GOT BASS
The Vaults, Cardiff Bay. Sat 4 May
Wobbly basslines, growling MCs and the usual four-to-the-floor: bassline is a sound that isn’t widely appreciated by the masses but it’s relatives have been. Garage had its day in the sun, then it bore its darker offspring grime, but bassline sits somewhere in between. There aren’t a host of venues that are opening their doors to the bassline junkies, but The Vaults are not ones to shirk an opportunity to provide a night like this.
When they do open their doors they’ll be hosting the likes of Flava D [pictured], Champion and Kanine. Each have their own unique sounds and have diversity in their sets. Flava D’s sound, in particular, seems rooted in classic grime and bassline, especially in that dark corner where the two overlap, propped side by side with Sir Spyro himself.
Champion, meanwhile, has an innovative take on contemporary bassline with elements of UK funky and house, all layered on particularly low basslines. Kanine is slightly left of field in comparison with his counterparts, definitely further down on the tempo spectrum, with a lot of his tracks sitting over the 140bpm benchmark and more akin to drum‘n’bass and garage than the rest. It’s fair to say that lack of variety won’t be a complaint heard.
Tickets: £15. Info: www.vaultspresents.com
words Campbell Prosser