But well creepy! so if you are meeting your girlfriends there, I suggest you pick her up at the station first to avoid the usual sour face situation later.



We wandered into a little oasis of Psy-Trance culture as we stepped into a club that has two main rooms separated by a connecting, twisting and turning staircase carved out of the masonry like an after thought. Upstairs is the main arch where the action was to be found. It’s big enough to accommodate about 300/400 punters at a guess.
The downstairs was sort of decked in a few old fabrics near the back area where a small bar and chai station was situated, serving up an assortment of cakes. The date cake is particularly recommended to future globetrotting travellers…hmm-nice one! Also there was some chai on offer to stimulate the palate. Miaow!

Every one involved in this event, as well as the security, were charming and there were echoes of Natural Order to be found here with the same set of “hardcore yet chilled out “psy-trancers” that I could trace back over five years if not more.
Zen Mechanics was the lord of the dance floor with a brand of roller-coaster psy that was exhilarating and great fun. And so was Bliss, who got the thumbs up from every one I chilled with after. You have fans mate; and I agree: You rock!

I’d like to also mention DJ Marko who blended a form of industrialised-techno with touches of acid into his psy-trance which I wondered if others had noticed, yet every one was so into their dancing that the quality of his set kept people glued into other dimensions where my words cannot reach, and that goes for most of the DJs there on the night.

Incredibly, the place danced itself into the late hours of the morning and finally died at noon. Downstairs, it reminded me of a really good squat party without the assholes to ruin the night. If you like Psy-Trance, with an underground feel, then yes! this is definitely the place for you.
As an old anarchist wild child, I totally felt at ease in this party, where freedom of _expression and decent behaviour was the norm. Cool people, who know their stuff, and street-wise dudes with a smile, that it was a pleasure to be part of such a psychedelic gathering.

Le Mufti

Loose ramblings by Jam Gorilla

Been going to Happy Jacks, Club Innocence now Jack’s since 1998 and it was a scary venue then. Security there could effortlessly rivaled with infamous Bagleys or Chunnel Club gorillas for the title of the most ruthless and aggressive on the scene. Quite a feat must say.

It was then, now it is a different place but somehow shrunk in the process.
I do vividly remember some Rude not… or Omnipotence parties in spacious 3 rooms.

It would get Einstein or Planck rubbing their eyes in confusion. Ignore the shrinkage though as change is for the better and different space continuum rules apply. Will crack a boson for that ability of going through the walls but the Jacks offers atmosphere one could only have found in Trenz or 266 in a distant past.

Stir some of the most visual effects on da silver screen and pukka crowd with steady flow of kicking Goa and affiliates and you get Pukka label launch. How coincidental?
That’s my 3 pence but next time will bring tripod in my pocket for a bangin’ night out.
Cab is waiting, aloha…

more photos here

more on Acid Monkey

Their massive night at Koko on 8th of October, co-organised with Epidemik crew, hardcore ravers brothers legend on the scene, was a good one cos they are sometimes big ones and they are very bad. But this one was a night of kick ass drum n bass. Nuff said.
The venue was ass kicking too. Large and not too packed first and not too many “gangsta lot, you know who,…
Crowd were friendly but there was a bit of attitude at the start but later they mellowed out and were good and happy as new.
Mcs were pretty amazing with some tongues dancing skill, worth the price of ticket, what a balloon, whachaaa…It was kinda empty first but later got totally rammed.
Humans rolling and twisting everywhere, on balconies, downstairs or upstairs where Epidemik crew ruled with da moody liquid rollers. Yessssssss…

Yet somehow we couldn’t get the feel of bass rushing around till about 2 when all of the sudden I got grabbed by it and flung to the Mcs feet where mystical forces took over my hips. (I wasn’t the only ‘transformed‘ person around).
Lotsa crazy, steamy dudes jumping around me all night long. What!… All the big epics got played till a total crowding of the stage with Nicky Blackmarket. Yes sir!. I am in love but don’t tell anyone or don’t write please…. He played really well and smiled through his set.
What a girl can do?

