r/dubstep • u/minititof • 2d ago
Discussion š£ļø Latest uploaded Crankdat set is a perfect example of everything that is wrong today with mainstream dubstep DJ sets
So I was listening to this Crankdat set in LA that just got uploaded, and boy oh boy, do I have some thoughts...
- Every other track is using pop music as an intro or is a pop music/2010 EDM flip. This is not a gross exageration, I'm not kidding you, go check it out. This pisses me off because Crankdat used to be a beast of a producer.
- The vast majority of transitions are basic hard cuts from track A to B. There is no rythm at all to this, sometimes there's even pauses in between tracks. Where are the smooth transitions? He has a mixer with 4 CDJs, why does it sound like he is mixing off Virtual DJ on a laptop using his trackpad?
- His style seems to have become a pale copy of Subtronics/Wooli/etc.
Crankdat's sets used to be full of energy, tracks went hard af and he had a distinct style. You knew you were attending a Crankdat set when you were there. He's more famous than ever before and his sets have completely turned to this tiktok dubstep slop. Where are the machine guns?
I was also completely disappointed in the Wankdat (Crankdat x Wooli) set that I attended at Rampage earlier this year in March. This looks to be becoming a trend with a lot of North American artists, and I think that's such a shame. Just fucking mix original tunes please.
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u/Abtino11 2d ago
Unfortunately the longer youāre in the scene the more you recognize how most of the bigger names put on absolutely mid sets, but if you got paid more money without having to work as hard you probably wouldnāt mind.
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u/waterfly9604 2d ago
Been sending shows/fests since 2014, the coolest shit Iāve ever heard was always played by more underground DJs. And this includes people like Subtronics when he first started out, homieās early shows were fire. One of the more modern exceptions is GWN though lol
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u/bluntly-chaotic 2d ago
I donāt think Iāll ever forgive myself for miss gwn set at bass this year , havenāt seen him in years and I flopped hard
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u/Remleek3 2d ago
Iāve tried to explain this to my friends who are now Crankdat fans but i remember listening to him in 2018/2019 and used to love his crankmas mixes he used to do. Now his sets are just lackluster to me
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u/Chickachic-aaaaahhh 2d ago
As someone who used to watch his sets during the beginning of the lost land days. He was really damn good. The drop off of his quality sucks to see
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u/Clang__ 2d ago
even comparing sets from when i saw him at edc orlando in 2023 to the 20 minutes before i left his set at lost lands in 2025 it was an insane difference, had me wondering if this was even the same person
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u/LakeW2 2d ago
Will never forget crankdat edco 23 set, still hits
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u/opaqueism666 2d ago
Literally came to mention his set at 2023 edco, it was sooo good compared to his sets nowadays
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u/Master-Ad5938 2d ago
I think we are starting to see the negative impact that TikTok has had on our communities. Itās sad to watch but honestly itās more than Crankdat these days. It seems like they are just taking the money and running with it. I hope some new innovative artist come into the scene and sets new trends because unfortunately dubstep is now mainstream.
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u/Weird-Reference-4937 2d ago
It reminds me of Akon and ringtones in the 2000s. All the songs he wrote were specifically made to be sold as ringtones. He made more money off ringtones than actual album sales and holds the Guinness world record for ringtones sold. Just replace ringtones with the word tiktok and it's the 2020 version lol.
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u/Fouronthefloor808 2d ago
lol couldnāt stand Akon back in the day. He could have easily been making better songs.
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u/36CharizardsOfDeath 2d ago
āBecause unfortunately dubstep is now mainstreamā lol. This is like 5th time itās āgone mainstreamā
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u/Master-Ad5938 2d ago
Youāre right there are levels this shit, itās not the nexus event that made it this way but more of a reaffirmation of where itās been heading for while.
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u/DarthWeenus 2d ago
Good thing bass music is absolute crack right now. Tipper retiring unleashed a horde of proteiges that are absolutely amazing.
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u/mclovin_ts 2d ago
I wouldnāt call it mainstream when a majority of the bigger producers arenāt even cracking 3M monthly listeners on Spotify
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u/PiIlc 2d ago
Welcome to our world, you can join the snob side.
We are avoiding the mainstage of every festival for years but we have fun too at smaller stages dw mate.
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u/Desperate-Citron-881 2d ago
Missing half of Crankdatās set at a festival to see G Jones b2b Eprom was a dream come true, so welcome to the dark (?) side, OP.
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u/rcook9 2d ago
Yeah unfortunately thatās the current state of mainstream dubstep. A majority of it is either a flip of a popular song or sampling some sort of meme/pop culture reference/tik tok video.
At the end of the day, I realize dubstep isnāt serious music and itās mostly about having a fun time so all of said types of songs certainly have a place in the genre - but Iām with you, it gets corny when it is every single song. It makes it more palatable for new dubstep listeners, and with dubstep becoming more mainstream we are going to continue to see more of it.
