Sound of The Underground

By John Anthony Ruiz

In Miami, once a genre/event party concept blows up with the local hipster ground and begins to get blown up to the masses, does it lose it’s substance? Take Midtown for example, once upon a time, Wynwood was only visited by graffiti artists, ballsy art collectors and the likes charmed by the realities of operating there. It now resembles more of a college town with a slightly different heartbeat.  The vibe has simply multiplied and migrated to other spots that can cultivate a focus on this type of sound. 

edmMiami is a city of fads; trends emerge and fizzle out at indeterminate speeds. The current bandwagon effect arrived via corporate EDM and has been characterized by massive overpriced festivals, cake-tossing and a rather curious focus on when the bass drops as demonstrated by Andy Samberg’s recent Davincii skit.

Of course, we were all over that shit and what we learned from our adventures in EDM is that you can take an entire culture of sound, stamp it with 3 letters and BAM you’ve got yourself a new lucrative brand. Despite all of this, a backlash is brewing in our Magic City and is manifesting itself in form of a growing demand for “underground” events. One look at event lineups for the week reflects this development with multiple nights being billed as underground.

What constitutes underground? Where are we going to party next?

 Do Not Sit On The Furniture

Intimate and casual, DNS is focused on the music. Why? Seasoned San Francisco based DJ Behrouz has devoted himself to immersing Miami with a kaleidoscope of acts such as Hot Since 82Matthew DekayLeonBoris Werner, and recently Francis Harris.

 Trade

Link and MiamiRebels recently made TRADE their new home which will allow electronic music fans to enjoy their favorite national/international artists in a larger yet unpretentious venue in South Beach.These guys recently booked TiniMartin Buttrich and Visionquest and keep a consistent supply of events every Thursday through Saturday. Their residents Thunderpony, and Hardline are always on point getting the night started.

 The Electric Pickle

Electric Pickle is not the first first club in Miami to play Underground music but as Wynwood was in its adolescent stage, The Pickle was solely responsible for cultivating what most people now know as “Undeground.”

In the last few months thanks to Safe we have seen a surge in underground acts such as Martyn, Daniel Avery, and Tom Trago.

 Treehouse

Despite some shifts in management, Treehouse continues to be one of the more consistently visited spots for Underground music.

Recently, Un_Mute has been running the show hosting their CULTIVATE parties, seizing solid bookings such as Bedouin and Lou Flores. It’s hard to forget those colorful LINK & Miami Rebels parties that brought in huge acts like Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Dubfire, and  Hobo.

 Cocktail Collection

cocktailcollectionOn Wednesday’s DreamAwake brings you Moonshine Sessions, one of the only spots to get your dose of Deep House featuring resident Tamere.

The bar is a perfect retreat for expertly crafted cocktails and live/DJ performances.Located on the 2nd floor of the centenarian Tobacco Road, the Cocktail Collection is revitalizing the spirit of the speakeasy that once reigned from 1920 to 1933 and included famous regulars such as Al Capone who used the space as his personal gambling den.

 The Social Lubricant

All you need to know about The Social Lubricant or TSL for short are their Saturday Secret Garden events.

Spearheaded by Minimax, these guys have quite the ear bringing in acts like Cocodrills, Pattern Drama and in July, Navid Izadi.  These events are NOT to be missed.

 R House

The best thing about R House other than the incredible food and Wynwood atmosphere is #SundaySauce.

Every Sunday Nightdrive and Klangbox  bring local Dj’s such as Patrick Walsh, Duke Skywalker, Duncan Ross and Laura of Miami to give this sunny patio multiple reasons to have unlimited Mimosas and Bloody Mary’s.

Follow us into the rabbit hole by keeping an eye out for our upcoming regular series where we will explore the growing underground scene and interview some of the venues, DJ’s and promotion groups, that cater to the Sound of The Underground.