The nightlife in Dipolog City has always been relatively straightforward — hit a club, drink alcohol, party to familiar tracks, repeat. That’s just how it’s been. A tried-and-tested formula. But also… a bit of a predictable one.
For the longest time, the local DJ scene in Dipolog played it safe. Familiar beats. Familiar faces. Same stages. Same expectations. As a DJ myself, it started to feel like we were just showing up, playing what the crowd expected, and repeating until closing time. The crowd loved it, sure — but for those of us behind the decks, it started to feel like checking off a list instead of creating a vibe.
Recently, the music culture in the Philippines has been undergoing a shift and evolution.
Different collectives have started popping up here and there — DJs hosting house parties with their circle of friends, small music gatherings introducing sounds people didn’t even know they’d love, and even daytime coffee parties where music feels more intimate than intense. Nightclubs and bars are no longer the only spaces for celebration and sound. Dipolog City’s music scene is also starting to evolve and expand beyond the nightlife we once knew.
And at the heart of this evolution is a small but growing group of artists, doing what they love: playing music — real, raw, and music that isn’t just made to please the crowd, but to move them in unexpected ways.
VAULT7100, a DJ collective based in Dipolog City. Originally made up of five locals — Floroxo, Nerf, Alonzo, Misskhae, and Iyenn. We’ve glitched out of the usual venues and into something more authentic, more experimental, more soulful, more… us.
Our holy grail is really simple: to play music that pushes our artistic boundaries. I’m talking about sounds that nobody thought they’d like until they’ve heard them. I tell you, I used to be that person. Now I really love exploring new sounds. We want to play for audiences who don’t usually find themselves inside loud clubs, and to gather in venues that aren’t traditionally for partying but still make perfect spaces to connect and vibe. We believe that diverse music deserves to live beyond nightlife and after-midnight madness.
Our very first takeover happened at OG Coffee, and let me tell you, there’s nothing more liberating than pulling out the tracks you’ve been hoarding in your crate for months — the weird ones, the deep ones, the “this-might-be-too-weird-for-the-club” ones — and actually watching people vibe to it. It felt like opening a hidden chest of tracks in broad daylight. LOL. Well, it was beautiful and it felt like the beginning of something.
Now, Vault7100 is planning to go around the city of Dipolog, bringing our sound to new spaces and inviting people into something a little different. We’re excited to grow this scene, no matter how slowly or quietly it blooms.
So, if you’re ever in Dipolog and want to hear something different, something raw and alive… keep an ear out for us. We might just be playing around the corner.
- Instagram: @vault.7100
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