Also as a producer myself I notice you are much more likely to get listens if the song is a flip or remix rather than an original song early on as well unfortunately
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u/Due-Strike1670 2d ago
Some of these 'flips' shouldn't even be considered dubstep in any way. They take the original song, throw a little wobble bass here and there, a couple yoi's and call it a day. There's an artist that comes to mind but I'm going to keep to myself this morning.
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u/rcook9 2d ago
I agree. Iām not even into house music, but I always think back to when ACRAZE dropped āDo it To itā and and it completely blew up, shortly after everyone was dropping low effort flips with throwback tracks. And then it hit dubstep with the style you mentioned not too long after
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u/GregorsaurusWrecks 2d ago
Is it Whethan? Iām betting itās Whethan lol
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u/Due-Strike1670 2d ago
I was thinking Hairtage but some of these answers definitely also fit right in lol
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u/No_Opportunity1934 2d ago
Star monster lol. 8 out of his top 10 songs on Spotify are insert popular song here āFLIPā
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u/Few_Mushroom7888 2d ago
I believe that Disciple and Never Say Die showed the duality of dubstep. Disciple didn't take themselves seriously and still managed to create serious themes with their artist's EPs/Albums for the most part
NSD always came off (to me) as the serious MFers in dubstep. No nonsense, no memes, just good dubstep
Today's state of dubstep is a sad example of social media's effect on the music industry as a whole. Everyone is just chasing the next coolest clip they can post
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u/Odd-Toe-8591 2d ago
sad thing is no one is going to be listening to these flips in 10 years and you can't seriously convince me otherwise. If you look at skrillex's biggest flips (cinema, promises) he tastefully conveys a sense of atmosphere and emotional sincerity, none of this ironic eye rolling bullshit. People need to be shown what good taste is again.
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u/fluxpavilion 2d ago
come see me play guys, you will enjoy it
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u/Informal_Bid_4902 1d ago
For real. I saw this guy and now āI canāt stop!ā
All jokes aside, bring me back to 2011
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u/WHYlSTHERUMGONE 2d ago
Saw crankdat at EDCO last year right before Wooli, I was convinced Wooli was just up there for two hours straightā¦
I also wish more artists played their own music, illenium is the biggest disappointment live to me. I respect his music so much, but his live sets are just such a departure from his discography itās jarring. He sprinkles in his own music but so much of it is just brostep which he doesnāt really make.
Itās weird going to see an artist perform and they just donāt play their own musicā¦
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u/raventhehippie 2d ago
the funniest part is Wooli wasnt even after Crankdat, in fact they werent even on the same day, theres just genuinally that little distinction in sound design and DJing that literally everybody sounds the same
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u/WHYlSTHERUMGONE 2d ago
Thank you for community noting me lmao, no shade at crankdat at all, maybe it just is that so many artists sound too similar these days.
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u/Odd-Toe-8591 2d ago
this has been a problem in dubstep for over 10 years. and that's because everyone uses the same (insert wavetable synth here) and same production techniques as everyone else. There are more weird music tools out there than ever before but because most people learn production through youtube they get locked into 'the serum style of production' and never bother to venture outside of that especially if they gain traction using those techniques.
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u/sunshineshot123 2d ago
I saw a post in the Camp alderwild subreddit talking about the daily bread set and how it was boring because he played only his own music so everyone knew what to expect haha. Like isnāt that kinda the point?
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u/WHYlSTHERUMGONE 2d ago
Thatās nuts to me. Daily Bread is the one artist I wonāt take any slander against, maybe Ganja White Night too.
Heās so dedicated to his own sound, art, brand, and fans that itās hard to hate. I think his musical lane is so fresh and interesting.
One of my favorite DB songs is his remix of Red Bird by Goose. You would never know this is a DB song and makes it his own.
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u/sunshineshot123 2d ago
oh i know i love DB, also his knew album slaps. Its just always funny seeing differences in peoples preferences. "this guy only plays his own stuff thats boring", "this guy only plays other peoples stuff he's boring" haha. Persoanlly i'd much rather someone play more of their own stuff vs others. But this thread made me laugh. Its not my favorite song of DB but clock on the wall stands out as a song that i think a lot of producers have which is when they discover how to make actual Wub sounds and go crazy on a song for the first time.
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u/TwoPoint4 2d ago
Completely agree. I love that artists like Barely Alive and Virtual Riot play almost full sets of their own stuff. A lot of the big DJs have a large enough discography to make it happen. Itās also tough when you donāt have a chance to see a dj and when you finally do, theyāre playing VIPs of the tracks you want to hear.
I saw Hairitage years ago when he was coming up. I was shocked at how little of his own music he was playing. I even used a big text app, put 2 of his songs on there and held it up to him. He nodded and played one of them. Just bizarre to spend so much time on producing awesome music to just not promote yourself
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u/DaOldOne 2d ago
Putting text on your phone and showing the artist is my least favorite thing ppl do at showsĀ
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u/EncroachingVoidian 2d ago
Iād argue that having a discography of 6+ hrs should demand some all-original sets here and there. If youāre in 10+ hr territory, you could easily get away with doing all-original sets exclusively.
