Last weekend, Sullivan King’s Chaos Will Bring Peace tour stopped in Chandler, Arizona. With support from Ray Volpe, Grabbitz, Benda B2B Versa, and RZRKT, I knew it would be a night full of bone-crushing dubstep that I could not miss. What I experienced was one of the most beautifully chaotic nights of music I have ever been a part of.
The night started off simple enough, with signs directing me toward the free parking lot as soon as I exited the freeway. Entry was a breeze, with no line going through security. I stepped onto the large grass field next to Rawhide’s well-known warehouse that housed the stage. The large open space was dotted with a dozen picnic tables for anyone needing a spot to rest later in the night. I filled my CamelBak at the free water station and headed inside, where RZRKT was already shaking the walls with some heavy dubstep.
The first artist of the night, RZRKT (RE-SUR-RECT), played a set that ran the gauntlet of bass genres. The hardstyle remix of Perfect (Exceeder) by Mason was what really made the crowd start to jump.
Benda B2B Vastive was up next and instantly turned up the intensity of the music along with the energy of the crowd. This set went heavy from the start and stayed there without anything melodic to slow down the pace. Versa was a huge surprise, mixing in tons of live harsh vocals with the heavy beats. His remix of Zomboy’s Valley of Violence started the first mosh pit of the night.
I was worried when it was time for Grabbitz to take the stage. The singer/producer was the most melodic artist on the lineup, and I didn’t want the energy to slow down one bit. I was happy when Grabbitz came out heavy and kept the energy up. With him singing tons of live vocals along with doing his own mixing, he captivated the crowd. The standout moment was when Grabbitz paused the music to recreate Freddie Mercury’s famous Ay-oh moment from Queen’s 1985 Live Aid performance before leading the crowd into a remix of Bohemian Rhapsody.
Ray Volpe took the stage, and when I didn’t think the crowd energy could go any higher, he proved me wrong. Ray Volpe might not have the vocals to control the crowd like Grabbitz did, but his beats more than made up for it, with crowd reactions so loud they drowned out the music. The whole warehouse was moving, mosh pits were forming and closing at random throughout the crowd—it was just crazy. The VIP he played for Song Request with an all-new, heavier drop blew me away.
Finally, Sullivan King took to the stage to play an amazing headline set full of guitar solos, live vocals, and even a wall of death. It’s been a while since I have seen Sullivan King break out his guitar at a festival, but with this being his own headline show, he was playing guitar solos throughout the set. My favorite was his epic solo during his metal remix of Bass Cannon. The laser light show when he played Hoist the Colors was breathtaking. Grabbitz came back out to sing their collaboration Lean on Me while Sullivan King played the guitar part live. Even Ray Volpe came back out to play something the pair had created backstage that night while the other artists were on stage.
The Rawhide stop of the Chaos Will Bring Peace tour was a night to remember. Two days later, I still feel beaten and bruised from the mosh pits. I understand that a night of chaos doesn’t sound like a good night for everyone, but if you’re a fan of Sullivan King and his music, this was as close to a perfect night as you could ask for.
Now all that’s left is to rest, recover, and prepare for next weekend’s PHXLIGHTS. I hope to see you there!