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{{Infobox Music genre |
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BOGORE IS GASH |
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|name = Dubstep |
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|color = black |
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|bgcolor = silver |
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|stylistic_origins = [[UK garage]] <small>(primarily [[2-step garage|2-step]])</small><br />[[Grime (music)|Grime]]<br />[[Dub music|Dub]]<br />[[Drum and bass]] |
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|cultural_origins = Early-mid 2000s,<br />[[South London]], [[England]] |
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|instruments = [[Music sequencer|Sequencer]], [[turntablism|turntables]], [[sampler (musical instrument)|sampler]], [[drum machine]], [[synthesizer]], [[keyboard instrument|keyboard]], [[personal computer]] |
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|popularity = Largely an underground scene but with some mainstream popularity in the late [[2000s (decade)|2000s]], especially in the UK. |
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|derivatives = |
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|subgenrelist = |
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|subgenres = |
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|fusiongenres = |
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|regional_scenes = |
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|local_scenes = |
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|other_topics = [[List of dubstep musicians|List of musicians]] |
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}} |
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'''Dubstep''' is a [[genre]] of [[electronic music|electronic]] [[dance music]]. Its overall sound has been described as "tightly coiled productions with overwhelming bass lines and reverberant drum patterns, clipped samples, and occasional vocals".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=77:13813 |title=allmusic |publisher=www.allmusic.com |accessdate=2010-04-25 }}</ref> |
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The earliest dubstep releases, which date back to 1999, were darker, more experimental, instrumental [[dub music|dub]] remixes of [[2-step garage]] tracks attempting to incorporate the funky elements of [[breakbeat]], or the dark elements of [[drum and bass]] into 2-step, which featured as [[B-side]]s of single releases. In 2001, this and other strains of dark garage music began to be showcased and promoted at London's club night Forward>>, which went on to be considerably influential to the development of dubstep. The term "dubstep" in reference to a genre of music began to be used by around 2002, by which time stylistic trends used in creating these remixes started to become more noticeable and distinct from [[2-step garage|2-step]] and [[grime (music)|grime]]. |
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A very early supporter of the sound was [[BBC Radio 1]] DJ [[John Peel]], who started playing it from 2003 onwards. In 2004, the last year of his show, he put [[Distance (musician)|Distance]], [[Digital Mystikz]] and [[Plastician]] (formerly [[Plastician|Plasticman]]) in his top 50 for the year.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/johnpeel/festive50s/2000s/2004 |title=Radio 1 - Keeping It Peel - Festive 50s - 2004 |publisher=BBC |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref> Dubstep started to spread beyond small local scenes in late 2005 and early 2006; many websites devoted to the genre appeared on the internet and thus aided the growth of the scene, such as dubstepforum, the download site Barefiles and blogs such as gutterbreakz.<ref>{{cite news|author=Wilson, Michael|title=Bubble and squeak: Michael Wilson on dubstep|work=Artforum International|url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Bubble+and+squeak%3a+Michael+Wilson+on+dubstep.-a0165312289|date= 1 November 2006}}</ref> Simultaneously, the genre was receiving extensive coverage in music magazines such as ''[[The Wire (magazine)|The Wire]]'' and online publications such as [[Pitchfork Media]], with a regular feature entitled ''The Month In: Grime/Dubstep''. Interest in dubstep grew significantly after BBC Radio 1 DJ [[Mary Anne Hobbs]] started championing the genre, beginning with a show devoted to it (entitled "Dubstep Warz") in January 2006.<ref name="teleg"/><ref name="Time1">{{cite web | author= O'Connell, Sharon | title= Dubstep | work= [[Time Out London]] | url=http://www.timeout.com/london/music/features/2083/3.html | date= 4 October 2006 | accessdate=21 June [[2007]]}}</ref><ref name="Pitch1">{{cite web | author= Clark, Martin | title= The Month In: Grime/Dubstep | work= [[Pitchfork Media]] | url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/39704-the-month-in-grime-dubstep | date= 16 November 2006 | accessdate=21 June 2007}}</ref> |
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== Characteristics == |
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{{Listen |
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|filename=Dubstep example drumpattern.ogg |
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|title=4-bar example of a dubstep drum pattern, corresponding to the image below. |
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|format=[[Ogg]]}} |
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[[Image:Dubsamplescore.jpg|alt=Sheet music showing four four-bar lines.|thumb|right|Musical score of the above recording]] |
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{{Listen |
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|filename=Blackleg - Smoke Test (excerpt).ogg |
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|title=Blackleg - Smoke Test (2009) |
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|description=Excerpt from "Smoke Test" by Blackleg, demonstrating a bassline driven track backed up by a sparse, half-time drum beat. |
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|format=[[Ogg]]}} |
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{{Listen |
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|filename=Shackleton_naked_bass_drop.ogg |
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|title=Shackleton - Naked (2006) |
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|description=Excerpt from "Naked" by Shackleton, demonstrating a bass drop.|format=[[Ogg]]}} |
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Dubstep's early roots are in the more experimental releases of UK garage producers, seeking to incorporate elements of [[drum and bass]] into the [[South London]]-based [[2-step garage]] sound. These experiments often ended up on the B-side of a [[white label]] or commercial garage release.<ref name="teleg">{{cite news|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=2006-10-14 |last = de Wilde |first=Gervase |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2006/10/14/bmdubstep14.xml |title=Put a bit of dub in your step: a new form of dance music from Croydon is ready to conquer the world | location=London}}</ref><ref name="wire279">{{cite journal|url=http://www.thewire.co.uk/current/index.php |journal=[[The Wire (magazine)|The Wire]] |issue=279 |title=The Primer: Dubstep}}</ref><ref name="plastician">{{cite web|title= Interview: Plasticman|work= Riddim.ca |url=http://www.riddim.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=49&Itemid=39 |author=Pearsall |date=2005-06-18}}</ref> Dubstep is generally [[instrumental music|instrumental]]. Like another, more vocal garage hybrid, grime, the genre's feel is commonly dark; tracks frequently use a [[minor key]] and can feature [[dissonant]] harmonies such as the [[tritone|tritone interval]] within a [[riff]]. Other distinguishing features often found are the use of [[sample (music)|samples]], a propulsive, sparse rhythm,<ref name="cbc">[http://www.cbc.ca/arts/music/dub_style.html "South London calling" from CBC.ca website] Matthew McKinnon, January 30, 2007</ref> and an almost omnipresent [[sub-bass]]. Some dubstep artists have also incorporated a variety of outside influences, from dub-influenced [[techno]] such as [[Basic Channel]] to [[classical music]] or [[heavy metal music|heavy metal]].<ref name="cbc" /><ref name = "Pitch5" /><ref name="RA101" /> |
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Followers of dubstep also use generally negative terms to describe songs they like, such as ‘dirty’, ‘filthy’, or ‘grimy’. The more dirty/filthy/grimy a particular song is seen as being, the more disturbing subsequent descriptions of the song become. Not unlike [[The Aristocrats (joke)|The Aristocrats]], followers sometimes attempt to outdo each other in these descriptions.{{Citation needed|date=June 2010}} |
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=== Rhythm === |
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Dubstep rhythms are usually [[syncopation|syncopated]], and often [[swung note|shuffled]] or incorporating [[tuplet|triplets]]. The tempo is nearly always in the range of 130-148[[beats per minute|bpm]].<ref name="cbc"/> |
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Dubstep rhythms typically do not follow the [[four-to-the-floor]] patterns common in many other styles of electronic dance music such as techno and [[house music|house]], but instead tend to rely on a kickdrum based around the first and third beat of a bar (a characteristic inherited from 2-step garage) and longer percussion loops than the four-bar phrases present in much techno or house. Often, a track's percussion will follow a pattern which when heard alone will appear to be playing at half the tempo of the track; the double-time feel is instead achieved by other elements, usually the bassline. An example of this tension generated by the conflicting tempo can be listened on the right. The song features a very sparse rhythm almost entirely composed of [[kick drum]], [[snare drum]], and a sparse [[hi-hat]], with a distinctly [[half time (music)|half time]] implied 71bpm tempo. The track is instead propelled by a sub-bass following a four to the floor 142bpm pattern. |
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A ''heavy'' reverberated Snare hit is a common occurrence within the dubstep genre. This distinguishing feature can be created several ways; firstly the level of the hit is usually 6-18dB louder than the drum kit mix and secondly the use of long-held slow release reverb which assists it to stand out within the track due to the depth it creates. The composition of the snare sample itself is the most common method of making it stand out, typically it is a multi-layered sample oriented around an ordinary snare cut. Layered around this; other samples are 'tied' to the attack of the wave, these usually consist of White Noise, Hand Claps and digital ''snips''. |
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In an ''Invisible Jukebox'' interview with ''The Wire'', [[Kode9]] commented on a DJ [[MRK1]] (formerly Mark One) track, observing that listeners "have internalized the double-time rhythm" and the "track is so empty it makes [the listener] nervous, and you almost fill in the double time yourself, physically, to compensate".<ref name="Wire269">''Invisible Jukebox'', [[The Wire (magazine)|The Wire]] no. 269, July 2006</ref> |
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=== Structure, bass drops, rewinds and MCs === |
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[[Image:DubwarDeepMedi24.jpg|alt=Man sitting in a studio before two turntables and audio turning buttons, adjusting the sound as he listens over earphones.|thumb|right|Mala of Digital Mystikz]] |
