After flirting with the mainstream in the late '90s, when the millennium turned, drum'n'bass got a little confused. The music got darker, and harder, diverging into way too many sub-genres with ridiculous names ("drill 'n' bass," anyone?) and scaring off the women. Most of the female energy went into new forms like two-step and garage, and plenty of junglist dudes wandered off into grime and dubstep.
But drum 'n' bass never really died, and one of the main figures responsible for keeping it alive during the lean years was the gold-toothed rudebwoy Goldie. His 1995 debut album, Timeless, with its searing single "Inner City Life," helped to define the genre in its early days, melding hardcore rave breaks with soulful samples and ragga-derived rinse-outs.
As the styles changed, though, Goldie's stable, Metalheadz, became a weathervane of it all, with a record label and a legendary Sunday weekly in London. It's now a monthly, and the label has weathered some ups and downs, but with the rising popularity of dubstep, d'n'b looks poised for a mini revival as well.
Things have been ramping up in Goldie's camp, with the master releasing his ninth studio album, Memoirs of an Afterlife, last year. And following a spot on a British reality show called Maestro, he even learned to compose and conduct a classical piece, also called Sine Tempore (Timeless). Staying power, it seems, is a Goldie theme. Learn what's new and next in the world of drum 'n' bass when he spins at the Metalheadz vs. Bassdrive party during conference.
Goldie, at the Metalheadz vs. Bassdrive party, with Bailey, A-Sides, Digital, Juan Basshead, and others. 9 p.m. Saturday, March 27. Heathrow Lounge, 681 Washington Ave., Miami Beach. Tickets cost $20 in advance from wantickets.com; age 21 and up. 305-534-7614; heathrowlounge.com