Review: Excision at the Ogden Theatre, 2/16/12

Last night, Excision, the Canada-bred dubstep monster, carried the Ogden Theatre on low frequency bass waves that were so powerful the ceiling is probably still resonating this morning. He opened his set with the title track of X-Rated, which immediately sent the eclectically clad (neon spandex, throwback basketball jerseys, furry boot covers, tutus) crowd into a frenzied state of bass-infused mayhem. From there, it was pretty much a nonstop barrage of bass (we overhead someone describe it as "punishment, not entertainment") until the encore.

Flanked by a over a dozen strobes and scanning LEDs, Abel gave everything he had to an eager dubstep congregation. Promising 100,000 watts of sound, the heaviest weight of sound the Ogden Theatre has no doubt ever felt, Excision played only the choicest, bass-drenched tracks from his collaborative catalog. We got hit with remixes from Skrillex, Bassnectar, and Downlink, all which contained the low frequency flare that Able adds to his tracks. "Headbanger," a Downlink collab, closed out the set for the night, and aside from a handful of fans covering their ears, was welcomed with insane enthusiasm.

For the masses, it had to be the loudest show ever heard and felt. Touring with a 100,000 watt sound system gives this Canadian colossus quite an ace up the sleeve in terms of production. And to even attempt the task of pinpointing mix-mistakes in the aforementioned production at a venue the size of the Ogden, or one comparable in size, equates to the attempt at hearing a needle drop during an elephant stampede through a crystal shop.

Seriously. This monumental artist raised the bar for sound at future dubstep shows. Along with his mapped visuals, which were painted upon an "X" shaped crag of a canvas, Excision's show trumps all. While this was far from a perfect set -- there were some train wrecked mixes that culminated to empty drops, extended track selections that could have been mixed through quicker and some visually incongruent moments that didn't fit the sound -- Excision deserves props for his deafening performance.

It's reached a point now that a dubstep artist can't rely on their YouTube views, their Facebook fan page numbers or even their albums: It's all about the show. Anyone can get up and play a dope dubstep song, but it takes skill and determination to deliver an actual show. Excision delivered this, and his reputation will only precede him as he presses forward.

Sub.Mission resident Dodger opened the night on a soft note, being careful not to overshadow (a definite possibility) the coming acts, with some mellow bass lines. The filling venue swelled with local pride, the best kind when speaking in terms of music, and Dodger's set primed nicely.

DJ Lucky Date followed with a slew of electro bangers, way more up tempo than the other performers, all of which fed nicely off the energy emitted during the previous set. The same went for LiquidStranger whose beats gave hint to the weight of the coming sound, but ultimately just kept the masses at bay until Excision could level the place.

Excision plays the second night of his two-night stand this evening at the Ogden Theatre with Liquid Stranger, Lucky Date, and Dirt Monkey.

Personal Bias: I've seen a lot of dubstep shows, but this one takes the cake in terms of sound.

Random Detail: There was a wall of speakers in front of the stage providing "sub-bass" (the bass frequency you can feel).

By the Way: One fan apparently had too much fun and was taken away on a stretcher before the show even started.