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Originally, dubstep releases had some [[song structure (popular music)|structure]] similarities to other genres like drum and bass and UK garage. Typically this would comprise an [[introduction (music)|intro]], a main section (often incorporating a [[bass drop]]), a [[bridge (music)|midsection]], a second main section similar to the first (often with another drop), and an [[outro]]. |
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Many dubstep tracks incorporate one or more "bass drops", a characteristic inherited from drum 'n' bass. Typically, the percussion will pause, often reducing the track to silence, and then resume with more intensity, accompanied by a dominant subbass (often passing portamento through an entire octave or more, as in the audio example). However, this is by no means a completely rigid characteristic, rather a trope; a large portion of seminal tunes from producers like [[Kode9]] and [[Horsepower Productions]] have more experimental song structures which don't rely on a drop for a dynamic peak - and in some instances don't feature a bass drop at all. |
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Rewinds (or reloads)<ref name="Nice1">{{cite news | title=Interview with Joe Nice | date=2006-08-15 | publisher= | url =http://www.getdarker.com/?id=5&fid=7&tid=53 | work =GetDarker | pages = | accessdate = 2007-07-18 | language = }}</ref> are another technique used by dubstep DJs. If a song seems to be especially popular, the DJ will 'spin back' the record by hand without lifting the stylus, and play the track in question again. Rewinds are also an important live element in many of dubstep's precursors; the technique originates in dub reggae [[Sound system (DJ)|soundsystems]], is a standard of most pirate radio stations and is also used at UK garage and jungle nights.<ref name="Clark4">{{cite news | first=Martin | last=Clark | coauthors= | title=The Month In: Grime/Dubstep | date=2006-07-14 | publisher= | url =http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/37340-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep | work =Pitchfork Media | pages = | accessdate = 2007-07-18 | language = }}</ref> |
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Taking direct cues from [[Jamaica]]'s lyrically sparse [[deejay]] and [[Deejaying|toasting]] mic styles in the vein of [[reggae]] pioneers like [[U-Roy]], the MC's role in dubstep's live experience is critically important to its impact.<ref>[http://www.xlr8r.com/features/2006/09/low-end-theory Low End Theory: Dubstep Merchants | XLR8R<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> As the music is largely instrumental, the MC operates in a similar context to [[drum and bass]] and is generally more of a complement to the music rather than the deliverer of lyrical content.<ref>[http://www.boomkat.com/item.cfm?id=82272 Boomkat<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
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Notable mainstays in the live experience of the sound are MC Sgt Pokes and MC Crazy D from London, and [[Juakali]] from Trinidad.<ref name="nymag.com">{{cite web|last=Hammond |first=Bob |url=http://nymag.com/arts/popmusic/features/48667/ |title=The Evolution of Dubstep - New York Magazine |publisher=Nymag.com |date=2008-07-20 |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2007/mar/04/urbanmusic.features |title=Rising star: DMZ, music collective | Music | The Observer |publisher=Guardian |accessdate=2009-11-11 | location=London | first=Emma | last=Warren | date=2007-03-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://inyourbass.com/articles/39 |title=InYourBassTv presents Sgt. Pokes (Dour Festival 2008) |publisher=Inyourbass.com |date=2008-08-28 |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Kiss |url=http://www.totalkiss.com/Channels/Music/Music_DJPage.aspx?djId=73 |title=Crazy D & Hatcha | Official KISS Homepage |publisher=Totalkiss.com |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref> Production in a studio environment seems to lend itself to more experimentation. [[Kode9]] has collaborated extensively with [[the Spaceape]], who MCs in a [[Rastafari movement#Music|dread poet]] style. [[Kevin Martin (English musician)|Kevin Martin]]'s experiments with the genre are almost exclusively collaborations with MCs such as [[Warrior Queen (musician)|Warrior Queen]], [[Roll Deep|Flowdan]], and [[Tippa Irie]]. [[Skream]] has also featured Warrior Queen and grime artist [[Jamie Adenuga|JME]] on his debut album, ''[[Skream! (album)|Skream!]]''. [[Plastician]] who was one of the first DJ's to mix the sound of grime and dubstep together,<ref name="Pitch5">{{cite web | author= Clark, Martin | title= The Month In: Grime/Dubstep | work= [[Pitchfork Media]] | url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/43074-the-month-in-grime-dubstep | date= 23 May 2007 | accessdate=14 July [[2007]]}}</ref> has worked with notable grime duo [[Boy Better Know]] and has released tracks with a dubstep foundation and grime verses over the beats.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://markleman.blogspot.com/2007/12/plastcian-interview.html |title=Markle Said Wha?: Plastician Interview (as featured in ATM Magazine Nov 07) |publisher=Markleman.blogspot.com |date=2007-12-18 |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref> MaSp, Coki and Mala of [[Digital Mystikz]] have experimented with abrupt, 16-bar intros and have produced tracks with dub vocalists,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.boomkat.com/item.cfm?id=20781 |title=Digital Mystikz - Haunted / Anti-War Dub |accessdate=2007-10-26 |work=Boomkat }}</ref> and dubstep artist and label co-owner [[Skull Disco|Sam Shackleton]] has moved toward productions which fall outside the usual dubstep tempo, and sometimes entirely lack most of the common tropes of the genre.<ref name="wire281">{{cite journal|url=http://www.thewire.co.uk/current/index.php |journal=[[The Wire (magazine)|The Wire]] |issue=281 |title=Rave from the grave: Skull Disco}}</ref> |
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== History == |
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=== Early foundations === |
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While dubstep is its own distinct form of electronic music, its roots are surely located within [[Dub music|Jamaican dub music]] and soundsystem cultures. Jamaican soundsystems were "large mobile hi-fi or disco...[with] an emphasis on the reproduction of bass frequencies, its own aesthetics and a unique mode of consumption" <ref name="test">, 'Gilroy, Paul. ''There Ain't No Black in the Union Jack''. 1991 .</ref>. These soundsystems represented the appearance of records (dub plates) as modes of legitimate artistic creation. This was an integral moment in the evolution of electronic musics, both in Britain and worldwide. A vast number of record-based musical genres emerged in the last 50–60 years, all of which owe their base form to soundsystems. |
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Jamaican soundsystem culture gave birth to the dub variety of reggae music, which itself originated many of dubstep's characteristic sounds and sonic techniques. Features like sub-bass (bass less than 100Hz), skittering and jittery drums (which would later be termed '2-step'), distortive echo and reverberation effects were all used prominently.<ref name="test">Eckstein, Korte, & Pirker. ''Multi-Ethnic Britain 2000+: New Perspectives in Literature, Film and the Arts.'' 2008.</ref> These features, along with held over soundsystem techniques, went on to form the crux of numerous electronic musics which emerged from Britain, including jungle, garage, and eventually dubstep. |
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Sub-bass, however, has also been present in British dance music since the early 1990s - LFO by LFO on the Warp Records label, released in 1990 features sub-bass throughout, as does the B-side mix of [[Charly]] by [[The Prodigy]] (1991). [[Altern 8]]'s early breakbeat house/techno release ''Infiltrate 202'' - also from 1991 - begins with the phrase, "watch yer bassbins" referring to the heavy sub-bass running throughout the track.{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}} Another early sub-bass tune is Some Justice by Urban Shakedown, made in 1992 entirely on two Commodore Amiga 500 computers, achieved some chart success upon its release. The sub-bass in this track also rises and falls initially in a rather slow, then later speeding-up, oscillation pattern similar to a dubstep bassline. |
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=== 1999–2002: origins === |
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[[Image:MixingRecords-Croydon.jpg|alt=Open door of a grey brick building with a shop window and a computer screen visible through it.|thumb|left|The Mixing Records record shop, formerly Big Apple Records, in Croydon]] The sound of dubstep originally came out of productions by [[El-B]],<ref name="wire279" /> Steve Gurley,<ref name="wire279" /> Oris Jay,<ref name="RA101" /> and [[Zed Bias]]<ref name="Mugan">Mugan, Chris. [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20060728/ai_n16635113 Straight outta Croydon]. [[The Independent]]. 14. July 28, 2006</ref><ref name="Pitch3">{{cite web | author= Clark, Martin | title= The Month In: Grime/Dubstep | work= [[Pitchfork Media]] | url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/10336-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep | date= 25 January 2006 | accessdate=4 July [[2007]]}}</ref> in 1999-2000. Ammunition Promotions, who run the influential club Forward>> and have managed many proto dubstep record labels (including [[Tempa]], Soulja, Road, Vehicle, Shelflife, Texture, Lifestyle and Bingo),<ref name="Time1" /><ref name="RA101" /> began to use the term "dubstep" to describe this style of music in around 2002. The term's use in a 2002 ''[[XLR8R]]'' cover story (featuring [[Horsepower Productions]] on the cover) contributed to it becoming established as the name of the genre.<ref name="Mugan" /><ref name="Keast">Keast, Darren. "[http://www.sfweekly.com/2006-11-15/music/dawn-of-dubstep/full Dawn of Dubstep; Will this bass-heavy dance phenomenon blow out only your speakers or will it really blow up?]." ''[[SF Weekly]]''. 15 November 2006.</ref> It gained full acceptance with the Dubstep Allstars Vol 1 CD ([[Tempa]]) mixed by DJ Hatcha.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hardwax.com/51975/ |title=DJ Hatcha presents Dubstep Allstars Vol. 1 |accessdate=2007-10-26 |work=Hardwax }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ukrecordshop.com/shop/customer/product.php?productid=18225 |title=Dubstep Allstars Volume 1 |accessdate=2007-10-26 |work=UKRecordShop }}</ref> |
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The club Forward>> was originally held at the Velvet Rooms in London's [[Soho]] and is now running every Sunday at Plastic People in [[Shoreditch]], east London.<ref name="cbc"/> Founded in 2001, Forward>> was critical to the development of dubstep, providing the first venue devoted to the sound and an environment in which dubstep producers could premier new music.<ref name="djmag">{{cite journal|title=The Dubstep Explosion!|journal=DJ Mag|date=2007-08-01|first=Emma|last=Warren|coauthors=|volume=4|issue=46|pages=p32|id= |url=}}</ref> Around this time, Forward>> was also incubating several other strains of dark garage hybrids, so much so that in the early days of the club the coming together of these strains was referred to as the "Forward>> sound".<ref name="'Pitch4/06'"> {{cite web|url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/31249-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep |title=Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep |accessdate=2007-07-18 |last=Clark |first=Martin |date=2006-04-12 |work=[[Pitchfork Media]] }}</ref> An online flyer from around this time encapsulated the Forward>> sound as "b-lines to make your chest cavity shudder."<ref name="FWD1">{{cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=2006 flier for the FWD>> club, from the Internet Archive | date=2006-06-23 | publisher= | url=http://www.ilovefwd.com/ | archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20060616192259/http://www.ilovefwd.com/ | archivedate=2006-06-16 | work =FWD>> website | pages = | accessdate = 2007-07-18 | language = }}</ref> |
