Last weekend, March 7-8, Cyclops Desert transformed the Rawhide Event Center in Chandler, Arizona, into a pulsating hub for bass music enthusiasts. Headlined by the renowned DJ and producer Subtronics, the two-day festival showcased a stellar lineup of supporting artists, including Mersiv, INZO, Hedex, Alleycvt, Smoakland, Basstripper, and Dennett.
Arriving at the show that night was a breeze, with Rawhide only a short distance from the freeway and signage clearly leading the way to the free parking available. Entering was just as easy, as the number of staff on-site kept the lines moving quickly. Once inside, I filled up on the available free water and explored the venue space. A large lawn, surrounded by a gravel road and vendors on three sides, faced a massive stage, where my first act of the night, Smoakland, was already playing.
Smoakland started the night with some crunchy, funky bass sounds. Their deep wubs were great for getting the blood moving, and closing with a funky remix of Cinema by Benny Benassi was a special treat before Hedex pumped up the energy. Hedex kicked off his set with the meme of CJ from GTA saying, “Here we go again,” before dropping into some absolutely filthy UK drum and bass that didn’t let up for a moment until the end.
Mersiv was the final opener of night one and my favorite of the night. His hard-hitting, experimental dubstep was a crowd-pleaser. Playing out his collab Trippy Land with Juicy J and Tape with trippy visuals and lyrics on the screen for me to yell—undoubtedly ruining everyone’s videos around me—was a lot of fun.
Finally, it was time for the man himself, Subtronics. The full-stage production kicked in with extra screens on the sides, tons of lasers, pyro on top of the stage, and even a few fireworks. This set was so crazy I forgot to take notes, but I will never forget the new Onidirectional VIP he played. Subtronics seemed to be having just as much fun as the crowd, with what felt like an unlimited amount of energy as he jumped around on stage.
Night two started similarly, with another smooth and easy entry. Dennett was already on stage, playing an extra deep and heavy remix of Alex Clare’s Too Close. Dennett was a huge surprise for the night—if you’re a fan of the new stuff Zeds Dead has been putting out in the last year, check him out. After that, Basstripper took the stage with some extra hard-hitting drum and bass. His song, built on the beat from the intro of Bring Me the Horizon’s Kingslayer, was my favorite part and left me exhausted.
Luckily, Alleycvt was up next, and she had plenty of energy to give. She came out heavy right away but had a knack for transitioning into melodic vibes when necessary before seamlessly smashing back into the heavy drops. Her Disturbia remix had everyone dancing.
INZO was the last of the openers for night two. Opening with a clip of philosopher Alan Watts speaking about The Real You, this ended up being a very emotional set for me. INZO tested out a bunch of new collabs he’s been working on with fellow artist Blookah for the crowd. The beautiful soundscapes, coupled with the lasers turning on for the night, created an amazing vibe before he closed with a fun new disco dance song.
Again, it was time for Subtronics to take over the stage, and once again, I was blown away by the production. Tonight, I noticed the visuals and light rigging around the stage created a tesseract around him as he played, in honor of his most recent album. I didn’t know what to expect from his second set—night one was an incredible performance filled almost entirely with Subtronics’ original music. Night two was filled with all of his own tracks, chopped, remixed, and doubled with other songs no one but Subtronics would think of. Alien Communication doubled with Adele’s Set Fire to the Rain was not something I expected to sound so amazing, but it did.
The two-night event was full of fun and memories I will never forget. At this point, Relentless Beats is a pro at running events at Rawhide, and it shows. With plenty of staff to keep things moving quickly and smoothly, I left at the end of night two excited to return in a couple of weeks for Sullivan King’s Chaos Will Bring Peace Tour.