When asked to describe Gqom , DJ Lag, born Lwazi Asanda Gwala, doesn't hesitate - ''it's raw and it hypes you up", he says. Since the beginning of the decade, Gqom has become the defining electronic music to come out of Durban.Gqom takes music production to a new extreme of brooding intensity. It's powerful enough to command attention when blaring 130bpm at dangerous volumes on public transport. But it also has enough nuance to reward the ears with an intimate listen on cellphone headphones.Coming from the Zulu word for drum, Gqom really does sound like a huge monolith being hurled onto a heaving dancefloor.Gqom is characterised by droning synths and an array of hollow drum sounds spun into jerky rhythms.Despite its popularity, it still remains an underground sound with little overt media or radio support in South Africa, but such potency has also given it an international cachet.DJ Lag, widely recognised as the main musical exponent of Gqom, has recently been featured on UK music websites eagerly awaiting the release of his debut EP.Released by London label Goon Club All Stars, the eponymous EP will be backed up with a tour of Asia and Europe.DJ Lag recently dropped the spine-tingling 16th Step as a teaser to the EP, which like so much Gqom makes you want to dance, while delivering an unmistakable menace.The beat sounds like something horrific scratching at your door on a stormy night.Underneath runs a synthesiser reminiscent of a murderous robot hunting you through the flooded streets of future Durban after the city has been lost to rising sea levels. It builds and builds and then suddenly drops out completely.In a masterful stroke, Lag leaves in a block of silence. Then just as you think it's over, it suddenly drives in again.DJ Lag's first introduction to recording was at age 12, when he went with his rapper cousin to a recording studio and watched a producer mixing beats.He was hooked, but it was a few years before he could afford his own computer, and when he got one he started exploring the possibilities afforded by the music programme Fruity Loops.He's also played major local events including last year's Johannesburg leg of Boiler Room, and the 2016 Cape Town Electronic Music Festival.His musical progression reflects the evolution of Gqom itself.He started with hip hop and then slid into kwaito, took a detour into a percussive house style and then discovered Gqom pioneers Naked Boyz.His EP comes at an interesting time for the music genre - it's currently sprouting offshoots, like the pop-orientated Gqom trap and its house cousin, Sghubu.In the early days, before it became a distinct style, Gqom was characterised by a certain mystery.Young producers would post songs without titles or attribution on file-sharing sites fresh from being tested at backyard parties. But this created issues of ownership and plagiarism, with rivals claiming credit for each other's tracks.Now Gqom artists like DJ Lag and Rudeboyz are reclaiming their music and growing the genre by adding to their discographies . - bubblegumclub.co.zaTo listen to DJ Lag go to soundcloud.com..