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Forward>> also ran a radio show on east London pirate station [[Rinse FM]], hosted by [[Kode9]].<ref>[http://www.tempa.co.uk/art_kode_9.html Tempa<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref name="kode9blog">{{cite web|url=http://www.kode9.com/ |title=kode9 |publisher=kode9 |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref name="fiddy">[http://chantellefiddy.blogspot.com/2006/03/introducing-kode-9.html Chantelle Fiddy's World of Whatever: Introducing... Kode 9<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The original Forward>> residents included Hatcha, Youngsta, Kode9, Zed Bias, Oris Jay,<ref name="RA101" /> Slaughter Mob, Jay Da Flex, Slimzee and others, plus regular guests. The line up of residents has changed over the years to include Youngsta, Hatcha, Geeneus and [[Plastician]], with Crazy D as MC/host. Producers including D1, Skream and [[Benga (musician)|Benga]] make regular appearances.<ref name="djmag"/> |
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Another crucial element in the early development of dubstep was the Big Apple Records record shop in [[Croydon]].<ref name="Time1" /> Key artists such as Hatcha and later Skream worked in the shop (which initially sold early UK Hardcore / Rave, Techno and House and later, garage and drum and bass, but evolved with the emerging dubstep scene in the area),<ref name="wire279" /> while Digital Mystikz were frequent visitors. El-B, Zed Bias, [[Horsepower Productions]], Plastician, N Type, Walsh and a young Loefah regularly visited the shop as well.<ref name="Time1" /> The shop and its record label have since closed down<ref name="Mugan"/> and reopened under the name Mixing Records. |
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=== 2002–2005: evolution === |
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[[Image:Skream live.jpg|alt=Person who looks to be a teenage male putting a turntable needle on a record in a studio.|thumb|right|Dubstep producer Skream, one of the most widely known names on the scene since the beginning of the Dubstep movement]] Throughout 2003, DJ Hatcha pioneered a new direction for dubstep on Rinse FM and through his sets at Forward>>.<ref name="Time1" /><ref name="Pitch3" /> Playing sets cut to 10" one-off reggae-style [[dubplate]]s, he drew exclusively from a pool of new South London producers—first [[Benga (musician)|Benga]] and Skream,<ref name="Pitch3" /> then also Digital Mystikz and Loefah—to begin a dark, clipped and minimal new direction in dubstep.<ref name="'Pitch6/05'"> {{cite web|url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/10330-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep |title=Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep |accessdate=2007-07-18 |last=Clark |first=Martin |date=2005-06-22 |work=Pitchfork Media }}</ref> |
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At the end of 2003, running independently from the pioneering FWD night, an event called Filthy Dub, co promoted by [[Plastician]], and partner David Carlisle started happening regularly. It was there that Skream, Benga, N Type, Walsh, Chef and Loefah made their debuts as DJ's. South London collective Digital Mystikz (Mala and Coki), along with labelmates and collaborators Loefah and MC Sgt Pokes soon came into their own, bringing sound system thinking, [[dub music|dub]] values, and appreciation of [[Oldschool jungle|jungle]] bass weight to the dubstep scene.<ref name="Mugan" /> Digital Mystikz brought an expanded palette of sounds and influences to the genre, most prominently reggae and dub, as well as orchestral melodies.<ref name="Pitch2">{{cite web | author= Clark, Martin | title= The Month In: Grime/Dubstep | work= [[Pitchfork Media]] | url=http://pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/10331-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep | date= 20 July 2006 | accessdate=4 July [[2007]]}}</ref> |
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After releasing 12"s on Big Apple, they founded DMZ Records, which has released fourteen 12"s to date. They also began their night DMZ, held every two months in [[Brixton]],<ref name="'Clash'">{{cite journal|title=Dmz|journal=[[Clash (magazine)|Clash]]|date=2006-09|first=Tom|last=Churchill|coauthors=|volume=|issue=|pages=|id= |url=http://tomchurchill.com/writing/dmz.html|accessdate=2007-07-18|archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070928154710/http://tomchurchill.com/writing/dmz.html |archivedate = September 28, 2007|deadurl=yes}}</ref> a part of London already strongly associated with reggae.<ref name="'Pitch5/05'"> {{cite web|url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/10329-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep |title=Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep |accessdate=2007-07-18 |last=Clark |first=Martin |date=2005-05-25 |work=Pitchfork Media }}</ref> DMZ has showcased new dubstep artists such as Skream, Kode 9, Benga, [[Pinch (dubstep musician)|Pinch]], DJ Youngsta, Hijak, [[Joe Nice]] and Vex'd. DMZ's first anniversary event (at the Mass venue, a converted church) saw fans attending from places as far away as Sweden, the U.S., and Australia, leading to a queue of 600 people<ref name="RWD"/> at the event. This forced the club to move from its regular 400-capacity space<ref name="Pitch1" /> to Mass' main room, an event cited as a pivotal moment in dubstep's history.<ref name="RA101" /><ref>{{cite web | author= Clark, Martin | title= The Month In: Grime/Dubstep | work= [[Pitchfork Media]] | url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/10337-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep | date= 8 March 2006 | accessdate=10 July [[2007]]}}</ref> |
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In 2004, [[Aphex Twin|Richard James]]' label, [[Rephlex]], released two compilations that included dubstep tracks - the (perhaps misnamed) ''Grime'' and ''Grime 2''. The first featured Plasticman , Mark One and Slaughter Mob,<ref>[http://www.cyclicdefrost.com/review.php?review=568 Cyclic Defrost - Issue #008 (June 2004) - Various Artists - Grime (Rephlex) / DJ Slimzee - Bingo Beats III (Bingo)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> with Kode 9, Loefah and Digital Mystikz appearing on the second.<ref>[http://www.cyclicdefrost.com/review.php?review=724 Cyclic Defrost - Issue #010 (January 2005) - Various Artists – Grime 2 (Rephlex)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> These compilations helped to raise awareness of dubstep at a time when the grime sound was drawing more attention,<ref name="Mugan" /> and Digital Mystikz and Loefah's presence on the second release contributed to the success of their DMZ club night.<ref>{{cite web | author= Clark, Martin | title= The Month In: Grime/Dubstep | work= [[Pitchfork Media]] | url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/10333-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep | date= 11 September 2005 | accessdate=17 July [[2007]]}}</ref> Soon afterwards, the ''[[Independent on Sunday]]'' commented on "a whole new sound", at a time when both genres were becoming popular, stating that "grime" and "dubstep" were two names for the same style, which was also known as "sublow", "8-bar" and "eskibeat".<ref name="IOS">{{cite news|work=[[The Independent]] |date=2004-02-22 |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4159/is_20040222/ai_n12752133 |last=Braddock |first=Kevin |title = Partners in Grime}}</ref> |
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=== 2005–2008: growth === |
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[[Image:BMSohoDubstepRack.jpg|alt=Two vertical columns of binds holding records in paper sleeves for sale. Lettering identifying each bin is by hand.|left|thumb|200|Dubstep Section at Black Market Records, Soho, London]] In the summer of 2005, Forward>> brought grime DJs to the fore of the line up.<ref name="'Clark5'">{{cite news | first=Clark | last=Martin | coauthors= | title=The Month In: Grime/Dubstep | date=2005-06-22 | publisher= | url =http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/10330-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep | work =Pitchfork Media | pages = | accessdate = 2007-07-18 | language = }}</ref> Building on the success of Skream's grimey anthem "Midnight Request Line," the hype around the DMZ night and support from online forums (notably dubstepforum.com<ref name="cbc" />) and media,<ref name="Pitch1" /> the scene gained prominence after Radio 1 DJ Mary Anne Hobbs gathered top figures from the scene for one show, entitled "Dubstep Warz", (later releasing the [[compilation album]] "[[Warrior Dubz]]").<ref name="RWD">[http://www.rwdmag.com/articles/4973.html About 2 Blow: Dubstep: RWD Magazine<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The show created a new global audience for the scene, after years of exclusively UK underground buzz.<ref name="cbc"/> [[Burial (musician)|Burial]]'s self-titled album appearing in many critics' "Best of..." lists for the year, notably ''The Wire'''s Best Album of 2006.<ref>{{cite web | author= Butler, Nick | title= Burial - Burial | work= Sputnikmusic | url=http://www.sputnikmusic.com/album.php?albumid=19022 | date= 19 June 2007 | accessdate=16 July [[2007]]}}</ref><ref>[http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/thewire.html The Wire<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The sound was also featured prominently in the [[Children of Men (soundtracks)|soundtrack]] for the 2006 sci-fi film [[Children of Men]],<ref name="'Reynolds'">{{cite journal|title=Reasons to Be Cheerful (Just Three)|journal=[[The Village Voice]]|first=Simon|last=Reynolds|coauthors=|volume=|issue=|pages=|id= |url=http://www.villagevoice.com/pazzandjop06/0706,reynolds,75737,22.html|format={{Dead link|date=July 2008}} – <sup>[http://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&lr=&q=author%3AReynolds+intitle%3AReasons+to+Be+Cheerful+%28Just+Three%29&as_publication=%5B%5BThe+Village+Voice%5D%5D&as_ylo=&as_yhi=&btnG=Search Scholar search]</sup>|accessdate=2007-07-18}}</ref> which included Digital Mystikz, Random Trio, Kode 9, [[Kevin Martin (English musician)|Pressure]] and DJ Pinch.<ref name="Yahoo">{{cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=Cast and Credits for "Children of Men" | date= | publisher= | url =http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808715896/cast | work =Yahoo! Movies | pages = | accessdate = 2007-07-19 | language = }}</ref> Ammunition also released the first retrospective compilation of the 2000-2004 era of dubstep called "The Roots of Dubstep", co-compiled by Ammunition and Blackdown on the [[Tempa]] Label.<ref>[http://www.cyclicdefrost.com/review.php?review=1397 Cyclic Defrost - Issue #015 (November 2006) - Various Artists - The Roots Of Dubstep (Tempa)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
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{{Listen|filename=Skream-MidnightRequestLine-sample.ogg|title=Skream - Midnight Request Line (2005)|description=Excerpt from "Midnight Request Line" by Skream, one of the most widely known dubstep tracks.}} |
