Obsessed with Bass: The Essential History of Miami Bass, 1985-1993

Late one night in Miami in 1985, Amos Larkins II was mixing the track “Commin’ In Fresh” by Double Duce while also partying in the studio with a stripper. He was so distracted that he forgot to review the levels before sending the track for mastering. The next week at a flea market, he was horrified to hear the overcompressed bass tearing up the store's speakers. But the other customers in the store felt differently and lined up to excitedly buy the album. Thus a genre was born: Miami Bass. For nearly a decade, this accidental, DIY genre enjoyed mainstream popularity, with its cranked up bass booming out of car stereos, and albums packaged with hand-drawn or collaged cover art featuring recurring motifs of butts, guns, and cars. Aaron Nemec explores this obsession in this fascinating little zine full of larger-than-life characters.