With a slew of electronic acts “womping” their way through the Mullins Center this fall, mainstream audiences have familiarized themselves with the genre. Chart-topping singles draw on the aggressive dubstep and house beats once reserved for house parties and smaller venues, and A-listers are teaming up with club protégés like never before.

As is the case with most acts or genres that once catered to a crowd flying somewhere under the mainstream radar, that crowd’s backlash is imminent in the face of rising ticket prices and fresh faces overwhelming the pit. Indications were seen Saturday night in Northampton that this may already be happening as West Coast export MiM0SA took the stage at Pearl Street.

On two occasions during the show the 23-year-old dubstep DJ was hit with bottles of water from one concert-goer, taking the second to the face. This prompted the performer to yell into the microphone, “which little f****t did that,” as he left his post from behind the turntable. He made his way to one corner of the stage and told the crowd to get the kid and throw him out.

After the show the concert-goer, who prefers to remain unnamed for fear of repercussions from the venue, said he had a problem with the DJ “just doing the Shooter McGavin” the whole show, as he motioned double pistols with his hands.

“I wanted him to actually do something, and not just prance around,” said the concert-goer, who has been going to shows of the sort for three years, and expressed the view shared by some others that dubstep may soon be on the way out.

However, others interviewed said they felt the opposite was the case, and between them the deciding variable seemed to be how recently they had started going to shows, with the more satisfied concert-goers being the most newly introduced, raising the question of the half-life of the genre.

Brendan Leith, who’s responsible for booking acts with the Iron Horse Entertainment Group, the parent company to Pearl Street, the Calvin Theatre, the Iron Horse Theater and Mountain Park, said he thinks dubstep could be approaching critical mass. But as far as ticket sales have gone, they are still selling as many as ever, filling the upstairs ballroom Saturday night with almost 400 people, approximately the expected tally for the night but still half the maximum capacity.

In years past, an act like Bassnectar was a seasonal regular in Northampton, but more recently he has become too expensive for a venue of Pearl Street’s capacity. Leith doesn’t deny the genre is reaching new markets. Promotional marketing companies like MASS Electronic Dance Company and the up-and-coming Project Drop continue to see area success and new clubs continue to pop up like Lit in downtown Amherst.

Leith said he’ll continue booking electronic acts for the foreseeable future and doesn’t expect to see the bubble burst any time too soon.

With an attentive ear to the college-aged music community, Leith said horns may be the womp of tomorrow in a potential world after dubstep. He predicts more instrumentally staffed bands like local favorite “Rubblebucket,” to will fill the void of a market that has recently taken interest in solo electronic music producers.

Brian Canova can be reached at [email protected].