WAX on, dance off at local weekly DJ night
Wax photo by Vladimir Vukmirovich.
Monday nights are funkier than ever now that Hush Nightclub has opened its doors and handed the stage over to one of Victoria’s finest DJ duos, WAX.
After seven years of DJing together—with an unquenchable thirst for electronic music—Wes Bain and Xavier Walker, a.k.a. WAX, have finally been given their own club night, called Oh Great, to showcase their talents behind the decks.
These dedicated dance floor destroyers can be found playing house, drum and bass, electro, dub-step, and, especially, breaks. But whatever the electronic genre, their selections always have one thing in common.
“Without a big, slamming bass line, what’s the point?” asks Bain.
These guys like their music energetic, melodic, and heavy, with funk to spare. Their unique blend of upbeat vocals with bass-driven, party-rocking bombs has made them favourites of the Vancouver Island electronic-music scene.
WAX has stirred crowds of up to 500 people into absolute frenzies, from Ucluelet’s Soundwave festival to Sugar Nightclub, where they recently opened for the Stanton Warriors.
But it’s more than their music that gets the crowd going. When this pair gets together they’re known for their infectious, energetic antics on stage.
“It’s boring to watch a DJ with his head down the whole time,” says Bain, “so we try to jazz it up a bit together. You know, get dancing, jump around, yell…”
“Hit each other!” laughs Walker. “If we’re jumping, the crowd is jumping.”
Bain and Walker aren’t always found side by side though. Last summer Bain, under the DJ name Wes Beanz, won Hush’s DJ challenge that secured him a sunny Sunday afternoon slot at Victoria’s Electronic Music Festival (VEMF) in Centennial Square.
“VEMF was pretty freakin’ sweet,” recalls Bain. “I got to play for about 400 people of all different shapes, sizes, ages, and colours.”
“There were old men out there screaming Wes’ name,” jokes Walker.
Being such music junkies, Bain and Walker are proud to live in a place that, despite being rather small, has such a rich and diverse music scene.
Over the years, Victoria has attracted many major producers and DJs, and WAX has played alongside their fair share. NAPT, Freestylers, Chase & Status, and Alex Metric are among those that WAX has opened for, and they don’t take those opportunities for granted.
“We’re very privileged to have such a strong electronic music scene in Victoria,” says Walker. “We’ve seen some of the best international DJs in the world here.”
Since its beginnings last summer, Oh Great has become quite popular among electronic music fans, despite the duo’s moniker. Taken from a sarcastic catchphrase of a friend, the phrase, “Oh great, it’s…” doubles as a clever way of introducing guest DJs every week.
Bain and Walker have used the club night not only as a weekly chance to unleash musical mayhem but also as an opportunity to give up-and-coming DJ’s in the community their start.
“A good third of the DJs that have played for us since last June played their first gig at Oh Great,” says Bain.
In this way, WAX can ensure that our electronic-music scene keeps on banging for years to come.
After journeying through nightclubs, festivals, backyard bashes, and beaches, WAX have ended up in a pretty good place, and they realize that they have their loyal fans who have kept dancing for the last seven years to thank for that.
Nice article, good to see em gettin recognition wicked write up Justin! =)
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Good job JD, well written and unbiased, considering the circumstances