I’d heard big things about ForeignDub and their DNBBQ series of parties held at the Abercrombie Hotel and figured it was about damn time I got off my lazy ass and checked one of them out. I’d be a fool not to – beer, sunshine, more beer, a spot of delicious food, music ranging from hip-hop to samba to broken beat to drum and bass, all for a paltry 15 bucks.

The party kicked off at 4, and I rocked in at about 6 or so. The beer garden was filling up nicely with punters, and it seemed that the $9.50 jugs of Blonde were the go, being hammered quite relentlessly everywhere you looked. The barbeque was just starting up with its delicious Foreign Dub secret recipe chicken, creamy potatoes, these dope spinach pastry things and a garden salad. Good times, right there. A fantastic way to start the evening, and it was being shoveled down by the growing crowd.

The highlight of the afternoon’s performances was a brilliant show from the Sydney Samba School, who put down some firing rhythms, bringing a touch of carnival atmosphere to Broadway. The sheer power and energy of their sound in the confined space was a rather awesome spectacle, and they made for a fantastic contrast to the rest of the usual DJs and live acts that you usually catch at these events.

As it got darker, so did the music and the jungle began to work its way out of the big and bashy B52 stack in the courtyard. Chopped up rhythms abounded, and a nice little group of dancers started to get down in the clean and crisp open air.

Inside the Abercrombie, it was starting to get going as well. Fruit platters were passed around, jugs were flowing, and the local photography exhibited on a screen by the pool table towards the back of the pub provided a brilliant backdrop for the eclectic atmosphere that these DNBBQs are reknown for.  Young upstart Beatnick hit the decks with a very tidy set, and the floor began to fill.

B.Hopps and Ed Gee then stepped up to the decks and proceeded to tear the place down in their own inimitable fashion. Dubwise shit, amen stormers, rolling liquid and all flavours of drum and bass were represented and the crowd was more than appreciative.

Sometime past midnight, the sound in the beer garden had to be turned down due to complaints received from the Sydney City Council, which brought the vibrant sounds of ALF and Ritual down a notch.  Nevertheless, the party ensued inside the pub, and without missing a beat, the pair teamed up with Reload, and dropped bomb after bomb of jungle beats and kept the party alive through the early hours of the morning.

The social side of the DNBBQ I think is what sets it apart from other parties around town. Everyone’s mingling with everyone else, different crews are playing, and randoms are accepted straight into conversation. Within the space of five minutes I went from talking to a German backpacker, to a Queenslander, to two different promoters, then to a girl I used to live with but hadn’t seen in three years.

In all, a very well-rounded evening with something for everyone and plenty for fans of drum and bass! It was refreshing to be surrounded by an unpretentious crowd – everywhere I looked, people were smiling and having a fantastic time. Well done Foreign Dub, Sydney waits in anticipation for at least one more installment before the summer is over!