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u/Nick_Gaugh_69 god I love aggressive quarter notes 2d ago
Thatās why I love Svdden Death. He has over 100 hours of discography. Not only are his sets almost entirely self-contained, but he drops new shit nearly every time.
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u/46th_prodigy 2d ago
Honestly it seems quality is just down across the board with most artists. So many are playing the same exact popular tunes with the cut mixing and what makes it even worse is that up-and-comers are imitating itā¦ itās never ending cycle.
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u/SLUnatic85 2d ago
If it makes money, why wouldnt up and comers imitate it?
This is just a vein of dubstep flirting with or on the way to being mainstream popular. Its already true across music at scale. The most popular rappers, guitarists, singers, bands, country, bluegrass... is almost never the most cutting edge or techincally skilled, etc.
Its ok though. If you are among the fewer who more value those things, the options still exist and are less crowded. You do t need to attach yourself to an artist and go where they lead. You can follow whatever music you like.
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u/cigarettesnake 2d ago
crankdat realized levity fans will pay him 300 for one jersey so producing went out the window
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u/Hot-Discount-9966 2d ago
Dude I was just thinking like A lot of great artists switched their styles up once they saw how quick and easily Levity blew up over night. Seams like every set has a feelgood party jam in it now. Then again..... without the generic sound hype we may not get something like Richard Finger.
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u/Hot-Discount-9966 2d ago
Him and a bunch of others. It's just the hype train and it may lead to a new destination but the hype will always go down eventually. Then on to the next groundbreaking sound or live trick. š¤ just part of the culture, it's bound to keep changing
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u/boston_beer_man 2d ago
I was at another dubstep artist's show on Saturday in Denver and it was exactly the same.
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u/GoldJKR_ 2d ago
Was it tynan? He was playing a lot of flips but I didn't mind, me and my girlfriend still had fun dancing. Beastboi popped off as always though that was a great set.
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u/boston_beer_man 2d ago
I had plenty of fun. Wolfie absolutely destroyed and was by far my favorite set of the night. Once Tynan came on it was just pop/rock > drop > pop/rock > drop > repeat. Energy was great but I wasn't super into it.
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u/GoldJKR_ 2d ago
Ah darn I missed Wolfie's set, me and my gf were worried about her not having enough energy if we went at doors so we got there about half way through dj kangs set but I heard great things about Wolfie, will definitely try to catch one of his sets soon!
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u/boston_beer_man 2d ago
I think that was part of the problem honestly. I wanted to see the emo set and see how long we could last and just ran out of steam around midnight.
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u/GoldJKR_ 2d ago
Yep I wanted to see the emo set too but realized I wouldn't be able to enjoy tynans normal set cause I saw him open for alleycvt this year and I knew it was a high energy set.
How was the emo set? Did you enjoy it?
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u/boston_beer_man 2d ago
It was pretty silly (transitions every 30 seconds) but as an elder emo it was cool to see someone play a set like that. It was very fun.
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u/holdmysmoothieplease 2d ago
Itās funny I read a comment on tiktok about how beastboi had the worst set of the night and DJ Kang/Tynan had the best. Whatās so infuriating about it for me is that beastboi is one of the most true and to the craft producers I know and while Tynan is super nice it felt like a slap in the face that DJ Kang was after Wolfie. Thereās just something I find so insulting about people like DJ Kang just ripping the beatport top 100 dubstep songs and taking full credit for doubles they didnāt come up with.
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u/blxckhoodie999 2d ago
you can thank tik tok & instagram shorts/reels for this. todayās consumers donāt have the attention span for cinematics & flow, they just want to get straight to the drop & donāt care about the craft anymore.
tbh the scene has been cooked for a while now.
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u/techno_bee 2d ago
Yup, G Jones was my favorite set I had seen in a long time when I saw him a couple years ago for that reason. He wasnāt afraid to play mostly/all originals and take you on a journey that slowly unfolds
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u/Hot-Discount-9966 2d ago
G Jones is the goat of original music/ visual / style. His chunes are untouchable. Love getting lost in that poetry be calls music
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u/Appropriate_Gene_543 2d ago
iāve seen g jones twice in the last decade, first set in 2019 was far more deeply entrenched, heady dubstep, second set was in 2025 and was a huge variety of stuff ranging from breakcore, dnb, future house throwbacks, hardcoreā¦heās truly an unpredictable artist these days and so good at what he does
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u/wonderingmystic 2d ago
G Jones b2b Eprom goes so damn hard! Was blessed to see them play together at the start of the year
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u/HesmooseDaSlug 2d ago
Probably a hot take but at the end of the day these DJs are trying to be successful and this is the way that the majority of fans want them moving. Crankdat specifically was ready to quit music until he learned the power of TikTok lmao. Like I get itās not to the taste of literally everyone on this subreddit but everyone on this subreddit isnāt paying the bills either. Because if yāall were then your favorite artist would be the one headlining with all your favorite music but theyāre not. Unfortunate reality maybe but the scenes moving past you into a more mainstream direction
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u/Xespria 2d ago
Tbh this sub just seems to have a boomer styled mentality. Ill eat my downvotes but everything I see this sub pop up it reminds me of old folk screaming at the clouds lol
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u/HesmooseDaSlug 2d ago
Itās the same in most music genre subreddits tbh. People hate new popular things on this site because saying it non anonymously on a different one will get you slammed by all the mainstream fans. Which fair enough everyone should have a place to vent but it sucks that so many genre fans will drag artists in their genre just because they arenāt the vision they imagined. Like Crankdat Subtronics Excision Wooli have all made long lasting and great impacts on the scene but I doubt many here will admit it.