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The sound's first North American ambassador, Baltimore DJ Joe Nice helped kickstart its spread into the continent.<ref name="cbc"/> Regular Dubstep club nights started appearing in cities like New York,<ref name="'TimeNY'">{{cite journal|title=Brand new heavy|journal=Time out New York|date=2006-03-02|first=|last=|coauthors=|volume=|issue=544|pages=|id= |url=http://www.timeout.com/newyork/article/643/brand-new-heavy|format=|accessdate=2007-07-18}}</ref> San Francisco,<ref name="Keast" /> Seattle, Houston, and Denver,<ref name="'xlr8r1'">{{cite news | first=Tomas | last=Palermo | coauthors= | title=The Week In Dubstep | date=2007-06-18 | publisher= | url =http://www.xlr8r.com/topstories/2007/06/the_week_in_dubstep_2.php | work =[[XLR8R]] | pages = | accessdate = 2007-07-18 | language = }}</ref> while Mary Anne Hobbs curated a Dubstep showcase at 2007's [[Sónar]] festival in Barcelona.<ref name="RA101">Sande, Kiran. [http://www.residentadvisor.net/feature-read.aspx?id=822 "Dubstep 101"]. [[Resident Advisor]]. June 7, 2007</ref> Non-British artists have also won praise within the larger Dubstep community.<ref name="RA101" /> The dynamic dubstep scene in Japan is growing quickly despite its cultural and geographical distance from the West. Such DJ/producers as Goth-trad, Hyaku-mado, Ena and Doppelganger are major figures in the Tokyo scene.<ref name="JTimes">McBride, Blair.[http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fm20100319a1.html "Japan's dubstep forges own path; Goth-trad, 100mado build scene from scratch"]. [[Japan Times]]. March 19, 2010</ref> Joe Nice has played at DMZ,<ref name="Clark3">[http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/10337-column-the-month-in-grime-dubstep Pitchfork Feature: Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> while the fifth installment of [[Tempa]]'s "Dubstep Allstars" mix series (released in 2007) included tracks by Finnish producer Tes La Rok and Americans JuJu and Matty G.<ref name="Warren">{{cite news | author= Warren, Emma | title= Various, Dubstep Allstars 5 - Mixed By DJ N-Type | work= Guardian Unlimited | url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/print/0,,329781715-111639,00.html | date= 22 April 2007 | accessdate=13 June [[2007]] | location=London}}</ref> Following on from Rinse FM's pioneering start; three internet based radio station's called SubFM, DubstepFM and DubTerrain started to play the sound exclusively with 24 hour broadcasting featuring show archives and live DJ shows. |
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[[Image:MaryAnneHobbsOnDecks.jpg|alt=Long-haired, blonde female in low cut sweater and low cut jeans wearing earphones, stands before a studio sound board adjusting the switches.|thumb|right|BBC Radio 1 DJ Mary Anne Hobbs]] Techno artists and DJs are now assimilating dubstep into their sets and productions.<ref name="RA101" /> Shackleton's "Blood On My Hands" was remixed by [[minimal techno]] producer [[Ricardo Villalobos]] (an act reciprocated when Villalobos included a Shackleton mix on his "Vasco" EP) <ref>[http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/51419-vasco-ep-part-1 Vasco EP Part 1 | Pitchfork<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> and included on a mix CD by [[Panoramabar]] resident Cassy.<ref name="RA101" /> [[Ellen Allien]] and [[Apparat (musician)|Apparat]]'s 2006 song "Metric" (from the [[Orchestra of Bubbles]] album),<ref name="Orch1">{{cite news | first=Nate | last=De Jong | coauthors= | title=Stylus Review of "Orchestra of Bubbles" | date=2006-04-19 | publisher= | url =http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/ellen-allien-apparat/orchestra-of-bubbles.htm | work =Stylus Magazine | pages = | accessdate = 2007-07-19 | language = }}</ref><ref name="Orch2">{{cite news | first=Philip | last=Sherburne | coauthors= | title=Pitchfork Review of "Orchestra of Bubbles" | date=2006-05-04 | publisher= | url =http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/15164-orchestra-of-bubbles| work =Pitchfork Media | pages = | accessdate = 2007-07-19 | language = }}</ref> [[Modeselektor]]'s Godspeed (from the 2007's Happy Birthday! album, among other tracks on that same album) and Roman Flugel's remix of [[Riton (musician)|Riton]]'s "Hammer of Thor" are other examples of dubstep-influenced techno.<ref name="RA101" /> Berlin's Hard Wax record store (operated by influential<ref name="metro">[http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/story.asp?id=6949 Losing your mind in Berlin (Metro Times Detroit)]</ref> dub techno artists Basic Channel)<ref name="sherburne1">[http://phs.abstractdynamics.org/2005/11/ philip sherburne: November 2005 Archives<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref name="blackdownbc">[http://blackdownsoundboy.blogspot.com/2007/04/on-friday-night.html Blackdown: One Friday night<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> has also championed Shackleton's [[Skull Disco]] label, later broadening its focus to include other dubstep releases.<ref name="Pitch5" /> |
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The summer of 2007 saw dubstep's musical palette expand further, with [[Benga]] and [[Digital Mystikz|Coki]] scoring a crossover hit (in a similar manner to Skream's "Midnight Request Line") with the track "Night", which gained widespread play from DJs in a diverse range of genres. [[BBC Radio 1]] DJ [[Gilles Peterson]] named it his record of 2007, and it was also a massive hit in the equally bassline-orientated, but decidedly more [[four-to-the-floor]] genre of [[bassline house]],<ref name="Clark9">[http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/46889-the-month-in-grime-dubstep Pitchfork Feature: Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> whilst Burial's late 2007 release ''[[Untrue]]'' (which was nominated for the 2008 [[Mercury Music Prize|Nationwide Mercury Music Prize]] in the UK) incorporated extensive use of heavily manipulated, mostly female, 'girl next door' vocal samples.<ref>[http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90611642 Burial: Beautiful Dread, Inviting and Sinister : NPR Music<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Burial has spoken at length regarding his intent to reincorporate elements of musical precursors such as 2-step garage and house into his sound.<ref name="hyperdub1">{{cite news | first=Steve | last=Goodman | coauthors= | title=Kode9 interviews Burial | date=2007-11-01 | publisher=[[Hyperdub]] | url =http://hyperdubrecords.blogspot.com/2007/10/burial-untrue-november-2007.html | work = | pages = | accessdate = 2007-11-14 }}</ref> |
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Some critics have also seen a dubstep influence in the Britney Spears song "Freakshow" (from her 2007 album [[Blackout (Britney Spears album)|Blackout]]), which Tom Ewing describes as "built around the 'wobbler' effect that's a genre standby."<ref name="'ewing'">{{cite news | first=Tom | last=Ewing | coauthors= | title=Column: Poptimist #10: Britney in the Black Lodge (Damn Fine Album) | date=2007-11-20 | publisher= | url =http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/47096-column-poptimist-10 | work =[[Pitchfork Media]] | pages = | accessdate = 2007-11-21 | language = }}</ref><ref name="'oc'">{{cite news | first=Dave | last=Segal | coauthors= | title=Have You Heard of This Britney Spears Chick? | date=2007-11-06 | publisher=[[Village Voice Media]] | url =http://blogs.ocweekly.com/heardmentality/new-releases/have-you-heard-of-this-britney/ | work =Heard Mentality:The [[OC Weekly]] Music Blog | pages = | accessdate = 2007-11-21 | language = }}</ref> |
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Much like drum and bass before it, dubstep has started to become incorporated into other media, particularly in the United Kingdom. In 2007, Benga, Skream, and other dubstep producers provided the soundtrack to much of the second series of [[Dubplate Drama]], which aired on [[Channel 4]] with a soundtrack CD later released on [[Rinse FM|Rinse Recordings]]. The sound also featured prominently in the second series of the teen drama [[Skins (TV series)|Skins]], which also aired on Channel 4 in early 2008. |
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In the summer of 2008, [[Mary Anne Hobbs]] invited Cyrus, Starkey, Oneman, [[DJ Chef]], Silkie, Quest, Joker, Nomad, Kulture and MC Sgt Pokes to the [[BBC]]'s [[Maida Vale Studios|Maida Vale]] studios for a show called ''Generation Bass''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/maryannehobbs/maryannetv.shtml |title=Mary Anne Hobbs - TV |publisher=BBC |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=2DD5C13DEAEA9275 |title=Broadcast Yourself |publisher=YouTube |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rwdmag.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2398:radio-one-hosts-generation-bass&catid=44:news&Itemid=80 |title=Radio One Hosts Generation Bass « RWD |publisher=Rwdmag.com |date=2008-08-18 |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref> The show was the evolution from her seminal [[BBC]] Radio 1 Dubstepwarz Show in 2006, and further documented another set of dubstep's producers. |
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In the autumn of 2008, a limited pressing 12" called "Iron Devil"<ref>Link to Discogs page for [[Lee "Scratch" Perry]], Dubbblestandart, [[Subatomic Sound System]], [[Prince Far-I]] "Iron Devil" 12" http://www.discogs.com/Dubblestandart-featuring-Lee-Scratch-Perry-Prince-Far-I-Iron-Devil/release/1554929</ref> was released featuring [[Lee Scratch Perry]] and [[Prince Far-I]] in a dubstep style, including a tune based on the Perry riddim used on reggae hits like "Disco Devil", "[[Chase The Devil]]", and "Croaking Lizard". This was the first recorded example of a founder of Jamaican dub style acknowledging dubstep and creating new music in the genre, reinforcing the connection of dubstep to its roots in Jamaican dub reggae at a time when it seemed dubstep was moving away from its reggae underpinnings. |
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As the genre has spread to become an international rather than UK-centric scene, it has also seen a number of women making headway into the scene in a variety of ways. Alongside Soulja of Ammunition Promotions and Mary Anne Hobbs, an influx of female producers, writers, photographers and DJs all have broken through, in the up-til-then male orientated scene, without making gender an issue. With key 12" releases on [[Hyperdub]], [[Immigrant (record label)|Immigrant]] and [[Hotflush Recordings]], producers [[Vaccine (musician)|Vaccine]], [[Subeena]] and [[Ikonika]] have introduced a palette of new sounds and influences to the genre, such as double-time bass drums, [[chiptune|8-bit]] [[video game]] samples, hand percussion and lushly arranged strings.<ref name="timeoutlondon">[http://www.timeout.com/london/clubs/features/5005/Women_in_dubstep.html Women in dubstep - Time Out London<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Mary Anne Hobbs commented that the mood at dubstep nights is less aggressive, or more meditative, leading to a larger female attendance at events than with the genre's precursors, noting "Grime and drum 'n' bass raves tend to be quite aggy. People in dubstep clubs tend to have a more meditative approach, which is inviting to females. You see the female-to-male ratio constantly going up – it’s got the potential to be 40:60".<ref name="timeoutlondon" /> |
