LOCAL EXPOSURE: What do you know about electro?

(Proof that once that DJ gets going, it's like a David Lynch movie in there. © 2008 Ian Chand.)

What do you know about electric-dub-hop? Moreover, what the heck is electric-dub-hop? Those thoughts were running through my mind while I was on my way to The Alibi Room for my first live music assignment, but being the new guy at ThatRockBlog.com, I was just stoked to be there. I mean, this ELECTRICDUBHOP series was supposedly part of the Vancouver Jazz Festival, but that made no sense at all since there was a severe lack of jazz. Not really knowing what to expect, what I heard when I finally got there was surprising, to say the least. Rhythmic tones thumped away and waves of sound exploded off the walls, resonating in my ears. I can’t really say that I was ready for 6+ hours of this sort of acoustic assault, but a guy never truly is when he has no idea what he’s getting himself into.

The evening started off with some low ambient tracks courtesy of Flawless Imperfection, a local DJ who let the cavernous spaces within The Alibi Room carry his synthesized, inorganic melodies the way a concert pianist might in some monumental auditorium. Next on the mic (or Mac, rather) was LID, a two-man group composed of Mike Brener on guitar and vocals, and Paul Finley on turns and synths. Opening the set with hollowed-out synthetic beats, Finley left Brener to throw in some hot and heavy riffwork to the dreamy melancholic tones. Midway through their set, the boys changed gears and took more of an avant-garde approach towards their already inventive performance, adding vocals and accelerated scratching. LID had a charm to them that can only be found when two artists genuinely have a good time on stage. Their passion could be felt throughout the crowd, who had already started moving to the beat. (Which was an accomplishment in itself, seeing as how the bottom floor of The Alibi Room where the show was taking place was no larger than the typical Vancouver apartment.)

At this point, through my schmoozing, I had already met the next two performers who, in my opinion, were the most entertaining of the evening: Jess Conn-Potegal and Elam Benaroach. Their equipment consisted of vintage 70’s and 80’s synthesizers, and did these boys ever know how to work their synths. They turned, dialed, flipped, connected and scratched with effortless swagger. They spat their lyrics and then replaced them with beats, carving sonic waves through the air. The old-timer synths worked their charm creating a delectably rich and authentic sound, while masterfully blending late 1970’s disco with new wave trance. It was around this time the room became stiflingly packed and transformed into a dance floor. Royal Destiny rounded the evening off by fusing hip-hop, electronica and dub to create an elaborate dance vibe energy. The hosts of the show, Rupe Sidhu and Jarrett Martineau, laid down tracks and took off running, never stopping to let their audience take a breath or giving them time to catch up. Their shared message of “holding onto all that was golden” spoke to the crowd on a visceral level, and Martineau’s free-styling capabilities captured their audience’s imagination.

Although I still don’t entirely know what electric-dub-hop is, I think it’s safe to say it’s a genre with no boundaries. From what I heard last Thursday night, anything and everything is liable to happen. To anyone walking down a flight of stairs in an unfamiliar bar to witness such an event, expect everything, and you won’t come out disappointed.