ALL BLACK @ The Ambar

What is it with Those Kiwi’s?

I am starting to wonder if they put some Drum n Bass DNA strands in their kids cereals because the amount DJ’s coming from New Zealand is astounding! Another two teams signed up for a night of pumping Bass at Ambar Saturday the 25th of February- State of the Mind and The Upbeats.

Ambar is a ‘cute’ downstairs venue resembling a somewhat cosy black cave. As you walk in you are pretty much in the middle of all the happenings- it’s not really big enough to ignore the music and the Dj’s playing. The music is always very loud in Ambar- maybe a bit too loud. Having said that- their sound system is pretty damn impressive. The sounds are very clear and the Bass thumps in a pleasant way- it’s luckily missing that distorted sound some clubs have.

I find it harder and harder to tell the difference between the many Drum n Bass acts- purely because the quality these days is pretty high. Both teams put on a good show- their sets were tight and playful. The main difference between these two headliners and some other acts around is that they plaid around with a lot of different sound effects, tunes and songs mixing them in with Drum n Bass.

State of the mind are known the best for their productions skills- as coming from nowhere they have managed to get together with some major Record labels like  Bad Company presents, 31 Records, Hostile and CIA.

Wellington’s own The Upbeats released a self-titled album in 2004 (produced by Concord Dawn) and have been touring some major events ever since. Their styles are very diverse- they play Drum N Bass but also a lot of Break beat, Hard Beats, Electronica and some softer tunes.

There were a few acts on besides our two main teams- Damon D, Daemos, Shock 1. Most Dj’s were assisted by one of the four MC’s- X-Sessiv, Assassin, Stylee and Eclectic.

Damon D and Daemos were the first ones up warming the crowd. State of the mind followed tag teaming and playing their described mix of different styles. The  Upbeats came on last. Despite some trouble with their mixing machine they played a good set and ended the evening in style.