Dubstep was pretty low on hardcore continuum signifiers as far as I recall. I was more or less unaware of garage when I got into dubstep but even now I'd find it hard to connect the stuff I was really into with garage so much as reggae, hip-hop and drumnbass/jungle. All the stuff I WAS into before I got into dubstep, hence the ease of transition.
Nowadays I never ever listen to dubstep. I think it was always a very club centric thing for me. I don't have speakers that can make your nostrils tremble. Also I was young, my drug honeymoon, etc... Sigh.
Blackdown: I know Mala Digital Mystikz was involved with Twice as Nice, were you around for the 2step days?
Loefah: That was Mala’s thing. I went to the club a few times but I really detested garage, especially the kind of thing that got played at Twice as Nice. Fucking Dane Bowers DJing there and shit… you know what I mean? But I did go there, I was in his music video. It was all good, we were friends through it but nar, musically I had nothing to do with it.
Blackdown: So when did you feel differently about garage?
Loefah: One of the reasons I hated ‘garage’ is because to me, it wasn’t garage. It wasn’t London garage. Jungle raves, back in the day. Do you remember the rave Stush? That used to be held at Chelsea Banqueting Suite, well it turned into a garage rave but it began as a jungle rave. I used to go to that and Dream FM bashes. It was the older lot that weren’t up for the pills. This was a more sophisticated, wise London lot than the Twice as Nice crowd, it was who have been raving, people who ‘still like raving but aren’t into going into all that madness.’ Second room was always a badboy thing. Garage was such a London sound. Garage was real, gritty London bassline shit. Old Freek FM, before that Girls FM – it was ‘aving it man. “House and garage.” Some proper Cockney bird trying to speak posh on the [pirate radio] advert.
https://blackdownsoundboy.blogspot.com/2005/12/no-longtings.html