Ten years ago, I was digging on Earmilk and This Song Is Sick for the latest bangers. Just beginning my journey into dubstep, artists like 12th Planet, Vaski, Jakwob, and especially Rusko were catching my attention. But then I found Flux Pavilion’s Lines in Wax EP, released October 11, 2010, and I can distinctly remember walking the bus loop at my university bumping “I Can’t Stop,” “Hold Me Close,” and my bootleg “Got 2 Know VIP” every day.
Just as Lines in Wax was a watershed moment for my discovery of dubstep, it was also a breakout release for Flux Pavilion, who years later counts dozens of releases, a debut album (and another album on the way), not to mention collaborations with Childish Gambino, Riffraff, Matthew Koma, The Chain Gang of 1974, and more.
Lines in Wax was really the beginning of it all. “I Can’t Stop” is still the second most-played song on UKF Dubstep, ten years later, with over 111 million views, and it has nearly 100 million plays on Spotify. And while that’s the song that blew up, “Hold Me Close,” “Haunt You,” and especially “Lines In Wax” with Foreign Beggars are still seminal hits even a decade later.
Flux Pavilion’s next single after this EP was “Bass Cannon,” which took his growing popularity from the EP and cemented his status as someone who’s career would shape the genre. Following this up with “Superbad” with Doctor P, “Daydreamer” with Example, and then Blow The Roof made him into a household name in dubstep, and he’s been carrying the torch ever since.
Listen again to Lines in Wax as we celebrate 10 years with this phenomenal piece of work.
