A beloved presence in many editions of Magnetic Fields, BFR Soundsystem take things to the next level, bringing some guests along for an overnight takeover of dub and reggae journeys.

Bass Foundation Roots Sound System is owned and operated by Delhi Sultanate + Begum X. - lead singers of the band, The Ska Vengers and co-founders of Word Sound Power. BFR Sound System was financed through a crowdfunding campaign in 2016. It is hand-built and one of only two Jamaican-style systems in all of South Asia.

A system typically consists of an enormous stack of hand-built wooden speakers and amplifiers that lend immense power to the music. Julian Henriques uses the phrase “sonic dominance” to describe sound system culture, a term that embodies the “power and pleasure of the sonic”. The sound system session is an “enveloping, immersive and intense experience” and has the ability to literally vibrate bodies. Through a sound system, music becomes an intense physical and collective experience.

Image by Avirat Sundra