When Inhibit dropped the stellar lineup for the second edition of Syndicate in the fallout from the first, it once again served as a fitting reminder of the weight the current bass scene in Perth and Australia is carrying. Faced with another triple onslaught of international acts at the top of their games, tickets flew and a night of monumental bangers loomed. Roll call this time around included Ookay, Must Die! and Apashe supported by another pertinent group of local talent.
Apashe is one of the revolutionaries of the hybrid genre and is fittingly signed to Kannibalen records, the unquestionable home for such producers. Following in the footsteps of fellow hybrid master Snails who made his Australian debut at the first Syndicate, this time Apashe was welcomed to Australia off the back of his I’m A Dragon EP, a duo of bass cannons consisting of a self-entitled track and a possible label tribute, Kannibalen, huge beats that also proved to be the highlights of a set that jumped around from hybrid trap to house bangers and proved a suitable introduction to the onslaught that was still to come.
Ookay, hailing from the USA and boasting releases on Dim Mak and Buygore, has been at the forefront of the Trap movement since its inception and has a reputation for his slaying club sets. Recently, Ookay has been taking his production in some unique directions incorporating house and future vibes that were littered throughout his Ghost EP, released towards the end of last year. However, this was a set firmly and primarily concerned with running the trap, his huge remix of Borgore’s Last Year and GTA’s remix of 6th Gear the highlights.
Must Die!’s much anticipated debut Australian tour comes after releases on OWSLA and Never Say Die have seen him rise to be one of the bigger names of modern US dubstep. He boasts a bizarre musical history leaking with talent that had stretched from metal to pop before he took on EDM production. Must Die! travels with a famed collection of unreleased material including collaborations with Datsik that date back years and are reserved for his live shows. In amongst the chaotically unrecognisable noises his released classics were standouts, tracks like Gem Shards, Snowcone and the Brainbug remix. The frequent sampling of dolphin noises merely adding to the majesty of the set, it was a pretty barnstorming hour. The local support truly topped off and complimented the international roster, Pimp Scrub and Peter Payne laying down huge sets before Command Q managed the hype handed over to them superbly to keep the more committed ravers satisfied until the end of another supreme night. It was a night that flowed triumphantly with good vibes and top-notch tunes like the symbol for bass music this town deserves. Bring on the third.
JOSH LLOYD
