Dubstep's minimal production was made viable by Plastic People's soundsystem, which could make even sparse tracks feel physical

Kode9 identifies FWD>>‘s move to Plastic People as a turning point: ‘on a soundsystem like that, you could get away with producing such minimal, heavy track — tracks that had one snare an hour, one hi-hat every two hours, loads of sub in between. That wouldn’t have worked on any other system.’ The Plastic People soundsystem’s ability to reproduce sub-bass at physically overwhelming volume meant that a single sub event could sustain attention through long stretches of near-silence. This means the classic dubstep aesthetic of restraint and space was not a free-floating artistic choice but was coupled to a specific venue’s physical capabilities. The same tracks on a domestic system would sound empty; on a suitable rig, the bass fills the space.

Examples

Pinch describes the Subloaded birthday party: ‘The pressure was so heavy it made your eyeballs vibrate. When the bass kicked in, everything went fuzzy.’ People came out after 20 minutes needing a break.

Assessment

Explain why minimal dubstep tracks required a high-quality soundsystem to be effective and describe what would happen to the same tracks in a different acoustic environment.