Electronic Roots with special guest Paulitical/Scottish Power.

Event Details

Scientific Sound Asia presented an Electronic Roots takeover with special guest Paulitical, also known as Scottish Power, flying in from Glasgow, Scotland. The event began with a relaxed daytime pool session before moving upstairs for a late-night programme of Techno, House, EBM and underground electronic music running through until the following morning.

From 11 AM until 9 PM, the poolside programme focused on House, Nu Disco and Classic House in an easygoing daytime setting. Children could enter free, towels were provided, and guests were encouraged to spend the afternoon swimming, drinking and listening to music before the heavier night-time programme began.

At 9 PM, the event shifted upstairs for the Electronic Roots after-party and continued until 6 AM. The musical direction became considerably darker and more electronic, moving through House Music, Techno, EBM and other late-night club sounds.

The line-up brought together Paulitical / Scottish Power, Alan Ritchie, MTXIII, DJ Psycho-UK and vDub. Their different backgrounds allowed the event to move from relaxed poolside music into tougher rhythms, industrial electronics, dirty bass and deeper underground selections as the day became night.

Paulitical, also known as Scottish Power, travelled from Glasgow and brought a direct connection with Scotland’s underground Techno and EBM scene. Associated with Still Distant Records, his sound combines industrial EBM, Techno and raw electronic production with an emphasis on harder rhythmic structures and darker club energy.

His releases had appeared through labels including Insane Industry, Scale Trax, Otomo Trax and Nu Body Records alongside material released through his own imprint. One of those label projects also received a vinyl edition featuring a remix from German Techno and EBM figure Thomas P. Heckmann.

That background made Paulitical a particularly suitable guest for Electronic Roots. His appearance brought a different European interpretation of underground electronic music to Ho Chi Minh City and added industrial EBM alongside the House and Techno foundations already represented by the residents.

Alan Ritchie brought more than fifteen years of involvement with party and underground culture in Vietnam and further afield. Known for a wide musical repertoire, his sets could shift between styles according to the room rather than being restricted to a single fixed genre.

That versatility made him useful within an event deliberately divided between daytime and late-night musical directions. House and groove-led selections could work around the pool, while deeper and more forceful material could take over once the event moved into its upstairs after-party.

MTXIII, originally from San Francisco and based in Saigon, brought a more experimental interpretation of electronic music to the programme. His sets are associated with atmospheric energy, vicious rhythms, cosmic melodies and hypnotic sequences, giving the line-up another route beyond straightforward House or Techno.

His interest in the stranger edges of electronic music suited the Electronic Roots concept particularly well. Instead of relying only on predictable dancefloor structures, MTXIII could introduce unusual textures and darker rhythmic ideas while still maintaining enough movement for the room.

DJ Psycho-UK represented Scientific Sound Asia and brought a background stretching from Hip Hop and Acid House through Hardcore, Jungle, Drum and Bass and House. Growing up in East London during the development of several major underground movements gave his musical foundation a strong connection with both soundsystem culture and early British rave music.

Influences across those years included Public Enemy, KRS-One, Run-DMC, DJ Hype, Carl Cox, Mickey Finn, A Guy Called Gerald, Leftfield, Portishead and Massive Attack. That wide reference point allowed his Electronic Roots set to connect older underground ideas with contemporary club music without being locked into one narrow style.

His involvement also connected the event with Scientific Sound Asia’s wider activity across its radio station, events and DJ agency. The organisation had already presented House, Techno, Hip Hop, Jungle and Drum and Bass events in Vietnam, while Electronic Roots created another space for those influences to overlap.

vDub completed the line-up with a background that developed through the underground Asian scene in Taiwan. His early sets focused on Nu Breaks and Dancehall with touches of electro-grunge and fidget before moving further towards electro-glitch, mash-ups and dirty bass music.

That progression gave vDub a deliberately eclectic style based on broken rhythms and unexpected combinations. His appearances alongside artists including Jack Beats, Atomic Hooligan, Aquasky and Hybrid also connected him with the wider Breakbeat and bass music culture surrounding his DJ development.

The two-part structure gave the event much of its character because it allowed very different musical moods to occupy the same day. House, Nu Disco and Classic House suited the swimming pool and daytime social atmosphere, while Techno, EBM and heavier electronic sounds could take control once the party moved upstairs.

The transition also reflected the wider idea behind Electronic Roots, which was never limited to one branch of electronic music. Classic House foundations could sit alongside industrial EBM, Techno, Breaks and more experimental selections when the DJs shared an understanding of rhythm and underground club culture.

Scientific Sound Asia’s broader archive connects these events with its current music news, broadcasting and artist activity. International guests such as Paulitical also demonstrate how the platform used its network to bring artists from different underground scenes into direct contact with audiences in Ho Chi Minh City.

Electronic Roots ultimately worked as both a daytime pool gathering and an all-night electronic session. Paulitical / Scottish Power, Alan Ritchie, MTXIII, DJ Psycho-UK and vDub took the music from Classic House and Nu Disco in the afternoon towards Techno, EBM and heavier underground sounds before the 6 AM finish.