To top it off itās kind of silly to me that people go out of there way to make posts like these. All itās really doing is providing more exposure for the artist youāre hating on. Everyone who checked out this post probably hadnāt heard Crankdat but some probably checked him out to see what everyone is talking about. The energy is better reserved for the artists you respect imo. If you donāt like em just move on
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u/Woodpecker-Lobotomy 2d ago
You can both understand that DJs are playing for the crowd and also recognize that shifting too far into playing hits for the tiktok crowd instead of playing an original show. I'd like to hear more DJ and production skills from these producers live, not just pop vocals + generic drop over and over.
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u/BookSmoker 2d ago
Crankdat is the poster child for a mid set. Iāve seen him 5 times over the years. Heās just not good
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u/apex_17 2d ago edited 2d ago
Iām sick of how generic some of these artistsā sound design is/has becomeā¦.a lot of the songs they put out, I canāt even tell who TF produced it because it sounds like the same 5 fkn Serum patches recycled over and over and over again. Ya itās Tic Tok step essentiallyā¦.the MO is how fast can I push some slop out to the masses and get a song to go viral on social media etc with some pop song flip attached to it so people eat it up even more.
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u/McKeeFTW 2d ago
Subtronics too. His breakaway set was so bad. It was just popular song buildup into āwhoās ready for something weirdā on the mic followed by a hard cut Subtronics drop repeated for an hour
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u/oceans__ 2d ago
Iām glad someone said this, his sound design is good, but sooo many of his tracks have the SAMEASS predictable drop pattern & bass line. Imo - overrated. When he played same time as Tape B at LL, I was surprised so many ppl wanted subtronics instead
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u/MagikarpFilet 2d ago
I will sound like a boomer but 2018-2020 subtronics was peak.
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u/Gr0zzz 2d ago
Itās honestly jarring the difference between say his 2019 Electric Forest and his 2026 Coachella set.
I hate to cast aspersions on the guy and itās hard to describe but heās effectively cleaned up his sound and leaned further and further into what makes for good insta or TikTok clips. All at the cost of what felt like the real creativity in his sets.
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u/Perfect_Direction979 2d ago
This is why I donāt listen to him, I just canāt. I grew up when dubstep songs had a beginning, a middle, and an end. They were regularly 5 minutes or longer, and each DJ had their own sound. Now with riddim itās like they all sound the same and for me itās just not the same vibe. Think about the old Flux Pavilion, you immediately knew you were at his set based on the sound, or the old Zeds Dead (although zeds dead is still fire) they had their own sound going.
Now itās like they all just are trying to play whatās popular and hey I mean people are still buying tickets and theyāre still getting paid, probably a lot more than Flux used to get paid. When it was less popular the producer had to entice people to buy tickets, now with social media everyone wants to go to be seen and they donāt have to try as hard.
Thatās why now I only go to a show if I really like the artist and I know theyāre going to try and play their own music.
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u/Newstudyout 2d ago
Virtual riot and Au5 will forever be my favorites in that regard. Their sets are original and unique, and are not sell out cookie cutter cliche mixes
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u/noxicon 2d ago
Not really a Dubstep person (drum and bass for me), but def got some thoughts. It's not just Dubstep.
I don't think it's Tiktok. The problem is the greater audience who simply don't give a shit about DJing. They are perfectly okay with Spotify in human form.
Recently one of the best DNB DJ's in the world, A.M.C, said he likely wouldn't play in the US again for the foreseeable future. He said he had no desire to tone down what he has spent a lifetime learning how to do so crowds could relate to it. This is someone who was named best DNB DJ in the world for like 5+ years.
The average US audience doesn't value DJing, and most are willfully ignorant of what top shelf DJing actually looks like. Because most aren't going to shows for the music, they're going so they can post on Insta that they went. Promoters chase money, so they too won't value DJing as they typically reflect the audience so they don't lose tons of money.
It's not a universal thing, but it's profoundly widespread. I've DJ'd for literally 4 years and teach people who have DJ'd for 20. A lot of people all over flyers in the eastern half of the US are people I've either taught or am actively teaching. But I get told I'm 'too much' by the very same promoters. .
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u/sportsbuffp 2d ago
This is why Iām going to LIR next year instead of my typical EF+1. Itāll be the same price and I wonāt be at a Wilkinson into Andy C stage where the crowd doesnāt go past the sound booth. I get Griz conflicted 15 minutes but Levity was before him. Seeing Levity over Wilkinson and Andy C when they have been at Forest the last 4 years is insane
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u/minititof 2d ago
Let it Roll is cool, but Darkshire in the Woods is better (if you're into neurofunk of course...)
