Saturday, June 19th. I ventured to the Majestic theatre in Detroit for a concert experience unlike anything I've ever experienced before. "Concert" is not even the correct word to describe this event, but a more appropriate definition would be a "f#cking circus." Although I never got my Ringley Brothers Circus fix as a child, I got more than I could ask for from Cirque Du Womp's Dubstep Circus 5. I arrived four hours early with Kyle Culps and Chris Hutchinson, both taking part in the production with t-shirts and videography. Before the thousands of bass-thirsty youth would fill the theatre, we watched as the stage was created, the booths were setup, and the clown faces were painted on. After listening to Angela Pal and Grant Jackson both speak their minds on camera about their involvement with Detroit's dubstep scene and its creation; I realized that the entire production is a truly collaborative process of teamwork.
A member of the Detroit Fire Guild known as Baker led the crowd through an artistic journey of music, magic, fire, and the unexplainable. The crowd raved on through the night to the unique sounds of each DJ. I can't imagine how much more amplified the experience must have been for those fueled by mind-altering hallucinogenics. Needless to say, I stayed dry (from the sweat of others) and watched mostly from backstage as the show pressed on. It wasn't until an old friend from middle school took the stage as the headlining act at 2:30am that I began to personally relate to the music and enjoy it more. No matter how tired I may have been...it didn't matter. He ended the night with a unique J Dilla remix that re-created Detroit's dubstep future from the native rapper of its past...which I appreciated and hoped other's noticed, too.
Dubstep is 120 beats per minute electronic music, with the snare on the 3's and 7's, which originated from reggae with wobbled bass. Although today's collection of Dj's have gone above and beyond the reggae theme, Grant said "if you listen hard enough, you can still here it." My experience from backstage can't possibly do it justice in writing, which is why I look forward to Chris' expression of the event through his video - expected to be released in the next few weeks.
After a night of womping beats and great entertainment, I drove my friends home with the radio on in a daze. I couldn't help but laugh to the guys, when I finally realized that I couldn't hear anything but the repetition of bass continuing to play in my head as the sun began to rise.
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