I Left My Heart at Let It Roll Puerto Rico

Let It Roll Puerto Rico made its debut this month at Parque de las Ciencias, marking a landmark moment for both the island and the drum and bass scene.

Let It Roll has solidified itself as the world’s largest drum and bass festival. Since its humble underground beginnings in Prague in 2002, Let It Roll has grown into a large-scale event unlike any other DnB festival. The main event is held every year in the Czech Republic, and recent years have featured smaller editions, including indoor winter festivals in Prague and an ‘on tour’ series that visits various European and American cities. This year included a stop in Puerto Rico, as part of Let It Roll’s debut Americas event, and I was lucky enough to attend. For a potential destination festival, this is one not to miss.

In its first year, Let it Roll Puerto Rico really hit all the marks for me: quality music and epic talent, both international and local, all in a beautiful, tropical location. And if you’re coming from the US, you don’t need your passport to travel. You’ll get the feel of being in another country, without being in another country. Plus, Puerto Rico is a hidden mecca for drum and bass lovers, with a scene that’s been alive and well for decades, that’s amping up as new generations enter the genre. And with the region’s leading authority on drum and bass, QVLQV at the helm of this event, everything just came together nicely, with only the smallest of hiccups.

Parque de las Ciencias

The location, Parque de las Ciencias in Bayamón, offered a unique environment for bass.

During the day, the park is a STEAM-focused educational and recreational space. By night, in December, it’s outfitted with a Magic Festival of Lights, which is precisely what it sounds like. A variety of characters and items are illuminated throughout the park, including coquis (the island’s native frog), Dia de los Muertos figures, Puerto Rican flags, and musical instruments, to name a few. There may have been a golf cart commandeered by a couple of DJs who took an unsolicited tour of the park, but you didn’t hear that from me.

The island of Puerto Rico always has beautiful weather, but December is especially nice since it’s after the hurricane and rainy season. Each night was in the high 70s, and it rained or drizzled both days, but it was that Caribbean rain that lasted all of five minutes. The water was a welcome respite and didn’t faze anyone.

Featuring four stages, two indoors and two outdoors, crews used the existing structures to create dynamic stages worthy of the 60+ artists performing.

The two indoor stages were immersive planetary domes called the Control Room and Discovery, with the former outfitted to resemble El Yunque, the island’s famous rainforest. The outdoor stages were The Monument and The Lab, with many locals playing at The Lab. Each stage raged throughout the night, with an epic display of lights and lasers accompanying sawtooth synths and big-bass sounds.

Photo Credit: Carolina Quijano

Musically, Let It Roll Puerto Rico was top-tier.

Hearing Dimension’s “Delirium” six times throughout the weekend proved what a popular and epic remix that track really is; even Dieselboy dropped it mid-set. AC13 opened his set with a remix of Bad Bunny’s “Titi Me Preguntó.” Dillinja took it back with Pendulum’s “Tarantula” and a slew of classic Evol Intent. SLCDNB had The Lab jumping as they threw down a sick reworking of Devo’s “Whip It.” Andromedik rocked “Bloodstream” by Kanine. Captain Bass got things going with a remix of DJ Fresh‘s “Gold Dust.” Overall, the energy was thick and the bass heavy.

The MCs were on fire for this one, with many MCing over countless sets throughout the weekend. MC Dino and Armanni Reign were two standouts in my opinion, and to be honest, I’m not even sure how Dino had a voice by weekend’s end, but that man has some serious lyrical prowess.

Photo Credit: Jose Acevedo

I’ve never been to the flagship edition of Let It Roll, but at this iteration, the vibes were fantastic.

It was the first festival where I saw many DJs mingling in the crowd. I danced next to Mob Tactics and S Doobie. I got a picture with Dieselboy, then watched him go up to an attendee and talk to him about mustaches. I shot the shit with Gigantor of Evol Intent about AI and watched him get giddy when he heard that Dillinja rinsed a bunch of their classic tunes. Optical was a true gentleman, singing the praises of la isla del encanto. The whole vibe over the weekend was one of community, camaraderie, and shenanigans.

Hands down, one of my favorite things about the whole weekend was seeing artists supporting artists. Most hung out, dancing or chatting with the crowd, rather than hiding in the artist-only area or backstage. Everyone was dancing together in the name of music. It was a beautiful thing to witness. Where else can you go and catch all your drum and bass DJs outright giving praise to each other?

Photo Credit: Jose Acevedo

While the festival was fantastic overall, that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement.

To me, the stages were incredibly unbalanced in their lineups. I’m not sure who crafted the lineup, but some DJ placements made no sense to me. Artists who seemed worthy of a specific time slot or a particular stage were placed in times and locations that seemed off for their caliber.

DJs relegated to The Lab or The Discovery dome were done a huge disservice. The Lab, because of its size and location. As you walked through the festival, if you didn’t know where The Lab was, you’d blink and miss it. And the Discovery dome, well, it’s my usual complaint: inadequate sound. The DJs themselves ironically referred to that room as slapfight, because the sound was pinging all over the place and slapping around. It made it seem as though every single DJ was trainwrecking if you stood in certain spots.

And where was the merch? On my flight from California, I was looking forward to buying a tank or hoodie, only to be disappointed that none were for sale.

Those were my only real complaints. And for a first-year festival, I think that’s pretty damn amazing. Ticket prices were ideal, with Tier 3 capping out at $175. Drinks values matched the costs, with a few drink specials throughout the weekend. And it had authentic old-school vibes, with those of us who drove being bused or trolleyed in after parking in the lot a few blocks away.

I see this becoming the new destination festival for years to come. For those of us who live in areas that actually see a winter, heading to Puerto Rico in December is the best idea, and going for drum and bass is even better. Travel is pretty cheap, and the island offers so much to do, with beautiful beaches aplenty. Who wouldn’t want to catch a DNB renaissance in the Caribbean?

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