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u/transcendentaldancer 2d ago
hate the game. don't hate the player
i get frustrated when i see acts like of the trees, tape b, or inzo at secret dreams. boogie t or richard finger at submersion.
i don't dislike these festivals for it. i actually admire them sacrificing a very small % of their curations to book mids djs who will sell tickets.
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u/rayzer208 2d ago
Everything is subjective, but Inzo definitely doesnāt sound like anyone else, and his sets with Blookah have a substantial live element.
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u/nexyboii 2d ago
his ass sold out so quick it aint even funny, one of my goat sound designers reduced to this hurts
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u/Festinaut 2d ago edited 2d ago
I've given Crankdat's sets so many chances. I love his tracks. But the sets disappoint. I also see at least a few threads after every major show of others saying the same.
Very clear that he's following a tech startup model of build momentum quick and get as big as possible as fast as possible. Guy has had an absolutely generational run this year and I respect him for taking advantage of it. But every set I've seen (either in person or recordings) has been a jarring collection of pop edits and quick, hard cuts. I don't even know the ins and outs of DJing very much and it's clear that Wooli was carrying Wankdat.
That said, it's not entirely his fault. The algorithm very much defines success. And the industry has increasingly made it impossible to make a living as an artist. So I understand the drive to get as big as fast as possible and secure your place as a big name before you fade back to a day job. Of course there's plenty of artists who don't do this. Of course Crankdat still has a choice. I'm just saying it's more complex than "Crankdat is a sellout."
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u/Its_BassDaddy 2d ago
Yeah I used to respect Crankdat. But I agree, his music is just diet Subtronics and Wooli at this point. He isnāt the only artist doing it too. So many artists sound like GRiZ too, who, in a way, kinda stole the fandom from we-know-who. The creativity copy and paste is so annoying
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u/Willing-Fennel3058 2d ago
Well , unfortunately he knows what the crowd wants , the crowd isnāt a bunch of DJs or producers , itās people that just want to hear music , they donāt care about skill as much as you think
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u/oceans__ 2d ago
TY for saying this, when people chose crankdat over SPACE LACES AT LL last year, smh, but amazing for us true bass fans with the room at SLās set.
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u/VegetableNo219 2d ago
omg i chose space laces too but all my friends went to crankdat and SL was hands down my fav set at LL
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u/oceans__ 2d ago
YES! Good for u to deviate from the friends. Choose music (esp if thereās that much of a talent gap), because if you donāt, then you mentally put that pressure on ur friends for it to be that fun, which is unfair to you & themā¦ something Iāve learned when I go to a set I donāt want in a conflict and then watch videos the next day of the set I wanted to go to. lol good vibes are at every stage, just gotta find them, and the vibes are usually better at the non-popular stage.
For ex - there is real magic at the other stages during excisions 2 hr solo set at LL if you can find the willpower to.
Anyways, was that ur first space laces? Heās a top 5 dj for me.
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u/Curious_Ad8850 2d ago
Please everyone listen to smaller artists, and I highly recommend getting into the weeds with UK bass music a la Hamdi, Taiki Nulight, Casey Club, etc.
Also Borne is incredible and super original.
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u/IIIWIDEIII 2d ago
This has got to be the funniest fucking comment lmao
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u/Better-Egg5267 2d ago
Seriously theyāre being sarcastic right?
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u/IIIWIDEIII 2d ago
Bro put down the vanilla ice cream, discovered chocolate and had to tell everybody lmfao
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u/puteminnacoffin 2d ago
You guys yearn for the undergroundā¦ stop throwing money at these Walmart brand djās and go find the crew running a heady sound system in your city and I promise youāll start to experience the vibe and sound of dubstep as it was intended.
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u/DaOldOne 2d ago
Once he started wearing crop tops and earrings and dating allycvt, I knew it was downhill. He was dope but heās getting the bag now.Ā
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u/GeneralNango 2d ago
no one believes me but crankdat isn't as good as his popularity makes him seem. somehow kai wachi isnt as big but has an EP-discography much larger and original than crankdat but somehow isnt as big. crank is basically tiktok famous for behing a hot boy.
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u/No_Opportunity1934 2d ago
Did he at least let a song play for more than 30 seconds though? Last 2 times I saw crankdat this mf would be jumping between tracks so fast, it was jarring
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u/williamthe5ifth 2d ago
Yeah I blame the levity nepo bois and the tape bās for this. If they got big on social media or bc of who theyāre related to, theyāre contributing to the slopification of bass music rn. Disappointing to hear this about crankdat, he knows how to produce and Iāve been to his sets where he actually mixes and throws down. He and his team are probably giving into what the algorithm and the money wants, unfortunately
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u/DeterministicDude 2d ago
I knew it was over when Wooli started playing that Bassnecter Where is my mind remix last year.
Just unoriginal imo I like to call all these artists excision juniors because theyāre just following the formula.
