Getting down and dirty with bass music is what some of us at The Bangin Beats absolutely love. So just as you would expect, when rumours of a few of the biggest bass heavy artists coming to India came to the fore, it seemed to be quite unfathomable yet exhilarating at the same time.

Fulfilling our desires, the day the extravagant Smirnoff Experience was announced we just like many others, took a few minutes to catch our breath. Never before had India witnessed a festival solely dedicated to bass music, it was always something that had a small role to play in shaping festivals but the game was about to change and so it did.

On the 21st of December, we set out on an early morning flight to Bangalore, about which we had absolutely no complaints as we were well aware that what we were going to witness that day was going to change the general perception of a great musical experience. We had been hearing quite a lot about the event including that it would incorporate never seen before visuals & stage production amongst other things and were extremely eager to witness all the grandeur in front of our eyes, owing to such yearning we set out for the venue.

The venue, Manpho Convention Centre had been transformed into something out of a sci-fi book. Globally renowned set designers, Vita Motus had built one of the largest 3D mapped stages the country was yet to see. The team of Alex Lazarus and Heather Shaw, the geniuses behind the design had brought to life something we certainly hadn’t envisioned. The big, bold and beautiful ‘Cloud Stage’ could be seen from the road while driving into the venue (yes, thats exactly how big it was) and as you entered the venue you walked right into the Crystal Bar, where crystals were hanging from the ceiling over a brightly lit bar that served some delightful cocktails and drinks.

As we entered the venue, Mode 7 was at the decks building proceedings with precision and was followed by Bangalore based Trip-Hop duo Sulk Station who added even more fuel and steam to the action. Sulk Station, made up of Tanvi Rao and Rahul Giri was formed back in 2009 and ever since their inception, they have been playing at a number of events all across the country. The duo were followed by talented DJ/producer, Sandunes who was accompanied by bassist Varoon Nair a.k.a Squidworks. Though their set was cut short a little it was delightful to see young Indian acts get together to make spunky sounds that are fresh and thrilling. Sandunes has been giving us a taste of her fresh sounds in all her sets and certainly is an artist we’ll be keeping an eye on come 2014.

Next up was one of the most notable, distinctive and ever evolving products of electronic music to emerge from India. We’ve seen Dualist Inquiry perform quite a few times and each instance where we have borne witness to his set, his upbeat chords and pulsating rhythms get us all weak at the knees. His tantalizing take on Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” has the ability to leave everyone present hooked and this time was no exception as he was sure to leave us in admiration of his talent with an awe inspiring set.

Dualist Inquiry’s set perfectly set the tone for what was to come next. From the first time we ever got to witness Bay Beat Collective and Vachan Chinappa, who are some of India’s finest and most enigmatic DJ’s, we’ve been enamoured by their extraordinary prowess and when they played together, it only made for double the mayhem. They together got the beat rolling at the ideal tempo to pave the way for Rusko to take over the decks. The stage came to life just as the sun set and the vivid visuals started playing with our senses whilst BBC and Vachan played an interesting mix of music.

Now, many know Rusko as an artist who does things differently. His careers transition from Dubstep to Drum and Bass was evident from the start till the end of his set. His music however is not dark, it is energetic and though you may be able to sway from time to time his music makes you want to jump around and drain all the energy within you.

Bass music has been slowly but surely picking up in India, rapidly winning over one fan after another and this was made even more evident at the Smirnoff Experience. Rusko jumped around and threw his hands in the air along with everyone present as they danced to the music he played and unleashed a magnetic energy within people which led them to let loose and have the time of their lives. The music synced with the brilliant visuals took over our bodies and one could say that, we weren’t just dancing to the music but were rather seeing it come to life in front of us. Rusko played some enticing tunes of the likes of Camo & Krooked’s “Rock Paper Scissors”, Skrillex’s remix of Chase & Status’ “International” as well as Dub Phizik’s “Marka” and his very own “Jahova” and “Somebody To Love” had the crowd humming and singing along.

Up next was the headlining act of the night. The majestic trio Nero have been under the radar this year and hearing that they were coming to India for the Smirnoff Experience had got a lot of people excited and many were anxious to witness the magic that they had to offer! With the visuals dancing magnificently behind the console, Nero took to the stage and were met by a load roar from the entire sea of fans who had gathered until now.

By the time Nero came on everyone was sweating and seemed a little worn out but when they began hearing the familiar sounds by the group they wondrously gathered the strength to dance vigorously all over again. Nero’s “Crush On You” & “Doomsday” were the highlight for many and each of them was met by massive enthusiasm by the crowd. A defining moment came when everyone was woven together as they sung the lyrics of Nero’s most famous track “Promises”. What surprised us though was when their remix of The White Stripes “Icky Thump” was played in the middle of their set which instantly left everyone who was present, hypnotised.

The stage, the production and the music came together perfectly and the effort put into creating something different and giving fans a unique experience was clearly visible all throughout the monumental event. What we witnessed at Smirnoff Experience in Bangalore has without a doubt been etched in our minds forever and we would like to extend special appreciation to Smirnoff for such an amazing experience!

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Reviewed by: Angelica Syiemiong Pereira

Edited by:  Aditya Seth