These days, arriving before 10pm to a function is a social faux pas. But there they were: harlequins, Barbies and Kens, sleek cats in black latex, and kandi-clad ravers donning Sable Valley gear—all jostling excitedly in front of the legendary Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, vying to get inside at 7pm.

During the day, the 300,000-square-foot building made of stone and steel sits in silence. But at night, like Dr. Victor Frankenstein’s sapient creature, it jolts to life with lights and sounds at doors open.

For over three decades, the venue, whose capacity seats around 7,000, has hosted incredible cultural events in San Francisco’s Civic Center neighborhood. Its namesake, Bill Graham, famously established the rock and roll movement in the 60s at this very building, harnessing the power of music for the greater good. His legacy rolls on with every extraordinary show that takes place there each weekend. I walk past the massive structure, the queue lines, the box office, and stroll to a hotel only a few blocks away.

I don’t normally drink when I’m on the job, but tonight is special. It’s Halloween weekend and I’m heading to one of the biggest raves in San Francisco. I’m also meeting up with strangers I met on the internet.

No other music genre, besides K and J-Pop of course, generates as ardent an online fandom as dance music. The “Sable Squad” is Sable Valley labelhead RL Grime’s fandom. Grime’s music may sound jarring to the innocuous outsider, but his Squad isn’t nearly as raucous. They’re actually quite friendly.

My compatriots in mischief for the evening—Sable Valley heads, of course—include a Paralegal, a Project Manager, and a Software Engineer. It’s close to 7:15pm when I arrive at the posh hotel. They’ve been playing tourist since they landed in SFO from PDX around 9 hours ago and they’re not tired yet. This is not their first rodeo.

Project Manager spots me in the lobby before I see her. “Melisaaa!!!” she runs to me, we embrace and run to the elevators. “How’d you know?” I ask her. “You look exactly like your picture!” she laughs. And in a room on the 7th floor overlooking San Francisco, we pregame.

Soundtracked by RL Grime’s latest Halloween mix, we chat about work, the PLAY album, music, and media law. Our costumes? We’re cosplaying as industry baddies—dressed in all black, of course. It’s the industry standard.

One Yuzu Nectar and two Gran Centenario Plata Tequila shots later, I say my goodbyes to my new friends. I run back to the box office a few blocks over, regretting my decision to wear my Chuck 70s instead of my Hokas.

My visit to the box office is a brief one: two cheerful gentlemen greet me and quickly give me the low-down. Press pass is good for the duration of the event, no in and out privileges, and no backstage access. Good enough for me. I like to be where the people are, that’s where the action is. And frankly, watching three electronic music producers tinker on their laptops backstage is not how I want to spend my time at this party tonight. No city does Halloween better than San Francisco.

Grotesque zombies, goths, and girlies dressed like they flew straight into San Francisco from an 8-hour stint at the Berghain, continue trickling into the arena. Some stop to take group selfies in front of the 8-foot-tall inflatable Minion dressed like a vampire, and those old enough to imbibe head straight to the bar.

A good-sized crowd gathers at the front of the stage, rare for this time of night, but this audience is here for the opener. A tall, blonde dude saunters to the front of the stage. Dressed in a skateboarder’s uniform—green ball cap, dark hoodie, dark jeans, sneakers—the DJ approaches the table set up for him, wheels the decks, and in mere minutes he’s ready to go. 33 Below is no novice.

The New Zealander has sold out venues in London and throughout his home country and even opened for Fred again earlier this year. More notably, he’s recently collaborated with Duskus and RL Grime across several continents for his upcoming sophomore EP, PUSHER.

On the large screen behind him, his glowing name appears in textured block lettering, spinning. “Hi San Francisco, I’m 33 Below,” he greets the audience. What follows is a near-seamless blend of builds, UK Garage, trap and house edits, and plenty of drum and bass. In between playing out hip hop gems like A$AP Rocky’s “Fashion Killa” and new releases “LOYAL”, “PROTECTA“, and “HOLD TIGHT,” the DJ engages the audience. “More Drum and bass? I hear you,” he tells the growing crowd. It’s nearing 9pm now and people are skank-stepping to syncopated rhythms, bobbing heads and swaying their shoulders. The dance floor is warm and quickly filling up.

Next up is Richmond Virgina’s own JAWNS and he doesn’t skip a beat. The balaclava ski mask-wearing DJ is known for throwing parties and the vibes are strong from the get-go. Hedonistic hues of red, dark cobalt blue, and strobing white lights cover the audience and the auditorium, synchronized with the sounds of techno, and big-room house music.

“Can you grab me h20?” I text the Project Manager. “I have some!!!!!” she responds. It’s now around 9:15pm, and the arena is filled. I expertly weave myself out of the large crowd of thousands to the bar on the right side of the auditorium to meet my friends.

Our group of four has become 6, two more Sable Squad members join us—a nurse from Atlanta and her sister. Aptly, the Project Manager rounds us up for group photos, she’s brought her film camera. With strobing lights, thumping music and hundreds of dancing bodies around us, we huddle together, pose, and the camera flashes. It feels nostalgic in the best way, capturing these memories on film and not on our glowing iPhones. We laugh and hope that the photos turn out.

Now nearing 10pm, with drinks in hand we weave through the moving mass of costumed attendees, making our way to the front of the stage for RL Grime’s set.

The arena is smoky and dark as we mill about at the front of the stage, waiting for the trap king to appear at the helm of it. The Software Engineer and I laugh about the terrifying imagery of the animatronic dog featured heavily throughout JAWNS‘ visuals.

A stagehand tosses me a water bottle, then one to my friend, and one to a girl wearing a Sable Valley jersey. Standing next to me on my right is a quiet, lanky fellow, silently watching the stage for an RL Grime sighting. He seems friendly, so I introduce myself. He’s a music producer—one half of a moderately successful melodic trap duo from Arizona. “I’ve been producing for almost a decade,” he tells me. We’ve both seen RL before and we share how excited we are to experience the acclaimed producer’s new saga of music tonight.

Like clockwork, the LA-based DJ ascends at 10:15pm. It’s PLAYtime. Vibrant breakbeats, synth stabs, and elements of trap coalesce as the music begins building to a drop, and pixelated images in red, yellow, and blue rapidly flash in succession. Directed by Dan Streit alongside Creative Director David Rudnick, PLAY’s engaging animations and visuals were a collaborative effort by numerous renowned artists including Tom Goulet, Steve Smith, and Jake Oleson.

The producer grabs his microphone and climbs the sturdy rectangular platform affixed atop the stage. “San Francisco… where you at?” he asks. “Are you ready to go crazy?” He peers around the arena, smiling. The drop happens quickly, the bass reverberates across the auditorium and the audience jumps. C02 jets billow smoke upwards as the visuals of the album fluoresce and flicker across the expansive screens behind him.

RL Grime’s Play tour rolls on, with stops in D.C., Atlanta, and Las Vegas, concluding on New Year’s Eve in Orlando, Florida. Follow 33 Below on SoundCloud, JAWNS on SoundCloud, and RL Grime online.

Reporting by Melisa Yuriar