As well as the usual high-speed tempos and dark basslines you might expect, the "Drum and Bass Sessions" night on May 19 at Unit in Daikanyama, Tokyo will host dubstep practitioner Skream. The young producer will be "battling" DJ Zinc, one of the more enduring figures from the British drum and bass scene.
Interest in dubstep has surged as a result of dedicated blogs and social-networking sites spreading the word (and music) of this largely South London movement. The music is bass-heavy — hence its link to drum and bass — but its rhythms are around the 70 beats per minute mark, much slower than d 'n' b.
Skream's own Web site, tempa.co.uk, sums up the appeal of the music thus: "[Dubstep] reflects dark murky streets and sinister nights, the sound of decaying London and its frustrated communities, stuck out in satellite towns and sink estates with nothing but a PC and freely available software to channel their frustration into."
"Drum and Bass Sessions 2007: Drum and Bass vs. Dubstep Warz" takes place on May 19 (11:30 p.m. start). Tickets are 4,000 yen (3,500 yen in advance). For details, visit www.unit-tokyo.com
Listen to Skream at www.myspace.com/skreamuk
