Global Dub Festival at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, 5/18/12

Britt Chester

Coult-45 last night at Red Rocks during Global Dub Festival.

Opening the night, Sub.mission started on the main stage with tag-team sets between Dodger, Coult-45 and Thorazine. Since Sub.mission has pretty much set the tone for how dubstep shows should be, you can expect that if the name is attached you are going to see great music. Personally, I'm waiting for these guys to blow up -- that's not to say they haven't -- but I'm going to smile wide when I see any Sub.mission resident top a bill comparable to something like Global Dub Festival.

The sets are always different and full of diverse, real dubstep. To me, there is a stark contrast between openers and headliners, and that contrast usually lies in the region of fame and recognition, not skill and talent. Sub.mission's residents know how to mix music to the point of exhaustion; they fervently study their track listings, hunting for the next best thing to play that will run in unison with the whole set.

Where it differed on this night in particular was that most people (myself included) couldn't name one song that these guys played. What they can say, however, was that Sub.mission opened and did a stellar job, which is how it should be. The crew played low rumbling bass music that falls in the category of warm-up/prep music. I just want to see them play a set they deserve, and they deserve to be that final blast that will close out a night.

Britt Chester

Dirtyloud last night at Red Rocks during Global Dub Festival.

Dirtyloud followed the Sub.mission acts, and boy howdy did this opening bill know how to raise the bar for the headliners. With Dirtyloud, Downlink and Datsik all sitting in the lead-off positions, and with Doctor P and Flux Pavilion batting clean up, respectively, they seriously loaded the bases. Dirtyloud busted out "Needle," a drug-referenced infused track that absolutely got the crowd off the venue steps. The cool thing about Dirtyloud is that they rage on the electro-house, so infusing some heavier bass tones over tracks just gives them an upper hand by means of dancing and feeling the show.

When Downlink came on, it pretty much solidified the weight of the night: His set was full of hard hitting tracks, and as the guy standing next to me observed, "This is the hardest set I have ever heard." Truly, it was hard, and maybe not the hardest ever, but it was loud and robust with bass.

Britt Chester

Downlink last night at Red Rocks during Global Dub Festival.

Datsik, as previously mentioned, gets the gold star of the night. His enthusiasm was felt from the bottom to the top, and his awe at the sight of a full Red Rocks was warm and heartfelt. It's nice when everyone recognizes how great this venue is, because we, the rabid fans who attend any and all shows we can at this legendary spot, know this to be true. Datsik's set was still the best of the evening, and as many a patron in the lot prior declared, the most anticipated.

Location Info

Venue

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Red Rocks Amphitheatre

18300 W. Alameda Parkway, Morrison, CO

Category: General

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