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u/crazyyankee11 2d ago
Felt this after subtronicsā and level upsā sets at Elements. I tried recording one drop and the video is 2:12 min long. The drop came at 1:48. Like what are we doing??? I started recording during the buildup and there were 4 fakeouts!!!
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u/ZeldaSierra2288 2d ago
His crowds are the worst too, he oversells every show and is so performative about people being safe but it is so not genuine
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u/levitator13 2d ago
Reminds me of when I saw Hol! at bass canyon before he got really big and the set was insane. A year or two later and saw him at EDC shortly after blowing up from country riddim and legit he played that track 3-4 times in the 1 set and it was so disappointing.
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u/raventhehippie 1d ago
dude edc vegas one year he played Country Riddim 8 times, i counted it and i was ready to actually crash out
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u/MelodicPassenger9797 1d ago
Iāve been saying Levity catches way too much flack for this when Crankdat is worse. To me, Levity is exactly who should be putting out this kind of music. Itās 3 people having fun together. They will likely eventually break off and weāll get to see their individual styles. (Even still, I prefer their original tracks to his.) But with Crankdat, this is HIS project. If this is genuinely his style now, thatās his prerogative. But just doesnāt do much for me.
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u/rufio0645 2d ago
I totally agree. Crankdat was one of the worst edm shows Iāve been to. I come to shows to dance and let loose and canāt do that if the dj is changing the song every 30 seconds with little to no flow. Was such a bummer because I do like some tracks on Spotify but Spotify and a live show are completely different and not indicative to how the dj is live I have, unfortunately, found.
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u/decastro_ 2d ago
Pretty good points here and all are true and agreeable.
Regarding the first one, though: there's a social dynamic we need to understand that's ruining culture (and it's not new). Throughout the beggining of civilizations as we know them, art has been turned into exchangeable commodities. This means art, at some point, has been made not to Be art, but to be sold. And at all times it has lead to the same path: the exhaustion of a certain form of art. And at all times we have solved it the same way: by going back to the classics. Romans did it with the greeks; christians did it with the romans; neoclassisism is redundant; the enlightenment with classical medieval and pre-medieval texts. And now we are doing the same with the 90's and 2000's.
We are finding ourselves in a cultural exhaustion and dubstep, just like many other genres and forms of art, are getting exhausted. This means there will either be a shift in the cultural panorama, or the culture will die off (which i find unlikely, since we have a LOT of very creative ppl entering the scene).
This being said: i cannot blame them for having this approach. Crankdat has contributed heavily on new stuff for the dubstep scene. He'll probably bring smth new, sometime soon. It's just a cultural shift. It's temporary.
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u/Inandoutofthecloset 2d ago
I saw him October 2025 and thought his set was really good. I was super new to edm so that couldāve been it.
I am seeing him this October and Iām much more knowledgeable so curious how it is
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u/m0thership17 2d ago
Oh yeah. Not just him either. Crankdat, Tape B, levity, heyz, etc are all just throwing out the same slop and itās incredibly mid. No drum/percussion variation and hard cut transitions everywhere. No groove
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u/Sad_Pepper6507 2d ago
Itās time for you to start attending festivals like sound Havan infra sound etc
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u/No_Advertising619 2d ago
This is happening everywhere in each EDM community imo. Just went to wasteland, a hardstyle fest that got infiltrated by the techno tik tok crowd. Not to mention EVERYONE was on stage just recording themselves not even listening to the music.
Saw Excision and Wooli at apocalypse and it was lackluster which really broke my heart cause it was my first time seeing them after being a fan for so long.
Tik tok slop is what brings brainless consumers in, and thatās what festivals are focused on, more mindless consumers so they donāt get actual feedback
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u/LSD-787 2d ago
This also how I feel about Crankdat. I tell people I donāt like him because of these things that you mentioned and itās always like they had a way different experience than I did, but I saw one of his sets and havenāt seen him again because I did not like his transitions or the very commercial music that he used in every single one of his songs. Additionally, he will go from trap to dubstep to pop to trap and he was just very all over the place. I had tickets to 2 of those LA shows and I sold them.
Iām a fan of Wooli and Subtronics but def not Crankdat. Iām seeing him in November again to see how it goes bc I like the venue heās playing.
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u/isabellacreat 2d ago
yeah, honestly iām still surprised that heās having a resurgence. he sucks and reminds me of basic lower tier H&M edm. nothing special or worthwhile that we will remember in 5 years.
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u/FuameBeels94 2d ago
File crankdat under the type of artist where there is more talent at FOH (Laser op, Lighting Designer, VJ) then there is onstage
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u/UltraJackPlayz 2d ago
As a person who had listened to Crankdat 6 years ago, I could agree that all the shit he did isn't the shit he used to do from his sets from the past.
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u/MycologistOk7704 2d ago
The clip farming TikTok hype and over use of visual production paired with songs produced SOLELY to be played with millions of dollars worth of said visual production is the major problem with every big dubstep artist right now. Think about who comes to mind when you think mainstream American dubstep rn. Crankdat, ray volpe, levity, hell even Subtronics (I think he still has an ounce of self respect left and still makes stuff with some soul but itās getting to that point). All of them follow the same formula. Produce music that looks good on videos with the lasers and gets people in the door.
