Drum and bass is a genre that has been performed at almost any location imaginable. It’s not uncommon to see a party inside abandoned buildings and sewers. Drum and bass fans have shown themselves to be more than willing to go to strange places to hear their favorite music. But, most fans probably can’t say they’ve ever been to a rave at a Dave & Buster’s arcade. Thankfully, I’m one of the lucky few who can.
On Thursday, Sept. 18, Brownies and Lemonade’s Drum and Bass All Night Long threw a drum and bass dance party at Dave & Buster’s in Tempe Marketplace as part of their “4 Year Anniversary Tour Bonus Round,” a continuation of the Dave & Buster's tour from earlier in the summer. Before hitting Tempe, DNBNL played at a Dave & Buster’s in Dallas, Texas, to much fanfare.
Doors opened at 9 p.m. and the party didn’t stop until after 1:30 a.m. The DJs included Ekko & Sidetrack, Mozey, Andy C and finished off with Sota. When doors opened, people started trickling in wearing some of their finest rave outfits. The Dave & Buster’s was set up with an open area right in the center for people to dance. The DJ booth was surrounded by bright, colorful lights, laser projectors and fog machines, along with a vast array of speakers. Adorned above the DJ booth was a neon sign with the DNBNL logo, shining like a beacon of light that would guide the way through the night.
Attendees were able to purchase credits to play all the games around the Dave & Buster’s. I played my fair share of Mario Kart Arcade GP and skeeball. Dave & Buster’s had to have made a fortune with the amount of credits bought throughout the night. Right behind the booth was a human claw game, where people were grabbing giant inflatable aliens and bananas. The thumping music intertwined with the arcade games made for a wonderfully unique experience, especially when it came to the racing games. The bass almost felt like blood rushing through your veins; the adrenaline would not stop.
The main bar served drinks like usual, but bar carts were also strategically placed around the arcade for anyone who didn’t want to make the trek back to the front. There were also employees walking around with drinks and syringes filled with some strange, colorful liquid, which added to the energy of the rave.
As the night progressed and the Dave & Buster’s filled in, the party really got started. No matter where you went, there was no escaping the drum and bass. Bodies were pushing against bodies. The swarm of people created a body-heat wave that grew throughout the night. It was like stepping out into Louisiana in the summertime. With how energetic the crowd was getting, it was hard to tell the difference between Dave & Buster’s and Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) Las Vegas.
By 11:30 p.m., the crowd was pumped and prepared for anything, which is when drum and bass legend Andy C hopped into the booth. He mixed song after song for an hour and a half. At each beat drop, the crowd went absolutely nuts. The inflatable aliens and bananas were flung around from person to person, and the crowd was absolutely loving it. Once Sota came up to perform the last set of the night, the mob of people didn’t seem the least bit tired and were prepared to dance for the rest of the night. The DJs were clearly feeling the energy of the crowd, and reciprocated that energy.
Going into the night, I didn’t know exactly what to expect from the event. A Dave & Buster’s rave sounded like a great idea, but how would it actually pan out? Simply put, it was so much more than I could have anticipated. The crowd was feeling the music the entire time, the DJs were bumping and the Dave & Buster’s setting just made everything 10 times better.
DNBNL knew exactly how to fit a drum and bass rave into an arcade, and it created one of the most unique spectacles I’ve ever seen. Now, after experiencing an arcade rave for the first time, I never want to see a drum and bass concert anywhere else! It’s one of those concerts that I will simply never forget.