Back in 2007 the Red Bull Thre3style Competition had been merely a fledging event conducted from a small local venue in Vancouver. It was no more relevant to the great big world out there than a baby that is only still a twinkle in the eye of his father. But just like the remarkably fast materialization of a baby and then the accelerated growth spurts of a child, something of a similar phenomenon happened to the Thre3style brand as it took first Canada by storm, then later spread to the United States, and finally overseas. Fast forward to 2010 and we suddenly found the world’s BEST DJs battling it out in a scratch-it & mash-it showdown; In a city, no less, than the illustrious Paris, France.
This year, it was the city of Vancouver who again rolled out the proverbial red carpet for the Red Bull Thre3style World Championship, which now includes 18 of the world’s best DJs flown in from around the globe. The city itself was honoured throughout the night as an inherent icon and for the significance it played in the competition’s relatively short, but exciting history. The return of Red Bull Thre3stylers to it’s hometown has been more than just a celebration of the incredible music engineering talents that we stocked our downtown hotels with, but as a homecoming of sorts. Vancouver was reunited with the event it had given birth to. It had finally come home from its star studded adventures around the globe, now a fully matured version of itself in every way.
A week of intense DJ showdowns were held at some of the best venues across Downtown Vancouver, Fortune Sound Club, VENUE, Club 560, Bar None, and it all came to culmination Saturday night at The Commodore Ballroom. We were fortunate to have witnessed the sound check earlier that evening and were blown away by what we saw: A most impressive and hulking stage set up with elaborate lighting and lasers, suspended time clock and multiple turntable stations that we had yet to see be unleashed. The stage was extended far past it’s usual dimensions, causing the coveted front-row to now wrap around 3 sides of the stage. This setup allowed more party go’ers the chance to be up close and personal with the competing DJs than had ever previously been possible in that venue. The fantastical lighting structures and cables stretched skyward and then fanned out over top, giving the set up a peculiar sci-fi look. This was even before any of the lights had been turned on or any lasers let loose. The sound check blasts made the dance floor tremble underfoot as we watched in awe. We were also in awe of course, of the all-star cast of DJs who wandered in and around the empty venue, then took turns setting up their instruments as they fine tuned for the festivities, only a few hours away. Watching and listening to Z-Trip up there felt like we were privy to our very own exclusive early show. It… was… PIMP.
When the clock struck 9, the doors opened to the lines outside that had started queuing long before then. You could already tell it would be a fantastic success. Droves of young, hip and excited urbanites flowed inside and the room reverberated with their anticipation as much as the sic bass that kicked the atmosphere into high gear.
Starting the party up was a boomtastic set by Vinyl Ritchie; the renowned party rocking DJ had the crowd warmed up just right to greet the international line up of finalists as they were brought into the line of fire… well laser beam fire any ways! We had DJ SUPA (France), DJ Bazooka (Switzerland), DJ Nedu Lopes (Brazil), BITCODE (Spain), DJ Headspin (Vancouver!) and the wild card entry DJ Big Once (USA). They all stood quite distinctive from one another, but for a shared wolfish look in their eyes, hungry for the desired ‘World Title’.
And boy did they battle it out! Beneath the smiles and jokes they passed off to each other, there was an undercurrent of intense urgency that seemed to push them one after another, into some of the most captivating and invigorating DJ sets that Vancouver ears (and eyes) have heard (and seen) in a long time. The dance floor flourished under the spicy variety of beats and bass that shook the venue: we had some hyped-up, best of the 90′s, while the next would be more contemporary. Others were infused with their international flavours, and still others came out with props as awesome as a rubber dingy complete with a party rocking captain that crowd surfed the waves of people gyrating and grasping below it.
As the evening escalated so did the stakes. One common thread seemed to permeate quite a few of the sets we beheld; multiple tracks off the Watch The Throne album were circulating the rotations. Perhaps it was that Jay-Z & Kanye West were currently both in town for their double-header tour stop, which was currently taking over Rogers Arena. It’s just as likely though to be because it’s simply a freaking hot ass album loaded with freaking hot ass tracks.
When the time came to crown the victor, all the brilliant DJs lined up on stage. It was now their turn to wait as anxiously as their audience for DJ Flipout, the ever prominent Vancouver DJ our city loves so much, to bestow the honours. Runners up were the Brazilian, DJ Nedu Lopes and Switzerland’s DJ Bazooka, who graciously accepted their respective placements and watched on as our very own Canadian DJ Headspin was proclaimed the World’s Best Party Rocker for 2011 to an exuberant and rowdy crowd. Being the ever patriotic people we are, his win was celebrated in the typical red and white fashion with Canadian flags waving on stage and off for our hometown hero.
DJ Nu-Mark (Jurassic 5) quickly took the stage after the award ceremony to ensure the party kept going strong. Nu-Mark’s set featured the standard DJ gear with a variety of children’s toys mixed in and played in sequence to help create the unique live experience he’s become know for. Special mention goes to “Maurice” the cymbal-smashing monkey for not only being a highly entertaining part of the show but also for managing to keep a beat. Nu-Mark is one of those live DJs you really must see for yourself to fully appreciate. He comes up with interesting ways to create sounds that you just don’t see everyday and is one of the few DJs out there that might actually warrant you to watch him perform for the majority of his time on stage.
As much as we were truly mesmerized by the music up until that point, there is simply no comparison to the phenomenal presence of DJ Z-TRIP when he commandeers the turntables of an event. And boy, did he close out the party like the legend he has become; the club fell instantaneously into a party rock bliss from the moment he dropped the needles onto the vinyl. Now, I hate to say it, but you are going to have to fill in the blank yourself from here on out. If you were there, you should easily be able to jolt yourself into a flashback of the epic euphoria that is his mash-it and scratch-it perfection. If you weren’t there … I am afraid I have no words that could ever fully encompass the experience of Z-TRIP as it should be. He so famously creates such a seamless blend of genres with the sickest beats and celebrated vocals/lyrics from the best of the best, all loaded onto a mash-up train which you never want to get off of for fear that there could never be anything as worthwhile again. For the unfamiliar, I suggest you check out Z-TRIP on Youtube, RIGHT NOW! Once you do that be sure to be the first in line for tickets next time he comes through your city to rock your world, and your socks off!
Review by: Lauren Dallas / Photos by: Michael Caswell
SCENE IN THE DARK EXCLUSIVE SHOW CONTENT
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CHECK OUT OUR ‘DJ BIG ONCE’ PHOTO GALLERY HERE
CHECK OUT OUR ‘DJ HEDSPIN’ PHOTO GALLERY HERE
CHECK OUT OUR ‘BITCODE’ PHOTO GALLERY HERE
CHECK OUT OUR ‘DJ BAZOOKA’ PHOTO GALLERY HERE
CHECK OUT OUR ‘DJ NEDU LOPEZ’ PHOTO GALLERY HERE
CHECK OUT OUR ‘DJ SUPA’ PHOTO GALLERY HERE
CHECK OUT OUR ‘DJ VINYL RITCHIE’ PHOTO GALLERY HERE
