Las Vegas Weekly

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I can thank BBC Radio 1 for my new appreciation (to a point) of dubstep. I listen almost every day to the broadcasts from England, where dubstep has made it onto the pop charts, and I now recognize artists like Magnetic Man, James Blake, and Chase and Status. So on April 16 I hit the latter’s No More Idols tour stop at House of Blues.

First, though, I commissioned a friend who has been sitting in his bedroom producing dubstep for years to give me a little street cred. So when he exclaimed, “Wow! Delilah is performing with them?!” as Chase and Status’ latest hit, “Time,” began, I didn’t have to feel like some cheeseball girl singing along to a radio song.

Dubstep is indeed listener-friendly, with danceable beats and vocal collaborations. At Chase and Status’ show, these came via video (with the exception of Delilah’s) projecting the likes of Plan B, Tinie Tempah and Dizzee Rascal and Cee Lo Green behind a stage containing an MC, live drum, guitar, keyboard and DJ set-ups. It was difficult to tell which roles Chase (Saul Milton) or Status (Will Kennard) took on behind their respective giant “C” and “S” props, but the crowd didn’t care. The House of Blues floor was a sea of pumping arms for most of the set. (Note: This is different from pumping fists.) Including mine.