Now that the Dubstep whirlwind has died down and the dust settled it’s time to explore it once again. No better place to delve straight into the bass music scene than Friday night’s Mala gig, hosted by DubCulture and RiseUp as part of the Outlook Festival launch – Europe’s biggest bass music festival.

With origins deeply ingrained in the history of roots, dub, and garage, (“dark garage” remixes were often found on B-sides) dubstep merged organic sounds seamlessly with electronic music. The combination of a sub-bass that rattles your rib cage and 140bmp beats gave rise to something that in the early 00’s represented more than just music. It gave music fans another option, an option which aimed to offer up more soul than what was available. Mala and his crew championed the sound, developing it to it’s point of notoriety today. 

Setting up DMZ in South London with his crew Coki and Loefah the huge popularity of the night saw it put on countless parties and the buzz quickly spread to American soil, influencing the formation of renowned night Dub War in NYC. These crews, with support from the likes of John Peel and Mary Anne Hobbs, laid the foundation for the surge in popularity of dubstep which gave rise to a new philosophy and sound. 

Lately he’s been busy touring and making new tracks, notably with Giles Peterson’s project – Mala in Cuba. Here he worked with Cuban musicians to bring together their influences. His other label Deep Medi Music has also been flying the flag high with it’s last release in 2014.

Molded by the UK soundsystem culture you’ll be pleased to know that the Pav’s brand new rig has been fine tuned to its best. Expect bass in your belly and frequencies that make the hairs on your neck stand up – you’re going to get a history of all things bass!

As Mala is a renowned head in the scene you’ll be guaranteed he has a bag full of exclusive white labels showcasing his love for the sound and it’s ability to push electronic music boundaries. Many DJs have broadened their scope to include UK bass, garage, footwork and jungle in their sets so it will be interesting to hear what he pulls out of the bag.

On warm-up duties is Cork based beat maker Chris Power, fresh after his debut release and choon stalwarts Rob DC and Jonezy. Get in early and “Meditate on Bass Weight” as they say at DMZ! More info on the event page here.