I’d like to begin this review with a massive THANK YOU. Thank you so much to all the DJ’s that held it down with great tunes and mixes, and thank you to the crowd; especially those who danced to the very end. Such a great and much needed night of drum and bass in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for old and new school heads. Positive vibrations resonated throughout the night!
A group of south Florida companies got together and brought us: 15 Years of Virus! The Automation Tour. Along with the great headliner that is Ed Rush and Optical local south Florida acts played great sets that kept the audience grooving from start to finish. Thanks to Culture Productions, United D&B, Electric Love, Hypnotic and Shalomar Entertainment, this party made for a great night out filled with heavy basslines and banging beats.
I noticed a slight change in the DJ setup at the venue for this event. Normally live performances and DJs play from the stage, but this night had the DJ booth placed opposite the stage. The DJ setup was sectioned off with one dance area and facing the main dance floor. Vj Psyberpixie provided the event with sick visuals that were projected onto a screen on the mainstage, opposite the DJs. I have to say it definitely made the whole experience much more personal and connected. I really felt it set the perfect tone for the event as a whole. As you can see from the photos taken there were people jamming and moving all night long. Representing Puerto Rico DJ LoHi Stereo opened for Ed Rush and Optical by playing a 1½-hour set that warmed up the audience wonderfully. Mixing classic drum and bass tunes with hard, tech step beats got everyone in the mood for hours of drum and bass goodness. And let me tell you, the goodness truly was played right until the lights came on after Florida-based DJ Supernaut threw down his set for the late night crew. Kryteria drum and bass producer, DJ and Emcee Patrick Felony rocked the mic for Supernaut’s set. I was also on the mic for the first few songs of the final set which was a great creative release for me aside from all the dancing! Holding down the mic for the night’s headliner was none other than our favorite Puerto Rican: MC Disidente. Disidente is one of the founders of the drum & bass collective known in Miami as United D&B. He kept the crowd hyped as Ed Rush and Optical took everyone on a musical and bass filled journey for two hours! Playing a wide variety of tunes from old school to the new, the duo that is Virus Recordings simply tore the roof off. The crowd’s reaction to each drop was wild; and when they added Sick Note into the mix the bass was so deep and heavy I probably looked like I’d soiled myself with the bassface that I made…LOL!
Once the duo closed out their set to a very satisfied audience I got a quick chance to chat with Optical. Asking what was next on their tour I had found that the Automation Tour had three more cities to play before making the trip back home to the UK. “You must be so tired and done!” I commented when Optical mentioned that he had just played Vegas and a few other
cities. His response made me smile: “Nah; can’t think like that. I’m looking forward to the next one!”
I do love my junglists, keeping the drum and bass alive because we can’t help it. It was an honor to meet Ed Rush and Optical, as it was to dance the night away to the tunage that was served to the crowd. South Florida may have a small scene when it comes to drum and bass lovers, but we do have die hard fans that will make sure to keep the genre alive. Until the next review, I’m closing this one with a mighty “BOH!” and a very goodnight.