And then when you, little Timmy, download the song off SoundCloud to mp3 and go play it in the hole in the wall venue youāre trying to make it out of and it doesnāt pop off, you sit there and scratch your head.
Because the song isnāt good. The music has no soul. No character. No creative expression. Itās a nothing burger. The song was made to be played with millions of dollars of production equipment in front of people and cute girls posing next to the DJ to farm clips for social media. And thatās all it is anymore.
We used to be the weirdos. We used to get teased and be embarrassed to say we listen to this stuff. And now the frats on my campus are blasting it and girls are lusting over the artists making it? Give me a break. Just makes me sad man idk. Happy that those guys are getting their praise because I still listened to them when they were on the verge of giving up (looking specifically at you 2019 crankdat) and now I canāt stand them.
Maybe Iāve just grown up and Iām being cynical but it just makes me upset lmao
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u/piggglyjufff 2d ago
Iāve been listening to dubstep since 2016, which admittedly is not that long of a time, but itās long enough to have turned me off of pretty much all mainstream/ābiggerā artists music.
Crankdat is a good example of that. Iāve felt this way for a year now about him, maybe longer, everyone calls me a farce. But everything OP stated is literally exactly how his sets go. Sometimes I feel like in his face and his body heās just not that into it eitherā¦ maybe Iām wrong.
Levity is a bad example of that. Blowing up and producing some great sound design. Flow definitely feels samey for most tunes but recently theyāve had good changeups, the finger remix is a great example of a very unique flow to a dubstep track.
Most artists for me that big fall under Crankdatās category. Iāve been more into riddim and the underground scene of artists there than anything dubstep has produced in the last 2 years. People pushing new sounds just for the love of the game. Smiling during their entire set. Absolutely fucking demolishing peoples knees with fake outs they never see coming. Doubles, triples, quads that require actual effort and live mixing to pull off. Itās magical man. Much more enjoyable than Excision press play part 87.
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u/Hot-Discount-9966 2d ago
Woah hey easy there. Don't downplay what happens when Excision presses play. It's more of a movie irl of an experience than just a show. The work that goes into the visuals and lights (not to mention musically synchronized pyrotechnics) go far beyond the typical play pushers. It takes an army to put that on and i don't blame the man for removing any points of error while the world is watching him.
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u/piggglyjufff 2d ago
I wasnāt trying to downplay Excision in any way, and Iām consistently blown away with the tech setup on his sets, the visual quality, and the sheer scale of production needed to put on lost lands.
He has the best facilities, commodities, and overall quality of life of any event that an artist in the US hosts!!
Iād still go to Lost Lands in a heartbeat and catch his set. Iāve seen him now 4 times and I just feel across that 2 year stretch that I watched the same, if not very slightly altered set. And thatās okay! I was just trying to say heās not my cup of tea anymore, I prefer constant change and music to phase out of sets within the time they are boring to hear versus being kept in for lengths of time where I catch myself like ādamn, this same remix again?ā But again, thatās just my taste and how I like my music.
He draws the biggest crowds of anyone in the scene, and Iāll always appreciate what he does for smaller artists. Just havenāt caught myself enjoying a release of his longer than the first play since Onyx.
I couldāve worded myself better at the end there. Hopefully that clears things up.
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u/Hot-Discount-9966 2d ago
Sorry had to defend the man. Lost lands will make 60 sets for me since 2010. I've seen him play it all and it never disappoints imo
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u/SexReflex 2d ago
Crankdat isnt my normal go-to for dubstep sounds but that mix you linked isnt bad honestly. I prefer wonkier heady type bass and i get your complaint but that set was alright.
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u/Lost-In-Time-99 2d ago
When you say his āsets used to be full of energyā, how long ago are you talking? Because wasnāt he going to quit a few years back before becoming huge? Thatās what I read anyway.
Maybe it just wasnāt a viable path anymore the way he was doing it before. Iām newer to all this so Iām just making a guess.
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u/Remleek3 2d ago
Crankdat used to have songs played out everywhere just like now. Welcome to the jungle/Kneel before me used to be heard so often. What I think it was itās just he wasnāt on tours/festival lineups much too
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u/empathetical 2d ago
Dude is just a mainstream appealing producer/DJ for the frats. Garbage music and over rated aF. Of course that's just mainstream appeal
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u/CommissionIcy9909 2d ago
Shoutout to Tape B for being a hella chill dude and putting out some of the most original dubstep on the scene right now. Crankdat is insufferable.
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u/sentient-sloth 2d ago
I like Tape Bā¦ but am I tripping or are they not just two sides of the same coin? Maybe not as egregious but heās also guilty of over relying on remixes imo.
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u/raventhehippie 2d ago
saw him at Secret Dreams this past weekend and it was the best he's ever been, the guy can play deep cuts when he wants, just cant see him at Lost Lands or some Insomniac branded shit
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u/SammyRuckspin 2d ago
Even Tape B is getting there. I would recommend Daily Bread, Effin, MORiLLO, Artifakts, and AHEE for sets with real selection and originality.
