"Dubstep is not dead.” Or so says Tampa transplant Jason Figlioli, the artist otherwise known as DJ Midnight Tyrannosaurus, who insists the genre is finally outgrowing its juvenile phase and gimmicky introduction to the mainstream and finding its own unique niche. He should know; Figlioli has been immersed in EDM culture for the past five years and is a virtual expert on the matter.
Explaining dubstep to the uninitiated isn’t easy. Figlioli summed it up best: “Take electronic influences, from disco to hip-hop, blend them with metal, and what comes out is dubstep. All the way from minimal relaxing beats to… heavy moshing stuff. It actually needs subgenres now to describe the variety of sounds.”
Three years ago, Jason left a menial retail job that was holding him back, not just from pursuing his dreams but from actually achieving success on his own terms, to pursue his music full time. Soon enough, he was making a name for himself, and his quick rise to notoriety led to his first record label deal and subsequent release. He went the independent route with his next two conceptual albums — sprawling epics inspired by video games and composed of 25 to 35 tracks each, with intensely heavy breakdowns often bolstered by effective samples. He offered digitial copies of both on a pay-what-you can basis. “The donations I received showed me that the scene was strong,” said Figlioli, who worked his way into live gigs as quickly as possible, from house shows to obscure venues, eventually taking his show on the road.
His fastidious approach to self-promotion via social media and aggressive composition chops helped spur a touring schedule that’s become massive and taken him to France (11 times), Amsterdam, Australia (three times — twice for touring and once for a single show), and across the entirety of the United States. He says the reason he’s successful within the scene is not only his relentless drive and self-promotion capabilities, but because he’s not a carbon copy of so many other dubstep artists pushing sounds these days. He’s unique. “And my personal style helped bring my career to a new level.”
Somehow, Figlioli found his place as Midnight Tyrannosaurus amid all the dubstep flotsam and mainstream noise, carving out a niche for himself and establishing a career that has taken him from the Bay area to globe-hopping tours, shaping the artist he is today and setting him on course for an even greater future.
This article appears in Jul 14-21, 2016.