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Journalists [[Melissa Bradshaw]],<ref>[http://www.planbmag.com/content/view/559/42/ When We Meet: Issue 24 - Plan B Magazine<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://www.planbmag.com/content/view/448/42 Dubstep - Plan B Magazine<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> [[Emma Warren]],<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/emmawarren | work=The Guardian | location=London | date=2008-02-04 | accessdate=2010-05-01}}</ref><ref>[http://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/TEAM.71.0.html?act_aced=115&profile_id=68 Red Bull Music Academy - People<!-- Dave generated title -->]</ref> and dubstep documentarian and photographer [[Georgina Cook]] have all had massive impact on the cultural importance of the music. Cook's Drumz of the South [[flickr]] page documents the evolution of the scene in a photographic timeline of sorts, and was for a time the only photographic archive of the key events such as the early FWD and DMZ nights in London.<ref name="timeoutlondon" /><ref>[http://www.melissabradshaw.net Decks in the City<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/drumzofthesouth Flickr: infinite's Photostream<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/collective/gallery/2/static.shtml?collection=dubstep BBC - Collective - Gallery - Dubstep<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
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=== 2009-2010: mainstream influence === |
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The year 2009 saw the dubstep sound gain further worldwide recognition, often through the assimilation of elements of the sound into other genres, in a manner similar to drum and bass before it. At the start of the year, UK electronic duo [[La Roux]] put their single "In for The Kill" in the remix hands of [[Skream]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/mar/15/la-roux-in-for-kill |title=Electronic review: La Roux, In For the Kill (Skream remix) | Music | The Observer |publisher=Guardian |accessdate=2009-11-11 | location=London | date=2009-03-15}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefader.com/articles/2009/4/14/freeload-la-roux-in-for-the-kill-skream-s-let-s-get-ravey-remix |title=Freeload: La Roux, “In For The Kill (Skream’s Let’s Get Ravey Remix) « The FADER |publisher=Thefader.com |date=2009-04-14 |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref>, they then gave remix duties of 'Not Your Toy' to Nero and then again, with their single "Bulletproof" being remixed by Zinc. [[Benga (musician)|Benga]] and Coki's single "Night" still continued to be a popular track on the UK dance chart more than a year after its release in late 2007, still ranking in the top five at the start of April on [[Pete Tong]]'s BBC Radio One dance chart list.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/chart/dancesingles.shtml |title=Radio 1 - BBC Radio 1's Chart Show with Reggie Yates - UK Top 40 Dance Singles |publisher=BBC |date=2007-02-24 |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref> |
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London producer Silkie released an influential album ''City Limits Vol. 1'' on the Deep Medi label, using 70s funk and soul reference points, a departure from the familiar strains of dub and UK garage.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.factmagazine.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3076&Itemid=70 |title=music & art news, upfront videos, free downloads, classic vinyl, competitions, gigs, clubs, festivals & exhibitions - New talent: Silkie |publisher=FACT magazine |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://pitchfork.com/features/grime-dubstep/7657-grime-dubstep/ |title=Grime / Dubstep: Grime / Dubstep |publisher=Pitchfork |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref> |
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In a move foreshadowed by endorsements of the sound from R&B and hip-hop figures such as [[Rihanna]], [[Public Enemy (group)|Public Enemy]]'s [[The Bomb Squad|Hank Shocklee]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dazedgroup.com/Music/article/1000/1/Hank_Shocklee |title=Dazed Digital | Hank Shocklee |publisher=Dazedgroup.com |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref> [[Snoop Dogg]] collaborated with drum and bass producers [[Chase and Status]], providing a vocal for their UK underground anthem "Eastern Jam". This propelled the tune into the biggest radio markets overnight, with considerable airplay.<ref name="independent.co.uk">{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/dubstep-it-up-1673292.html |title=Dubstep it up - Features, Music |publisher=The Independent |accessdate=2009-11-11 | location=London | date=2009-04-24}}</ref>,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.xxlmag.com/online/?p=41126 |title=XXLmag.com |publisher=XXLmag.com |date=2009-05-19 |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref>. Other hip-hop artists like [[Xzibit]] added their vocals to dubstep instrumental tracks for the mixtape project ''Mr Grustle & Tha Russian Dubstep LA Embrace The Renaissance Vol. 1 Mixed by [[Plastician]]''.<ref name="independent.co.uk"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://dubstepped.net/index.php/tag/alexander-spit/ |title=Alexander Spit |publisher=Dubstepped.net |date=2009-05-19 |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref> By the late summer, female rapper and actress [[Eve (entertainer)|Eve]] used [[Benga (musician)|Benga]]'s "E Trips"; adding her own verses over the beat to create a new tune called "Me N My"; the first single on her album ''Flirt''. The track was co-produced by [[Benga (musician)|Benga]] and noted hip hop producer [[Salaam Remi]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/11440-me-n-my-up-in-the-club/ |title=Track Reviews: Eve - "Me N My (Up in the Club)" |publisher=Pitchfork |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefader.com/2009/08/04/eve-me-n-my-prod-by-salaam-remi-benga-mp3 |title=Eve, “Me N My (prod. by Salaam Remi & Benga)” MP3 « The FADER |publisher=Thefader.com |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref> |
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The sound has also continued to interest the mainstream press with key articles in magazines like ''[[Interview (magazine)|Interview]]'', ''[[New York (magazine)|New York]]'', and ''[[The Wire (magazine)|The Wire]]'', which featured producer [[Kode9]] on its May 2009 cover. ''[[XLR8R]]'' put Joker on the cover of its December 2009 issue.<ref name="nymag.com"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.interviewmagazine.com/music/the-london-dubstep-scene/ |title=The London Dubstep Scene |publisher=Interview Magazine |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thewire.co.uk/issues/303/ |title=Adventures in Modern Music: Issues |publisher=The Wire |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>http://www.xlr8r.com/magazine/130</ref> By the end of 2009, ''[[The New York Times]]'', ''[[XLR8R]]'', ''[[NME]]'' and ''[[The Sunday Times]]'' all reviewed the genre.<ref>Jon Caramanica, "Washes of Sound, Wobbles of Bass," ''[[The New York Times]]'' September 22, 2009, at p. C5, also found at [http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/22/arts/music/22hobbs.html The New York Times website]. Retrieved September 22, 2009.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.xlr8r.com/features/2009/09/mutant-funk |title=Mutant Funk: Cooly G, Geeneus, and Roska take UK funky and dubstep back to the lab. |publisher=XLR8R |date=2009-09-24 |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nme.com/blog/index.php?blog=15&title=2009_the_year_that_dubstep_broke_track_t&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1 |title=2009: The Year That Dubstep Broke - Timeline Playlist - New Music Radar - NME.COM - The world's fastest music news service, music videos, interviews, photos and free stuff to win |publisher=Nme.Com |date= |accessdate=2009-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article6864745.ece | location=London | title=Steve Goodman keeps on pioneering | first=Rob | last=Fitzpatrick | date=2009-10-11 | work=The Times}}</ref>. |
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== See also == |
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* [[List of dubstep musicians]] |
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== References == |
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{{Reflist|2}} |
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== External links == |
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* [http://www.dubstepforum.com/ DubstepForum] popular dubstep message board |
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* [http://www.ilovefwd.com FWD>>] influential dubstep/grime club night |
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* [http://www.barefiles.com/ Barefiles] A highly influential mixes archive website for international followers. |
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* [http://www.getdarker.com/ GetDarker] An online magazine full of interviews, articles, photos from events and videos. |
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* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/collective/A10695684 BBC Collective dubstep documentary filmed at DMZ 1st Birthday, 2005.] Interviews with Mala, Loefah, Skream, [[Kode9]], Youngsta... |
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* [http://blackdownsoundboy.blogspot.com/ Blackdown blog] by UK music journalist Martin Clark |
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* [http://pitchfork.com/features/grime-dubstep/6381-the-month-in-grime-dubstep/ The Month In: Grime/Dubstep] Columns by Martin Clark on [[Pitchfork Media]] |
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* [http://www.kmag.co.uk/editorial/features/essential-dubstep-tracks-of-the-00s The Essential Dubstep Tracks Of The 00s] A selection of 20 essentials dubstep tracks on K Mag. |
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* [http://gutterbreakz.blogspot.com/ Gutterbreakz] long-running dubstep blog |
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* [http://drumzofthesouth.blogspot.com Drumz of the South] longtime archive of key dubstep photography. |
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* [http://www.riddim.ca Riddim.ca] Long-running grime/dubstep site. Home of the Hyperdub articles archive. |
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* [http://www.kode9-djkicks.com Kode9 state of the art mix] Microsite for latest [[Kode9]] Mix album |
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{{UK garage}} |
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{{Good article}} |
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Revision as of 01:05, 22 July 2010
Dubstep | |
---|---|
Stylistic origins | UK garage (primarily 2-step) Grime Dub Drum and bass |
Cultural origins | Early-mid 2000s, South London, England |
Typical instruments | Sequencer, turntables, sampler, drum machine, synthesizer, keyboard, personal computer |
Other topics | |
List of musicians |
Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music. Its overall sound has been described as "tightly coiled productions with overwhelming bass lines and reverberant drum patterns, clipped samples, and occasional vocals".[1]
The earliest dubstep releases, which date back to 1999, were darker, more experimental, instrumental dub remixes of 2-step garage tracks attempting to incorporate the funky elements of breakbeat, or the dark elements of drum and bass into 2-step, which featured as B-sides of single releases. In 2001, this and other strains of dark garage music began to be showcased and promoted at London's club night Forward>>, which went on to be considerably influential to the development of dubstep. The term "dubstep" in reference to a genre of music began to be used by around 2002, by which time stylistic trends used in creating these remixes started to become more noticeable and distinct from 2-step and grime.
