theatre with a high ceiling, folding chairs on risers, and three large projector screens. Entering the space, we realize this event was even smaller than the tiny crowd at Village last year. I briefly wondered what financial decisions lead Skepsis to pick this as a tour stop, but was quickly distracted by the amount of sweat and vibrating energy that was coursing through my body. I could tell Owen and Jung Yi were feeling the same.
As soon as Skepsis came on, we were in for it - actually, towards the end it was more that he was in for it. We had way too much energy for that space, and at points were literally bouncing off the walls. It was incredible. You know it’s a good night when you’re in the MacDonald’s at 3:30AM and are still bumping to the bass rattling around your skull.
1788-L
October 25, Red Room
A last-minute purchase, 1788-L hasn’t released a large amount of new music for a while, but his back catalogue is legendary, and considering his collabs with fan favorite Deathpact, along with his contribution to one of my DnB mixes, we considered his presence in Vancouver a can’t-miss event.
That said, it was certainly a sitter of a night (fortunately, Red Room’s seating on a non-crowded night caters to large parties and the recently reanimated). A highlight moment - and to be frank, the only standout moment of the night - was 1788-L mixing Curry Goat Rice and Peas into some filthy neuro. Golf caps all around.
Luude
November 1, Venables Warehouse
Luude was a wild card - however, much like how I am with games of chance in general, the outcome was less than ideal. Not to say that the night was bad - that day, I’d discovered an incredible Hospital Records mix from 2020 that was getting me through a gnarly Halloween hangover, and after a hefty nap in the evening, I was ready to brave the new venue, Venables Warehouse.
Located next to Britannia High School on Commercial Drive, it was in a fiendishly difficult place to bus back from at 2:00AM, and a cruiser of a bike ride from my house. So, of course, I shoved my lock into my back left pocket and started pedaling.
Arriving at the function, I remembered that the night after Halloween also counted as Halloween (for the weak who hadn’t gone out on Friday). Unfortunately, this meant more of a rowdy and social crowd, a vibe that actually fit Luude when he eventually came on. Not to say that it was a good vibe. Aussies, press 1 in the comments if your DJs constantly switch up genres and can’t really mix that well (maybe it’s the change in gravity or something).
Let’s just say that the songs I listened to pumping my way back uphill were a higher calibreof selection.
Lyny
November 14, Industrial
We need to talk about Industrial 236. Owen likes it - “it’s the correct vibe for a rave - in some random ass abandoned warehouse, there’s a spotlight on the dude in the middle, it’s pitch black”. Which I agree with - of course, I’m known to enjoy a nice low ceiling, a setup which does increase the quality of the bass. That said, the grungy exposed-beam construction does get me in the mood.
High off my last bike-to-the-rave experience, I decided to brave the mist outside, and was decidedly wet by the time I arrived at the trailers - which, of course, we hopped back inside of to drink, smoke, and wait for the line to die down a bit - which it didn’t, it was a surprisingly busy night.
We caught the last 20 minutes of Just a Gent (absolute gas), and were grooving close to the decks for LYNY. Overall, a respectable night with stand-up company (as per usual).
Buunshin
November 22, Red Room
I’ll admit, I was going to stay in. I was prepared for a nice quiet night at home, a cup of tea, a good book. But when the homies say an artist is worth it, sometimes you have to trust. Even the night before while listening to one of Buunshin’s sets online, I was skeptical.
Buunshin came on stage looking like what John Wick would’ve worn as his casual, date-night, non-assassin outfit. His visuals? On point. His first drop - Distance with Apache? Fire. Red Room? Not the right venue. This set would’ve killed at Village. By no means was it bad at Red Room, but there was a bit too much going on in the crowd, the DJ was a bit too high up, and the venue’s lighting was too bright over all.
That said, this was an inspiring night. The next few days, I listened to all of Buunshin’s sets while studying and added a significant amount of his music to my playlists.
TLDR; Owen, you were right.
Side note: who was the third guy? Where did the MC come from?
Fred again…
November 28, Vancouver Convention Center
I almost didn’t include this one on the list.
Fred’s performance at the Vancouver Convention Center shows why he’s a Grammy-award-winning producer.
I’m so glad that the bay area squad got to catch his show in SF the week after.
Nothing can compare to this.
Bou, Kanine
November 29, Harbor
Essentially, Bou, Skepsis, and Kanine have been stuck in an eternal time loop at Harbor. The guy with snot dripping from his nose and his eyes took it upon himself to break them all out of their living hell.
JV, I apologize - that was not it. We’ll run it back when SOTA comes in February. We can’t go to harbor and its quicksand dancefloor ever again.
MPH
December 5, Celebs
The cream of the London crop was out in force in Vancouver. A last minute cancellation lead to a last minute addition, and along with the event switching locations from Industrial to Celebrities, this was a banger of a night. Of course, with Pryor, it’s hard for a night to be anything but.
While the set as a whole was more of a speed garage set, with MPH saving his known tracks for his UK audience, I learnt that you can mix 140 dubstep drops into a club set and absolutely set the crowd off (did you know Celebrities floor bounces)?
Jungle Cakes
December 13, Red Room
The return of Deekline, Ed Solo, and Benny Page! For three years in a row, these three legends of the UK DnB and pirate radio scene have been gracing the Red Room’s PK’s with their fabric-ripping style of DNB.
Did I have to leave early for the ELEC 342 final the next afternoon? Yes. But did I do it in style, in the rain on the bike? Indeed - an exceptional end to the term.