Having been to pretty much all the previous DNBBQs presented by the Foreign Dub crew, I knew that the final installment of the season would be a night to remember. This time around, a strong live element was to feature in the lineup, with the creative beats of the five piece from Melbourne K-Oscillate and solid local acts Rastacrew, the Caca, and the Bassline crew to dominate the musical landscape in the beer garden of the Abercrombie Hotel. In addition to the promising fusion of drum and bass, dub, rock and reggae, we were bound to witness New Zealand ragga jungle act Ruffneck Souljah, who brought a completely new dimension to the night later on. With a pretty good idea how quickly the event would fill up, I decided to rock up a tad earlier than usual to beat the lines and the mayhem that was sure to ensue.

I never doubted the popularity of this gig, and when I arrived just after 7pm, the place was still slowly on its way to filling up – but by 9.30, the event had sold out and the place was heaving with smiling faces grooving to the live beats performed outside, jumping around in a frenzy to the harder drum and bass beats inside, jugs of beer passed around aplenty. Recalling a DNBBQ held sometime last year that was supposedly filled to capacity, it was almost unbelievable to see the amount of people who managed to cram into the venue. Killer atmosphere, but the term sardines is an understatement!

Musically wise, the highlights for me in terms of acts played in both arenas were performances by the Bassline Crew (fresh female vocals on the mic permeated by a variety laidback vibes of the band was lapped up by welcoming ears), along with hard and solid sets by Victim, Freddy Fred and MisRee, and special mention to the Rastacrew and the Caca for enlightening me to elements of rhythm, beats and melody I normally don’t listen to.

I was, however, continually distracted by mates playing computer games setup on a big screen downstairs, and found myself bumping into delicious plates of fruit and beer whichever way I looked, and friendly faces that once regularly graced events similar to this night that I hadn’t seen for what seemed to be a lifetime. This BBQ was definitely about the food, the laughter, and the beer.

I am sorry to say that after passing the 7 hour mark, the number of people in the place started to affect my ability to pay attention to anything, and I made the difficult decision to leave, for the sake of my sanity. I unfortunately had to miss out on acts that I had been hanging to see for too long, including Semper Fi and most of Ruffneck Souljah. However, it was obvious that the music and the atmosphere was sure to mesmerize everyone at the party into the wee hours of the morning, and I left more than satisfied. Bring on spring and hopefully more DNBBQs to come!