Beijing DnB hits a trifecta

Well I hope everyone had a fantastic New Year. Special mention to the Yen crew who threw a mind blowing party, filling up their cavernous venue and keeping the crowds nicely pumped all night. Hopefully you are all fully rested and ready for another 365 day onslaught of intoxicants, heathenry and shiny disco balls in tacky over-lit clubs.

Kicking this off on January 19 and 20, we have the third birthday party of Beijing’s premier drum n bass outfit, the Syndicate. On Friday the 19th the Syndicate hosts DJ Tomahawk and MC Wrec of Hospital Records at Club Fusion. Usami will also play that night, lending a poignancy to the proceedings, seeing as he was one of the first Beijing DJs to mix drum n bass. Saturday the 20th the party heads to Zub. Anyone with adrenaline enough to hit up both nights will be rewarded with a free double CD featuring an exclusive mix by the Hospital crew and a second disc featuring Beijing’s finest DJs and MCs.

Hayden Opie, better known as DJ Elemental, is probably the longest running DnB DJ in Bejing. He runs the www.jing-dnb.com website and remains at the forefront of the local scene. He reflects, “I don’t think there was any specific turning point when we knew DnB was becoming successful here, but I do remember playing a set after one of the local break/house DJs and realizing for the first time that it didn’t clear the dance floor.” He makes a fair point: it’s not the most easily accessible music for people fed a diet of commercial house/RnB. It’s not uncommon for Beijing’s DnB DJs to play a set to motionless, confused crowds in second tier cities. But all musical genres need time to gel. “We’ve come a long way here in Beijing,” says Syndicate founder Dan Stephenson. “We started by just spinning a few records after Lush’s open mic night a couple of years back.” That was more a few friends hanging out than an organized party, but it soon grew into regular Thursday night sessions and eventually matured into weekend parties with big name foreign DJs. It’s the basic model for any facet of Western culture introduced to China. Met at first with bemusement, followed by trepidation and then finally embraced. Despite DnB success, some club managers still don’t seem to get it, Opie says. “When opening for DJ Rap in Mix, the bar manager took issue with the music I was playing. DJ Rap showed up five minutes before she was supposed to start, just in time to see me get kicked off and replaced by their hip hop DJ, who promptly played that goddamn ‘Next Episode’ track for the 80th time that night!” Although China hasn’t given DnB the full on, manly embrace it deserves yet, Stephenson believes its unique appeal will see it through. “The MCs add a lot to the DnB raving experience,” he says, “encouraging audience interaction and giving sets a more live-music feel.” Hayden continues: “In DnB there’s a lot of different musical influences coming through--hip hop, funk, reggae, dancehall, techno, house, rock, jazz--all at DnB speed mind you.”

This month’s parties will be a landmark in clubbing hedonism. Feel free to begin chanting: "three more years, three more years!"