Boost for electronic music scene

The live electronic music scene in Dunedin was once a very different landscape, but with the demise of venues such as Bath Street in the early 2000s things have stagnated a little. Hoping to change that all is Bobby, of Innate Productions, with a series of monthly gigs at The Cook dedicated to the more heavy, underground side of dance music — the sort of thing you probably won't hear at your typical club night.

I spoke to Bobby ahead of the second monthly "The Cook Up" gig this Friday.

Q What’s the general idea with this series of gigs?

Dunedin’s town life and everything is so dominated by the students and everything in The Octagon and that, like the club nights are just, you know ... None of the people that I know like going to town, so it’s just about trying to provide something so the locals have something to look forward and go out in Dunedin instead of just sitting at home waiting for the outdoor parties and that sort of thing.

Q What sort of genre of music would you say it is?

It’s kind of a mix of the more bass music. So drum and bass, techno, dubstep ... Not just like the main sort of drum and bass, we’ll be doing more jungle and more experimental drum and bass, different varieties of dubstep, heaps of reggae, trance and techno and probably doing some psytrance.

The people I’ve got helping me with it, most of us come from the outdoor party scene so we’re just trying to bring some of that outdoor energy to town.

We have lots of international drum and bass acts come to town— it’s always the mainstream, commercial, popular drum and bass — but there’s enough awesome DJs in Dunedin and the South Island that are the more darker and heavier side of it. I think providing an opportunity for them to go out and show what they're into is quite cool.

Q Has there been pretty decent turnout?

Yeah, the first one we had was really good. I was really happy with the turnout. The Wednesday nights were a bit hit and miss, but having it on the weekend we managed to get at least 100 people in there. And we raised $301 for Life Matters.

Q Most of the gigs I’ve been to at The Cook have been bands. Does the venue work well for this sort of thing?

I reckon it does. It’s such a nice building and just has a really nice vibe. And the people that are coming are just so open and friendly; like Twisted Frequency had a gig there a few years ago and that was really cool. I haven’t been to a bands’ night at The Cook so I’m not too sure what it’s like when a band is there, but, nah, it’s awesome. The sound system’s really sweet and the bar staff are really friendly.

Coming from the outdoor scene, you go to a gig in town and you go to an outdoor party and the vibes just so different. At an outdoor party everyone’s open and friendly and looking out for each other, trying to keep everyone safe, and that’s what The Cook Up is all about. Everyone comes in with a smile and is welcome, no judgement, it’s a safe place for people to get down and express themselves to music that they like to listen to.

The gig 

"The Cook Up", Firday, January 31, at The Cook. Featuring Artemizia, Totoru Crew, Jaggers, Frost and Bygone. Koha entry - all donations go to Life Matters Suicide Prevention Trust. 

For more from Fraser Thompson go to dunedinsound.com.