Saturday, something very strange is about to go down at Sam Houston Race Park when Something Wicked, billed as "Texas's first ever large-scale Halloween electronic dance music festival," takes over the grounds, subdivided into three nebulously named areas: "Shadow Field," "Bass Massacre" and "The Experiment."
To help our readers -- and, frankly, ourselves -- get a handle on what will be going on up there, Rocks Off will be bringing you a mini-guide to Something Wicked each day between right now and Friday. Stay tuned for an interview with one of the headliners, Nero, a little later on too.
Today we tackle Bass Massacre, largely the province of dubstep, the liquefied sound with the big, big bass that tends to make people lose their minds.
DJ SINIK Time: 2 p.m. Provenance: Houston Key Cuts: Practitioner of "Hardstyle." Has yet to release any tracks or remixes to the Web (that we can find), but here is an 11-minute clip of Sinik at Last Concert Cafe in July 2011. Interesting Fact: Not to be confused with the European rapper known as the "French Eminem," this guy says he majors in "partying" at Texas Tech. Links: Facebook
TDBZ Time: 3 p.m. Provenance: Houston Key Cuts: "Manipulator," "Moonwalk," remixes of Fugees' "Ready or Not" and the Specials' "Gangsters" Interesting Fact: Often collaborates with DJ 0045, a Houston native now living in Cyprus. Links: Facebook, Soundcloud
FEATURE CUTS Time: 4:30 p.m. Provenance: Houston Key Cuts: "Decisions," remixes of Damian Marley & Skrillex's "Make It Bun Dem" and the Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" Interesting Fact: Former hip-hop producer; promises on Facebook that his new track, dropping soon, "may instill an urge to punch llamas... please remember to not punch them." Links: Facebook, Soundcloud