When we got to the Brakke Grond for the OWSLA Panel (or better known as the Skrillex panel), we purposely arrived an hour before the event was set to start, as we anticipated a huge eager crowd of young djs/producers looking for some guidance, which was accessible with an inexpensive ADE pass. We spent some time ogling some gear, had a quick coffee and bitterballen, and then lined up about 10 minutes before with the rest of the crowd. We politely edged our way through the mob, and then managed to get some seats together by some miracle, fairly close to the front. Within 5 minutes, there was barely a seat in the house, and when things got started, there were none, with over a dozen lined up in the outside isles.
The panel was supposed to be led by Blaze, but really, it didn’t seem that led at all. This was a panel that was free-form, and essentially anything goes. At the beginning of the panel, Blaze asked a question and it was answered by someone in the crowd. that someone happened to be Tom Riley, the OWLSA label manager, and was immediately commanded to be on stage. Skrillex tells a bit more about the history of the label, as it was created essentially to put out Porter Robinson’s music (his album was actually their very first release). Not far behind, they said, was an EP from Zedd, who they actually found off of MySpace. They laughed and said he didn’t know any English at the time.
We were impressed with Skrillex’s vision behind the label – which was essentially to bring talented young kids together to create in a safe creative space. They called this place “The Nest.” The Nest’s (which they spent a great deal of time lauding their praises for) namesake was from the book Watership Down, as this was the rabbits’ home and safe heaven. Skrillex tells about how he wanted this place to be the safe haven for the young and creative, and to be a crash pad for those that needed it in travel, and a space to grow and create together. He emphasizes this by telling of when he was homeless and touring nonstop, that he wanted people to have a safe haven like he needed. He pleaded for people to surround themselves with like minded people and people that inspire them. He also said that it didn’t matter where you went as long as you were moving forward.
Beyond that serious bit, the panel was actually a LOT of fun. Skrillex spent a lot of time telling about each of the people on stage, especially Wiwek. He poked fun at the Australian Chris Emerson/What So Not (“we met at an underwataaa shaaaak paaatty”), told Wiwek he was from the land of orange carrots, and make remarks about how strange it was that we were all sitting down listening to music instead of on our feet. He managed to play a clip for every musician on stage, and seemed nothing but over enthusiastic about the team he had curated. This was less a panel (Skrillex stated at one point his fear of having a boring panel), but more of a party in our chairs. The guys reminisced and joked with each other, and geuinely seemed like they were having a good time in each other’s company.
Even though all of his sets are generally one big party, never in a hundred years did we think we would have so much fun at a panel led by Skrillex. This was one of the highlights of the trip!
Journalist/blogger since 2009 and music lover since 1980. Bex now travels the world and writes and takes photos of dance events, creates art in various media, sings quietly to her cat in the shower, and occasionally builds something that tends to involve a blowtorch. She can usually be seen hiding behind some sort of camera rig.
