London's deep dubstep DJ and producer V.I.V.E.K. will make a stop at one of Fort Lauderdale's downtown home bases for alternative music, Original Fat Cat's, this Monday. Organized by South Florida bassheads Proper Dosage, this crew of local DJs and promoters have a passion for a stripped down, no-nonsense strain of dubstep. This installment of their Too Future monthly party is the third in a consistently impressive line-up of serious talent drawn from across the pond.
With a recent Mix of the Week spotlight by Mixmag, a new party and label called SYSTEM, and a brand new release receiving rave reviews from respected underground publications like Resident Advisor, V.I.V.E.K.'s intensely low-frequency set this Monday is a legit BroCo electronic music event diehard EDM fans won't want to pass up.
Gearing up for the show, V.I.V.E.K. took a time-out to catch up with us on the new label and some of his thoughts on today's popular music.
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New Times: You recently started your own club night in London and your own label, SYSTEM Music, to go along with it. What was the motivating force behind creating the new label? Where do you see the label and party going in the future?
V.I.V.E.K.: The main motivation was that I wanted to start something of my own. I have my own ideas and perspective, and I want to push a specific sound that I'm into. Originally, I just wanted to put my own stuff out, but there's so much good music out there, that I've now decided to put a few tracks out from some new young artists. Hopefully the label grows from strength to strength. Who knows? Only time will tell!
This past March you put out System's first release, "Asteroids," to favorable reviews by people at Resident Advisor, Mixmag, and DJ Mag. RA said: "'Asteroid''s pulsating subs are forceful enough to induce intense sensations of vertigo, elevating it above the majority of V.I.V.E.K's contemporaries." What was your process like creating the record?
I guess to really appreciate it you need to hear it on vinyl, as the sub sounds a lot rounder and deeper on vinyl. The sound system I use for my night SYSTEM, was put together by myself and my best friend, who is a genius.
Why do you think popular dubstep music has gone in the direction it has? Where did it go wrong?
Don't really have an answer to this. Music goes in whatever direction it wants to. If it becomes popular, then ultimately a lot of money starts floating around, so generally things change. I don't think it's gone wrong, it's just gone into a direction that doesn't resonate with me. From my point of view, the sound that myself and people like DJ Youngsta are pushing is moving from strength to strength, so I'm very happy about the position the music is going.
What would you say to people like Deadmau5, who've spoken out to say modern DJing is little more than "hitting play"?
I'd say take your stupid hat off, buy some vinyl, and mix it!
Too Future featuring V.I.V.E.K. 9 p.m., Monday, April 15, at Original Fat Cat's, 320 Himmarshee St, Fort Lauderdale. No Cover.
