Article By: Priscilla Hurst

Earlier this month, the bass-breathing, two-headed hydra Zeds Dead hit the Texas Music Theater in the hip little burg of San Marcos. The Canadian duo (not to be confused with Zedd) is the symbiosis of Dylan Mamid and Zach Rapp-Rovan, better known as DC and Hooks, respectively. The pair, based out of Toronto, arose in 2004 as hip-hop producers, formerly named Mass Productions. Their first and only album, Fresh Beetz, was released in 2007. In 2009, DC and Hooks evolved their musical styling and re-emerged as dubstep producers under the name Zeds Dead.

Mad Classy and Skrause opened up for Zeds Dead in the two-story venue, which was overflowing with pumped ravers. The openers revved up the crowd with bass-bursting tracks. At last, the awaited headliners appeared on stage, which resulted in a deafening fanfare by the primed crowd.

The concert was a feast for the senses. The smell of sweat and cigarettes circulated the building, not bothering the preoccupied fans. Two screens on either side of the stage displayed dynamic designs and patterns that entertained the eyes. The haze flowing from fog machines blurred the flashes of dancing color-streaked points. Clubbers were clothed in neon ensembles, fishnets, go-go boots, and tie-dye. Despite Halloween being in the books for almost two weeks, many partygoers were costumed with devil horns, cat ears, chicken heads, mushroom hats, and even Oscar the Grouch made an appearance—he even seemed like he might have been enjoying himself.

As internal temperatures rose, water was thrown out into the sea of ravers and trickled down their skin. The heavy bass reverberated into their sweaty bodies. The venue shook as the dancers were jumping up and down, pounding the floor and the banging beats shaking the walls.

There was a mutual love between Zeds Dead and the audience. The pair of producers was thrilled by the excitement of the headbanging crowd, shouting out “You guys are crazy!” and “We love San Marcos!” They admitted they were going to play tracks for us that they hadn’t played in over a year and even some songs they had never played before at all. The enthused crowd reacted by repeatedly cheering “Zeds Dead!”

Although Zeds Dead is primarily dubstep-based, that didn’t stop them from spinning an eclectic array of genres. They dropped tracks ranging from artists such as Kanye West, The Beatles, Cypress Hill, Sublime, Drake, and Master P. Classic hip-hop singles such as “Jump Around” and “The Humpty Dance” were thrown down. In addition, newer hip-hop hits such as “I’m On One” and “Ni**as in Paris” were played.

To no surprise, they played dubstep tracks as well including Flux Pavilion and Doctor P’s remix of “Louder,” Nero’s “Crush on You”, and Skrillex’s “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites” and “Reptile.” They also played their own remixes of “Wild Heart,” “LA Love,” and “Eyes on Fire.” Their original material was snuck into the mix with highlight hits “Bassmentality” and “Rude Boy.”

As the end of the night drew near, the crowd chanted “one more song!” Zeds Dead replied with “We’re going to keep playing until they shut us down!” which triggered ecstatic cheers from the crowd. Evidently, the longhaired DJs worked up a sweat as well as they picked up their hair by the end of the night.

Zeds Dead’s revolutionary style kept the crowd on their toes all night. You can never be too certain of what to expect during one of their sets. The atmosphere was filled with a universal sense of peace, love, unity, and respect. The dubstep-lovers had a night to remember, in a place where they were able to let loose, forget about their problems, and lose themselves in a world filled with banging beats and bumping bass.

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