A very early supporter of the sound was BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel, who started playing it from 2003 onwards. In 2004, the last year of his show, he put Distance, Digital Mystikz and Plastician (formerly Plasticman) in his top 50 for the year.[2] Dubstep started to spread beyond small local scenes in late 2005 and early 2006; many websites devoted to the genre appeared on the internet and thus aided the growth of the scene, such as dubstepforum, the download site Barefiles and blogs such as gutterbreakz.[3] Simultaneously, the genre was receiving extensive coverage in music magazines such as The Wire and online publications such as Pitchfork Media, with a regular feature entitled The Month In: Grime/Dubstep. Interest in dubstep grew significantly after BBC Radio 1 DJ Mary Anne Hobbs started championing the genre, beginning with a show devoted to it (entitled "Dubstep Warz") in January 2006.[4][5][6]
Characteristics
![Sheet music showing four four-bar lines.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Dubsamplescore.jpg/220px-Dubsamplescore.jpg)
Dubstep's early roots are in the more experimental releases of UK garage producers, seeking to incorporate elements of drum and bass into the South London-based 2-step garage sound. These experiments often ended up on the B-side of a white label or commercial garage release.[4][7][8] Dubstep is generally instrumental. Like another, more vocal garage hybrid, grime, the genre's feel is commonly dark; tracks frequently use a minor key and can feature dissonant harmonies such as the tritone interval within a riff. Other distinguishing features often found are the use of samples, a propulsive, sparse rhythm,[9] and an almost omnipresent sub-bass. Some dubstep artists have also incorporated a variety of outside influences, from dub-influenced techno such as Basic Channel to classical music or heavy metal.[9][10][11]
Followers of dubstep also use generally negative terms to describe songs they like, such as ‘dirty’, ‘filthy’, or ‘grimy’. The more dirty/filthy/grimy a particular song is seen as being, the more disturbing subsequent descriptions of the song become. Not unlike The Aristocrats, followers sometimes attempt to outdo each other in these descriptions.[citation needed]
Rhythm
Dubstep rhythms are usually syncopated, and often shuffled or incorporating triplets. The tempo is nearly always in the range of 130-148bpm.[9] Dubstep rhythms typically do not follow the four-to-the-floor patterns common in many other styles of electronic dance music such as techno and house, but instead tend to rely on a kickdrum based around the first and third beat of a bar (a characteristic inherited from 2-step garage) and longer percussion loops than the four-bar phrases present in much techno or house. Often, a track's percussion will follow a pattern which when heard alone will appear to be playing at half the tempo of the track; the double-time feel is instead achieved by other elements, usually the bassline. An example of this tension generated by the conflicting tempo can be listened on the right. The song features a very sparse rhythm almost entirely composed of kick drum, snare drum, and a sparse hi-hat, with a distinctly half time implied 71bpm tempo. The track is instead propelled by a sub-bass following a four to the floor 142bpm pattern.
A heavy reverberated Snare hit is a common occurrence within the dubstep genre. This distinguishing feature can be created several ways; firstly the level of the hit is usually 6-18dB louder than the drum kit mix and secondly the use of long-held slow release reverb which assists it to stand out within the track due to the depth it creates. The composition of the snare sample itself is the most common method of making it stand out, typically it is a multi-layered sample oriented around an ordinary snare cut. Layered around this; other samples are 'tied' to the attack of the wave, these usually consist of White Noise, Hand Claps and digital snips.
In an Invisible Jukebox interview with The Wire, Kode9 commented on a DJ MRK1 (formerly Mark One) track, observing that listeners "have internalized the double-time rhythm" and the "track is so empty it makes [the listener] nervous, and you almost fill in the double time yourself, physically, to compensate".[12]
Structure, bass drops, rewinds and MCs
![Man sitting in a studio before two turntables and audio turning buttons, adjusting the sound as he listens over earphones.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/DubwarDeepMedi24.jpg/220px-DubwarDeepMedi24.jpg)
Originally, dubstep releases had some structure similarities to other genres like drum and bass and UK garage. Typically this would comprise an intro, a main section (often incorporating a bass drop), a midsection, a second main section similar to the first (often with another drop), and an outro.
Many dubstep tracks incorporate one or more "bass drops", a characteristic inherited from drum 'n' bass. Typically, the percussion will pause, often reducing the track to silence, and then resume with more intensity, accompanied by a dominant subbass (often passing portamento through an entire octave or more, as in the audio example). However, this is by no means a completely rigid characteristic, rather a trope; a large portion of seminal tunes from producers like Kode9 and Horsepower Productions have more experimental song structures which don't rely on a drop for a dynamic peak - and in some instances don't feature a bass drop at all.
Rewinds (or reloads)[13] are another technique used by dubstep DJs. If a song seems to be especially popular, the DJ will 'spin back' the record by hand without lifting the stylus, and play the track in question again. Rewinds are also an important live element in many of dubstep's precursors; the technique originates in dub reggae soundsystems, is a standard of most pirate radio stations and is also used at UK garage and jungle nights.[14]
Taking direct cues from Jamaica's lyrically sparse deejay and toasting mic styles in the vein of reggae pioneers like U-Roy, the MC's role in dubstep's live experience is critically important to its impact.[15] As the music is largely instrumental, the MC operates in a similar context to drum and bass and is generally more of a complement to the music rather than the deliverer of lyrical content.[16]
Notable mainstays in the live experience of the sound are MC Sgt Pokes and MC Crazy D from London, and Juakali from Trinidad.[17][18][19][20] Production in a studio environment seems to lend itself to more experimentation. Kode9 has collaborated extensively with the Spaceape, who MCs in a dread poet style. Kevin Martin's experiments with the genre are almost exclusively collaborations with MCs such as Warrior Queen, Flowdan, and Tippa Irie. Skream has also featured Warrior Queen and grime artist JME on his debut album, Skream!. Plastician who was one of the first DJ's to mix the sound of grime and dubstep together,[10] has worked with notable grime duo Boy Better Know and has released tracks with a dubstep foundation and grime verses over the beats.[21] MaSp, Coki and Mala of Digital Mystikz have experimented with abrupt, 16-bar intros and have produced tracks with dub vocalists,[22] and dubstep artist and label co-owner Sam Shackleton has moved toward productions which fall outside the usual dubstep tempo, and sometimes entirely lack most of the common tropes of the genre.[23]
History
Early foundations
While dubstep is its own distinct form of electronic music, its roots are surely located within Jamaican dub music and soundsystem cultures. Jamaican soundsystems were "large mobile hi-fi or disco...[with] an emphasis on the reproduction of bass frequencies, its own aesthetics and a unique mode of consumption" [24]. These soundsystems represented the appearance of records (dub plates) as modes of legitimate artistic creation. This was an integral moment in the evolution of electronic musics, both in Britain and worldwide. A vast number of record-based musical genres emerged in the last 50–60 years, all of which owe their base form to soundsystems.
Jamaican soundsystem culture gave birth to the dub variety of reggae music, which itself originated many of dubstep's characteristic sounds and sonic techniques. Features like sub-bass (bass less than 100Hz), skittering and jittery drums (which would later be termed '2-step'), distortive echo and reverberation effects were all used prominently.[24] These features, along with held over soundsystem techniques, went on to form the crux of numerous electronic musics which emerged from Britain, including jungle, garage, and eventually dubstep.
Sub-bass, however, has also been present in British dance music since the early 1990s - LFO by LFO on the Warp Records label, released in 1990 features sub-bass throughout, as does the B-side mix of Charly by The Prodigy (1991). Altern 8's early breakbeat house/techno release Infiltrate 202 - also from 1991 - begins with the phrase, "watch yer bassbins" referring to the heavy sub-bass running throughout the track.[citation needed] Another early sub-bass tune is Some Justice by Urban Shakedown, made in 1992 entirely on two Commodore Amiga 500 computers, achieved some chart success upon its release. The sub-bass in this track also rises and falls initially in a rather slow, then later speeding-up, oscillation pattern similar to a dubstep bassline.
1999–2002: origins
![Open door of a grey brick building with a shop window and a computer screen visible through it.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/MixingRecords-Croydon.jpg/220px-MixingRecords-Croydon.jpg)
The sound of dubstep originally came out of productions by El-B,[7] Steve Gurley,[7] Oris Jay,[11] and Zed Bias[25][26] in 1999-2000. Ammunition Promotions, who run the influential club Forward>> and have managed many proto dubstep record labels (including Tempa, Soulja, Road, Vehicle, Shelflife, Texture, Lifestyle and Bingo),[5][11] began to use the term "dubstep" to describe this style of music in around 2002. The term's use in a 2002 XLR8R cover story (featuring Horsepower Productions on the cover) contributed to it becoming established as the name of the genre.[25][27] It gained full acceptance with the Dubstep Allstars Vol 1 CD (Tempa) mixed by DJ Hatcha.[28][29]
The club Forward>> was originally held at the Velvet Rooms in London's Soho and is now running every Sunday at Plastic People in Shoreditch, east London.[9] Founded in 2001, Forward>> was critical to the development of dubstep, providing the first venue devoted to the sound and an environment in which dubstep producers could premier new music.[30] Around this time, Forward>> was also incubating several other strains of dark garage hybrids, so much so that in the early days of the club the coming together of these strains was referred to as the "Forward>> sound".[31] An online flyer from around this time encapsulated the Forward>> sound as "b-lines to make your chest cavity shudder."[32]
Forward>> also ran a radio show on east London pirate station Rinse FM, hosted by Kode9.[33][34][35] The original Forward>> residents included Hatcha, Youngsta, Kode9, Zed Bias, Oris Jay,[11] Slaughter Mob, Jay Da Flex, Slimzee and others, plus regular guests. The line up of residents has changed over the years to include Youngsta, Hatcha, Geeneus and Plastician, with Crazy D as MC/host. Producers including D1, Skream and Benga make regular appearances.[30]
Another crucial element in the early development of dubstep was the Big Apple Records record shop in Croydon.[5] Key artists such as Hatcha and later Skream worked in the shop (which initially sold early UK Hardcore / Rave, Techno and House and later, garage and drum and bass, but evolved with the emerging dubstep scene in the area),[7] while Digital Mystikz were frequent visitors. El-B, Zed Bias, Horsepower Productions, Plastician, N Type, Walsh and a young Loefah regularly visited the shop as well.[5] The shop and its record label have since closed down[25] and reopened under the name Mixing Records.
