dubstep: the music of the future?

In Allan Moore's classic 'graphic novel' Watchmen, the hyperintellectual superhero Ozymandias described 'dub' music as sort of music of the future, a "a sort of hybrid between electronic music and reggae. It’s a fascinating study in the new musical forms generated when a largely pre-technological culture is given access to modern recording techniques without the technological preconceptions that we’ve allowed to accumulate, limiting our vision." Using the fictional character Ozymandias' description one can imagine that he views dub as a sort of music of the future, a result of technological advances transcending the cultural barriers they set up, allowing progression in musical forms into styles unlike anything heard before. Dub, a genre which is practically responsible for the existence of the hip-hop DJ, continues to evolve into new forms to this day, it's most recent incarnation being in the form of 'dubstep'.

Dubstep is best known for it's obsessive focus on the bass and it's use of a whacked out 'wobbly' sound. Very popular in British clubs, it seems that the music is catching on in popularity in the States, where it's unconventional beats grace many remixes of popular artists. While dubstep is far from conventional dance music, it's beats seem to fuel the motions of many clubbers in a -frenzied and chaotic way that is even more removed from typical dancing than the freeform body shakes of ravers.

Dubstep is just as much about atmospherics as it is about beats however. Listening to records from dubstep artists such a Burial creates a feeling of urban degradation and suspense. There is little of the feel-good vibe of most dance music. In fact the sounds created in dubstep seem to best fit the vibe of cyberpunk writers like William Gibson.

The best way to experience dubstep at it's purest is to check out the recently released compilation '5:5 years of Hyperdub'. The compilation covers highlights of artists on the Hyperdub label in a way that exposes what dubstep is all about while sounding diverse at the same time. While this is far from a complete compilation of all essential dubstep releases, it certainly will leave a newcomer to the genre entranced. The more underground side of the genre is explored rather than the more club friendly side (called 'brostep' by some).

While dubsteps roots in trip-hop, dub, and other forms of dance music is apparent, it mutates these styles into something that at it's best sounds like nothing else. Because of this one could say the music points to the future, being unafraid to let go of the conventional and break rules. Dubstep is a fairly new form of music too, only existing as a style since the early 2000's. The future of the style is unclear, but one can only imagine it's impact on other forms of music and observe it's rise to prominence in modern music.

i had too much to dream last night

So it's me and my good buddies, and we decide to break into a house. Same kids who blew their minds with me on New Years actually, another aspect of this dream that fit well into my own life. The house is pretty damn big, one of those ritzy river houses where the wealthier side preside. I don't even remember why we broke into it, maybe it was just the spirit of the group to do something ridiculous.

We enjoy the house for a while, smoke some grass on the dock, go through the place and explore, but we don't steal anything. We don't find anything worth stealing. There really is no reason for us to be here, and in the world of dreams this is ok with me.

Finally the peeps who own the place show up. They see us and are furious, screaming yelling and all that jazz at us. I get that fear, the fear that comes with all the thoughts rushing through my head like "will they call the cops?" or "will they just shoot us and claim self defense because Florida law says that's the way to be?". I handle the situation well, making up some story to make it seem like we were here on accident and assured them we weren't stealing anything. I think I explained that we did this because of the book I was writing, which is funny because I had been up all night working on it, another synchronicity with my own life.

They're all still angry, but one of the guys takes me aside. He asks for my facebook, but I tell him i'll give him my email instead. Then he takes me into this room full of oriental like staircases of mindbending intricacy and we keep on walking until he takes me outside. There's a beach, but it's surrounded by water on both sides so it's an island. The waves surrounding us are intense and the guy, who seems to know connect with me in a way of companionship rather than anger simply lets the waves sweep him away. I'm afraid to let it happen to me, but I go with it and then I wake up...

...but not into a waking state, but yet another dream where I'm reading a Rick Griffin comic of my dream. I've been fairly obsessed with Rick Griffin recently in my life, so this is yet another synchronicity with my own life that makes this dream more interesting. The waves and Rick Griffin go together perfectly because of his obsession with surfing.