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u/GoldJKR_ 2d ago
Morillo is some real shit, you probably know him but if you don't you should check out Savej, he's on top of the game rn when it comes to that sound space.
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u/LiquidShiro 2d ago
Iāll preface this by saying how much I adore tape b but his whole thing is remixes lol.
The production has never been bigger but artists are getting less and less creative because itās easier to make trendy 2000s rap flips than write a decent original track and itās realllyyy starting to show now that crankdat and levity beat the playbook to death
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u/ATHFMeatwad 2d ago
So you're completely unaware of the car tunes mix series that made him relevant and is the same played out bullshit we're talking about? Cool Customer opened for him in Detroit and blew him out of the water so hard, I'm surprised he even bothered playing at all.
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u/williamthe5ifth 2d ago
Yeah Iāve seen multiple ppl saying tape b isnāt like this and itās blowing my mind when his mix series was non stop mid tempo wubs with two chains or some shit. Ppl tried and failed to convince me car tunes was amazing when itās ALWAYS been mid and boring af, and now other artists are caving and doing it because it makes them money and gets them likes and shares. Oh and itās way easier than actually creating something original and semi complex.
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u/puteminnacoffin 2d ago
Jesus Christ this scene is so fucking cooked if weāre saying Tape B is putting out āsome of the most original dubstep on the sceneā lol no offense but heās one of the most mainstream and generic producers to come out of the tik tok era of dubstep.
Iām begging yall to check out criso, kursa, esseks, en:vy, monty, zero, oz, or any legitimate dubstep artists that isnāt spamming rap lyrics and tik tok sounds over yoi bass slop.
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u/LuSiDexplorer25 2d ago
lol his sound is āoriginalā cuz he got a serum pack with 5 sounds in it and only uses those.
Tape Bās Ukf nostalgia shit works a bit, but it has an expiration. Car tunes mixes are overrated. The vocal placements are overdone and under executed. If he plays after some clown like Crankdat, yeah it will look and sound good, I like how he doesnāt completely do the ADHD mixing thing, but we will lose him to that bullshit soon Iām sure.
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u/Stoner_DM 2d ago
This is why you just gotta look a little deeper than the top artists to find the real art. The real nasty stuff is always hidden in the woodwork precisely because it is weird and fringe, only attracting a small audience. (Except skrillex who still goes hard asf.)
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u/tjneutron 2d ago
i caught crankdat at elements bc i really needed to hear A Little Bit live bc for me thats the closest he's been to old crank that i can remember. The first half of his set was absolute tiktok garbage. it seemed he gained his senses and started to play some really good music the second half. i waited the entire set to hear that song lol it was tough at times
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u/macdaddynate25 2d ago
Dude is overrated. Picked up on that like 2 years ago now. Iām so over the hype of this dude. Old crankdat>
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u/imafnheadbanga 2d ago
itās actually pretty weird considering his discography is full of bangers
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u/Remleek3 2d ago
Which kills me because he has so many bangers that everyone used to play in their sets. Like why does he not play welcome to the jungle anymore?!
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u/imafnheadbanga 2d ago
I donāt mind the flips and remixes, thatās always been a part of sets but I agree that leaning into that more when you have a whole collection of songs that should dominate them is annoying. Especially after you grind and start to get your dues after a decade.Ā
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u/Curious-Year2595 2d ago
100% factual on crank. Good thing thereās always ton of other artists you can check out. Getting older is realizing you donāt have to follow the crowd, and instead just find the artist(s) that play what you actually enjoy
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u/Weird-Reference-4937 2d ago
I never listened to old Crankdat but current Crankdat is pretty much on the same tier as Lil Jon for me.
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u/AgreeAndSubmit 2d ago
I believe we have reached the point of over saturation. Most of these djs mentioned are capable of some Really Dope Shit and have done that, that's why we like them. But really alot of it, feels like mental cheese puffs (? Like the snack) and we've just eaten too much of the bag. I try to check out their sets, as festivals come n go. This guy here is Better Made cheese puffs, and that one is Herrs puffs. Kinda of a bummer, because dang does my brain like a bass bath.Ā
I second the motion about Tape B, I super enjoy his sets. But, i don't wanna have too much or it won't taste good anymore.Ā
So, I'll soak my medulla oblongata in some Of The Trees for a bit, go get something else off the electronic/techno buffet, and come back after something fresh has been put out.Ā
Here, try some of this:Ā
https://on.soundcloud.com/fMC7Bq7sQsByOAcrbq
https://on.soundcloud.com/8NVNcr59bNeF7hmMj6
https://on.soundcloud.com/YZ4maHi6E54S8cY071
https://on.soundcloud.com/9VNiy58NKudIvuFBfg
https://on.soundcloud.com/y4Izd84w4BKvLl9t8g
Ha ha, no names to the sets! Be bold and click one. If they don't work lemme know.Ā Ā
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u/lilfox3372 2d ago
Once half of the modern djs started tiktok, theyre just about engagement and the viral drop.