2002–2005: evolution
![Person who looks to be a teenage male putting a turntable needle on a record in a studio.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/Skream_live.jpg/220px-Skream_live.jpg)
Throughout 2003, DJ Hatcha pioneered a new direction for dubstep on Rinse FM and through his sets at Forward>>.[5][26] Playing sets cut to 10" one-off reggae-style dubplates, he drew exclusively from a pool of new South London producers—first Benga and Skream,[26] then also Digital Mystikz and Loefah—to begin a dark, clipped and minimal new direction in dubstep.[36]
At the end of 2003, running independently from the pioneering FWD night, an event called Filthy Dub, co promoted by Plastician, and partner David Carlisle started happening regularly. It was there that Skream, Benga, N Type, Walsh, Chef and Loefah made their debuts as DJ's. South London collective Digital Mystikz (Mala and Coki), along with labelmates and collaborators Loefah and MC Sgt Pokes soon came into their own, bringing sound system thinking, dub values, and appreciation of jungle bass weight to the dubstep scene.[25] Digital Mystikz brought an expanded palette of sounds and influences to the genre, most prominently reggae and dub, as well as orchestral melodies.[37]
After releasing 12"s on Big Apple, they founded DMZ Records, which has released fourteen 12"s to date. They also began their night DMZ, held every two months in Brixton,[38] a part of London already strongly associated with reggae.[39] DMZ has showcased new dubstep artists such as Skream, Kode 9, Benga, Pinch, DJ Youngsta, Hijak, Joe Nice and Vex'd. DMZ's first anniversary event (at the Mass venue, a converted church) saw fans attending from places as far away as Sweden, the U.S., and Australia, leading to a queue of 600 people[40] at the event. This forced the club to move from its regular 400-capacity space[6] to Mass' main room, an event cited as a pivotal moment in dubstep's history.[11][41]
In 2004, Richard James' label, Rephlex, released two compilations that included dubstep tracks - the (perhaps misnamed) Grime and Grime 2. The first featured Plasticman , Mark One and Slaughter Mob,[42] with Kode 9, Loefah and Digital Mystikz appearing on the second.[43] These compilations helped to raise awareness of dubstep at a time when the grime sound was drawing more attention,[25] and Digital Mystikz and Loefah's presence on the second release contributed to the success of their DMZ club night.[44] Soon afterwards, the Independent on Sunday commented on "a whole new sound", at a time when both genres were becoming popular, stating that "grime" and "dubstep" were two names for the same style, which was also known as "sublow", "8-bar" and "eskibeat".[45]
2005–2008: growth
![Two vertical columns of binds holding records in paper sleeves for sale. Lettering identifying each bin is by hand.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/86/BMSohoDubstepRack.jpg/220px-BMSohoDubstepRack.jpg)
In the summer of 2005, Forward>> brought grime DJs to the fore of the line up.[46] Building on the success of Skream's grimey anthem "Midnight Request Line," the hype around the DMZ night and support from online forums (notably dubstepforum.com[9]) and media,[6] the scene gained prominence after Radio 1 DJ Mary Anne Hobbs gathered top figures from the scene for one show, entitled "Dubstep Warz", (later releasing the compilation album "Warrior Dubz").[40] The show created a new global audience for the scene, after years of exclusively UK underground buzz.[9] Burial's self-titled album appearing in many critics' "Best of..." lists for the year, notably The Wire's Best Album of 2006.[47][48] The sound was also featured prominently in the soundtrack for the 2006 sci-fi film Children of Men,[49] which included Digital Mystikz, Random Trio, Kode 9, Pressure and DJ Pinch.[50] Ammunition also released the first retrospective compilation of the 2000-2004 era of dubstep called "The Roots of Dubstep", co-compiled by Ammunition and Blackdown on the Tempa Label.[51]
The sound's first North American ambassador, Baltimore DJ Joe Nice helped kickstart its spread into the continent.[9] Regular Dubstep club nights started appearing in cities like New York,[52] San Francisco,[27] Seattle, Houston, and Denver,[53] while Mary Anne Hobbs curated a Dubstep showcase at 2007's Sónar festival in Barcelona.[11] Non-British artists have also won praise within the larger Dubstep community.[11] The dynamic dubstep scene in Japan is growing quickly despite its cultural and geographical distance from the West. Such DJ/producers as Goth-trad, Hyaku-mado, Ena and Doppelganger are major figures in the Tokyo scene.[54] Joe Nice has played at DMZ,[55] while the fifth installment of Tempa's "Dubstep Allstars" mix series (released in 2007) included tracks by Finnish producer Tes La Rok and Americans JuJu and Matty G.[56] Following on from Rinse FM's pioneering start; three internet based radio station's called SubFM, DubstepFM and DubTerrain started to play the sound exclusively with 24 hour broadcasting featuring show archives and live DJ shows.
![Long-haired, blonde female in low cut sweater and low cut jeans wearing earphones, stands before a studio sound board adjusting the switches.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/MaryAnneHobbsOnDecks.jpg/220px-MaryAnneHobbsOnDecks.jpg)
Techno artists and DJs are now assimilating dubstep into their sets and productions.[11] Shackleton's "Blood On My Hands" was remixed by minimal techno producer Ricardo Villalobos (an act reciprocated when Villalobos included a Shackleton mix on his "Vasco" EP) [57] and included on a mix CD by Panoramabar resident Cassy.[11] Ellen Allien and Apparat's 2006 song "Metric" (from the Orchestra of Bubbles album),[58][59] Modeselektor's Godspeed (from the 2007's Happy Birthday! album, among other tracks on that same album) and Roman Flugel's remix of Riton's "Hammer of Thor" are other examples of dubstep-influenced techno.[11] Berlin's Hard Wax record store (operated by influential[60] dub techno artists Basic Channel)[61][62] has also championed Shackleton's Skull Disco label, later broadening its focus to include other dubstep releases.[10]
The summer of 2007 saw dubstep's musical palette expand further, with Benga and Coki scoring a crossover hit (in a similar manner to Skream's "Midnight Request Line") with the track "Night", which gained widespread play from DJs in a diverse range of genres. BBC Radio 1 DJ Gilles Peterson named it his record of 2007, and it was also a massive hit in the equally bassline-orientated, but decidedly more four-to-the-floor genre of bassline house,[63] whilst Burial's late 2007 release Untrue (which was nominated for the 2008 Nationwide Mercury Music Prize in the UK) incorporated extensive use of heavily manipulated, mostly female, 'girl next door' vocal samples.[64] Burial has spoken at length regarding his intent to reincorporate elements of musical precursors such as 2-step garage and house into his sound.[65]
Some critics have also seen a dubstep influence in the Britney Spears song "Freakshow" (from her 2007 album Blackout), which Tom Ewing describes as "built around the 'wobbler' effect that's a genre standby."[66][67]
Much like drum and bass before it, dubstep has started to become incorporated into other media, particularly in the United Kingdom. In 2007, Benga, Skream, and other dubstep producers provided the soundtrack to much of the second series of Dubplate Drama, which aired on Channel 4 with a soundtrack CD later released on Rinse Recordings. The sound also featured prominently in the second series of the teen drama Skins, which also aired on Channel 4 in early 2008.
In the summer of 2008, Mary Anne Hobbs invited Cyrus, Starkey, Oneman, DJ Chef, Silkie, Quest, Joker, Nomad, Kulture and MC Sgt Pokes to the BBC's Maida Vale studios for a show called Generation Bass.[68][69][70] The show was the evolution from her seminal BBC Radio 1 Dubstepwarz Show in 2006, and further documented another set of dubstep's producers.
In the autumn of 2008, a limited pressing 12" called "Iron Devil"[71] was released featuring Lee Scratch Perry and Prince Far-I in a dubstep style, including a tune based on the Perry riddim used on reggae hits like "Disco Devil", "Chase The Devil", and "Croaking Lizard". This was the first recorded example of a founder of Jamaican dub style acknowledging dubstep and creating new music in the genre, reinforcing the connection of dubstep to its roots in Jamaican dub reggae at a time when it seemed dubstep was moving away from its reggae underpinnings.
As the genre has spread to become an international rather than UK-centric scene, it has also seen a number of women making headway into the scene in a variety of ways. Alongside Soulja of Ammunition Promotions and Mary Anne Hobbs, an influx of female producers, writers, photographers and DJs all have broken through, in the up-til-then male orientated scene, without making gender an issue. With key 12" releases on Hyperdub, Immigrant and Hotflush Recordings, producers Vaccine, Subeena and Ikonika have introduced a palette of new sounds and influences to the genre, such as double-time bass drums, 8-bit video game samples, hand percussion and lushly arranged strings.[72] Mary Anne Hobbs commented that the mood at dubstep nights is less aggressive, or more meditative, leading to a larger female attendance at events than with the genre's precursors, noting "Grime and drum 'n' bass raves tend to be quite aggy. People in dubstep clubs tend to have a more meditative approach, which is inviting to females. You see the female-to-male ratio constantly going up – it’s got the potential to be 40:60".[72]
Journalists Melissa Bradshaw,[73][74] Emma Warren,[75][76] and dubstep documentarian and photographer Georgina Cook have all had massive impact on the cultural importance of the music. Cook's Drumz of the South flickr page documents the evolution of the scene in a photographic timeline of sorts, and was for a time the only photographic archive of the key events such as the early FWD and DMZ nights in London.[72][77][78][79]
2009-2010: mainstream influence
The year 2009 saw the dubstep sound gain further worldwide recognition, often through the assimilation of elements of the sound into other genres, in a manner similar to drum and bass before it. At the start of the year, UK electronic duo La Roux put their single "In for The Kill" in the remix hands of Skream.[80][81], they then gave remix duties of 'Not Your Toy' to Nero and then again, with their single "Bulletproof" being remixed by Zinc. Benga and Coki's single "Night" still continued to be a popular track on the UK dance chart more than a year after its release in late 2007, still ranking in the top five at the start of April on Pete Tong's BBC Radio One dance chart list.[82]
London producer Silkie released an influential album City Limits Vol. 1 on the Deep Medi label, using 70s funk and soul reference points, a departure from the familiar strains of dub and UK garage.[83][84]
In a move foreshadowed by endorsements of the sound from R&B and hip-hop figures such as Rihanna, Public Enemy's Hank Shocklee,[85] Snoop Dogg collaborated with drum and bass producers Chase and Status, providing a vocal for their UK underground anthem "Eastern Jam". This propelled the tune into the biggest radio markets overnight, with considerable airplay.[86],[87]. Other hip-hop artists like Xzibit added their vocals to dubstep instrumental tracks for the mixtape project Mr Grustle & Tha Russian Dubstep LA Embrace The Renaissance Vol. 1 Mixed by Plastician.[86][88] By the late summer, female rapper and actress Eve used Benga's "E Trips"; adding her own verses over the beat to create a new tune called "Me N My"; the first single on her album Flirt. The track was co-produced by Benga and noted hip hop producer Salaam Remi.[89][90]
The sound has also continued to interest the mainstream press with key articles in magazines like Interview, New York, and The Wire, which featured producer Kode9 on its May 2009 cover. XLR8R put Joker on the cover of its December 2009 issue.[17][91][92][93] By the end of 2009, The New York Times, XLR8R, NME and The Sunday Times all reviewed the genre.[94][95][96][97].
See also
References
- ^ "allmusic". www.allmusic.com. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
- ^ "Radio 1 - Keeping It Peel - Festive 50s - 2004". BBC. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ Wilson, Michael (1 November 2006). "Bubble and squeak: Michael Wilson on dubstep". Artforum International.
- ^ a b de Wilde, Gervase (2006-10-14). "Put a bit of dub in your step: a new form of dance music from Croydon is ready to conquer the world". The Daily Telegraph. London.
- ^ a b c d e O'Connell, Sharon (4 October 2006). "Dubstep". Time Out London. Retrieved 21 June 2007.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ a b c Clark, Martin (16 November 2006). "The Month In: Grime/Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 21 June 2007.
- ^ a b c d "The Primer: Dubstep". The Wire (279).
- ^ Pearsall (2005-06-18). "Interview: Plasticman". Riddim.ca.
- ^ a b c d e f g "South London calling" from CBC.ca website Matthew McKinnon, January 30, 2007
- ^ a b c Clark, Martin (23 May 2007). "The Month In: Grime/Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 14 July 2007.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ a b c d e f g h i j Sande, Kiran. "Dubstep 101". Resident Advisor. June 7, 2007
- ^ Invisible Jukebox, The Wire no. 269, July 2006
- ^ "Interview with Joe Nice". GetDarker. 2006-08-15. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
- ^ Clark, Martin (2006-07-14). "The Month In: Grime/Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
{{cite news}}
: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=
(help) - ^ Low End Theory: Dubstep Merchants | XLR8R
- ^ Boomkat
- ^ a b Hammond, Bob (2008-07-20). "The Evolution of Dubstep - New York Magazine". Nymag.com. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ Warren, Emma (2007-03-04). "Rising star: DMZ, music collective | Music | The Observer". London: Guardian. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "InYourBassTv presents Sgt. Pokes (Dour Festival 2008)". Inyourbass.com. 2008-08-28. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ Kiss. "Crazy D & Hatcha | Official KISS Homepage". Totalkiss.com. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Markle Said Wha?: Plastician Interview (as featured in ATM Magazine Nov 07)". Markleman.blogspot.com. 2007-12-18. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Digital Mystikz - Haunted / Anti-War Dub". Boomkat. Retrieved 2007-10-26.
- ^ "Rave from the grave: Skull Disco". The Wire (281).
- ^ a b , 'Gilroy, Paul. There Ain't No Black in the Union Jack. 1991 . Cite error: The named reference "test" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ a b c d e Mugan, Chris. Straight outta Croydon. The Independent. 14. July 28, 2006
- ^ a b c Clark, Martin (25 January 2006). "The Month In: Grime/Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 4 July 2007.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ a b Keast, Darren. "Dawn of Dubstep; Will this bass-heavy dance phenomenon blow out only your speakers or will it really blow up?." SF Weekly. 15 November 2006.
- ^ "DJ Hatcha presents Dubstep Allstars Vol. 1". Hardwax. Retrieved 2007-10-26.
- ^ "Dubstep Allstars Volume 1". UKRecordShop. Retrieved 2007-10-26.
- ^ a b Warren, Emma (2007-08-01). "The Dubstep Explosion!". DJ Mag. 4 (46): p32.
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(help) - ^ Clark, Martin (2006-04-12). "Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
- ^ "2006 flier for the FWD>> club, from the Internet Archive". FWD>> website. 2006-06-23. Archived from the original on 2006-06-16. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
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(help) - ^ Tempa
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- ^ Clark, Martin (2005-06-22). "Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
- ^ Clark, Martin (20 July 2006). "The Month In: Grime/Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 4 July 2007.
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(help) - ^ Churchill, Tom (2006-09). "Dmz". Clash. Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
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suggested) (help) - ^ Clark, Martin (2005-05-25). "Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
- ^ a b About 2 Blow: Dubstep: RWD Magazine
- ^ Clark, Martin (8 March 2006). "The Month In: Grime/Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 10 July 2007.
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(help) - ^ Cyclic Defrost - Issue #008 (June 2004) - Various Artists - Grime (Rephlex) / DJ Slimzee - Bingo Beats III (Bingo)
- ^ Cyclic Defrost - Issue #010 (January 2005) - Various Artists – Grime 2 (Rephlex)
- ^ Clark, Martin (11 September 2005). "The Month In: Grime/Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 17 July 2007.
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(help) - ^ Braddock, Kevin (2004-02-22). "Partners in Grime". The Independent.
- ^ Martin, Clark (2005-06-22). "The Month In: Grime/Dubstep". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
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(help) - ^ Butler, Nick (19 June 2007). "Burial - Burial". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 16 July 2007.
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(help) - ^ The Wire
- ^ Reynolds, Simon. "Reasons to Be Cheerful (Just Three)" ([dead link] – Scholar search). The Village Voice. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
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- ^ "Cast and Credits for "Children of Men"". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved 2007-07-19.
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(help) - ^ Cyclic Defrost - Issue #015 (November 2006) - Various Artists - The Roots Of Dubstep (Tempa)
- ^ "Brand new heavy". Time out New York (544). 2006-03-02. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
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(help) - ^ Palermo, Tomas (2007-06-18). "The Week In Dubstep". XLR8R. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
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(help) - ^ McBride, Blair."Japan's dubstep forges own path; Goth-trad, 100mado build scene from scratch". Japan Times. March 19, 2010
- ^ Pitchfork Feature: Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep
- ^ Warren, Emma (22 April 2007). "Various, Dubstep Allstars 5 - Mixed By DJ N-Type". Guardian Unlimited. London. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
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(help) - ^ Vasco EP Part 1 | Pitchfork
- ^ De Jong, Nate (2006-04-19). "Stylus Review of "Orchestra of Bubbles"". Stylus Magazine. Retrieved 2007-07-19.
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(help) - ^ Sherburne, Philip (2006-05-04). "Pitchfork Review of "Orchestra of Bubbles"". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2007-07-19.
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(help) - ^ Losing your mind in Berlin (Metro Times Detroit)
- ^ philip sherburne: November 2005 Archives
- ^ Blackdown: One Friday night
- ^ Pitchfork Feature: Column: The Month in Grime / Dubstep
- ^ Burial: Beautiful Dread, Inviting and Sinister : NPR Music
- ^ Goodman, Steve (2007-11-01). "Kode9 interviews Burial". Hyperdub. Retrieved 2007-11-14.
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(help) - ^ Ewing, Tom (2007-11-20). "Column: Poptimist #10: Britney in the Black Lodge (Damn Fine Album)". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
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(help) - ^ Segal, Dave (2007-11-06). "Have You Heard of This Britney Spears Chick?". Heard Mentality:The OC Weekly Music Blog. Village Voice Media. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
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(help) - ^ "Mary Anne Hobbs - TV". BBC. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Broadcast Yourself". YouTube. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Radio One Hosts Generation Bass « RWD". Rwdmag.com. 2008-08-18. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ Link to Discogs page for Lee "Scratch" Perry, Dubbblestandart, Subatomic Sound System, Prince Far-I "Iron Devil" 12" http://www.discogs.com/Dubblestandart-featuring-Lee-Scratch-Perry-Prince-Far-I-Iron-Devil/release/1554929
- ^ a b c Women in dubstep - Time Out London
- ^ When We Meet: Issue 24 - Plan B Magazine
- ^ Dubstep - Plan B Magazine
- ^ The Guardian. London. 2008-02-04 http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/emmawarren. Retrieved 2010-05-01.
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(help) - ^ Red Bull Music Academy - People
- ^ Decks in the City
- ^ Flickr: infinite's Photostream
- ^ BBC - Collective - Gallery - Dubstep
- ^ "Electronic review: La Roux, In For the Kill (Skream remix) | Music | The Observer". London: Guardian. 2009-03-15. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Freeload: La Roux, "In For The Kill (Skream's Let's Get Ravey Remix) « The FADER". Thefader.com. 2009-04-14. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Radio 1 - BBC Radio 1's Chart Show with Reggie Yates - UK Top 40 Dance Singles". BBC. 2007-02-24. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "music & art news, upfront videos, free downloads, classic vinyl, competitions, gigs, clubs, festivals & exhibitions - New talent: Silkie". FACT magazine. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Grime / Dubstep: Grime / Dubstep". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Dazed Digital | Hank Shocklee". Dazedgroup.com. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ a b "Dubstep it up - Features, Music". London: The Independent. 2009-04-24. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "XXLmag.com". XXLmag.com. 2009-05-19. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Alexander Spit". Dubstepped.net. 2009-05-19. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
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- ^ "Eve, "Me N My (prod. by Salaam Remi & Benga)" MP3 « The FADER". Thefader.com. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "The London Dubstep Scene". Interview Magazine. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "Adventures in Modern Music: Issues". The Wire. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ http://www.xlr8r.com/magazine/130
- ^ Jon Caramanica, "Washes of Sound, Wobbles of Bass," The New York Times September 22, 2009, at p. C5, also found at The New York Times website. Retrieved September 22, 2009.
- ^ "Mutant Funk: Cooly G, Geeneus, and Roska take UK funky and dubstep back to the lab". XLR8R. 2009-09-24. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ "2009: The Year That Dubstep Broke - Timeline Playlist - New Music Radar - NME.COM - The world's fastest music news service, music videos, interviews, photos and free stuff to win". Nme.Com. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
- ^ Fitzpatrick, Rob (2009-10-11). "Steve Goodman keeps on pioneering". The Times. London.
External links
- DubstepForum popular dubstep message board
- FWD>> influential dubstep/grime club night
- Barefiles A highly influential mixes archive website for international followers.
- GetDarker An online magazine full of interviews, articles, photos from events and videos.
- BBC Collective dubstep documentary filmed at DMZ 1st Birthday, 2005. Interviews with Mala, Loefah, Skream, Kode9, Youngsta...
- Blackdown blog by UK music journalist Martin Clark
- The Month In: Grime/Dubstep Columns by Martin Clark on Pitchfork Media
- The Essential Dubstep Tracks Of The 00s A selection of 20 essentials dubstep tracks on K Mag.
- Gutterbreakz long-running dubstep blog
- Drumz of the South longtime archive of key dubstep photography.
- Riddim.ca Long-running grime/dubstep site. Home of the Hyperdub articles archive.
- Kode9 state of the art mix Microsite for latest Kode9 Mix album