Later I kinda of found it difficult to gather infos while I am having a bunch of scientist playing on my ears. Cos they are things you should do when time is flowing around you in a spirited way. So I just didn’t fight and stayed bouncing till morning light in the best ever lab: nice one.!
A hot, steamy and reacting concoction of sexy human jumping beings, must go to the next one, But if you want to be there for the next one you better start stressing the living out of whoever finances your leisure time.

Cloakroom £2 for single item and water bottles being sold with caps off. Whachaa…
Are they taking mickey or what?

Great party and great vibe, just do something about it stupid!
Check in advance

Dr Rocket

more photos click here

www.breakinscience.com
www.epidemik.com

The album launch of “Ambivalent Records” commenced under friendly, capable and sometimes chaotic but always smiling collaboration of new kids on the block: “Elluminate”. Here was the nascent embryo of a new kind of Psy-Trance party, dishing out a light electronic salad of robotic riffs and effects. Acid grooves that teased and stirred the senses of the assembled.
The beat staying consistent, strong, without that heavy thump-thump that often distorts the mix into one continuous drone. Where all the tracks merge into an inaudible, repetitive banging set without reference to the originality of each track being defined for its own sake.

There has recently been structural changes to the to the lay out of the Arches. This club seems genuinely ambitious and concerned in improving it’s facilities with embellishments that have seen the third arch there loose it’s DJ station at ground level for a newer and elevated gantry where DJs can now follow from above the action in a space freed from impediments.
But the arch that rocked the best, on the night, was the one that showcased, in live performance, the three main acts of Ambivalent’s emerging stable: NRS, Scorb and Deviant Species. The latter started proceedings by cranking up the gears as he came to the decks.
Then the night just rocketed into the stratosphere: higher and higher.
Well from midnight onwards as more peeps came through the door; filling what had been for the first couple of hours a relatively unattended party. It’s as if this crew knew when to arrive! So the music being exhibited, so to speak, was in place and the Arches came alive with people expressing themselves in kindness and with a collective generosity that I was well pleased to discover.

Scorb pushed the art of effects, loops and samples that bounced off the walls, whizzed and cajoled the punters into a healthy sweat as the lights and multi-coloured lasers did the rest. To be fair, Carrie and the Elluminate crew they did a grand job for a first outing. The place was well decked-out in backdrops. The main room’s focus was an enormous screen on which were projected discordant computerized images that didn’t detract from the music.

The champagne moment was these two guys who decided to show their juggling prowess with cushions pads that had loads of us in stitches. Wicked! While the lighter, yet also experimental music being delivered, in the other arch, carried on regardless to an often semi-empty room. Special mention to: Carlos, who needed more peeps, to dejay to, but this was indeed a busy night for a launch in London Bridge, with Synergy giving it large down the road. But who cares with Elluminate on the horizon. They will be back for another party on the 5th November so keep your ears to the psy-trance grind stone as the venue awaits to be announced.

Le Mufti

It's now becoming, or should I say, evolving into a forum for lovers of that brand of "old-style" partying: where the people interact via the music on the dance floor. And there is plenty of choice on offer.

There are no pretty pictures on the walls or funny light fittings distracting your attention, as the entertainment is the vibe. It is also the mix of peeps from all over this big estate called Dance-Culture, who are well up for a good rave with no pretensions to hold them back and shit loads of positive attitude; whether they be Chavs or Hardcore geeks or travelling out of town posses out in the big smoke for some Old Skool interaction.
The hardcore was already very busy when I arrived around 11.30. The sweat factor was beyond human...it's tough and I cannot say that I hanged around there for that long, as I go mostly for Old Skool, D'n'B and old-style reminiscing and serious dancing!

Mc's Ice and Strict were at the helm in the main room and the atmosphere was sizzling nicely, reaching its climax with “The RatPack” who rocked the old tunes with an audience sing-along to rival any good rock gig. They treated us to a birthday selection of medleys. Raindance regulars know all those songs by heart and give them their best body moves, whistles hoots and horns. Voices shouted and chanted all through their set accompanied by some really fit babes in Ibiza “razzle” bikinis, who entertained us all the way with their dancing routines. Now, how many of you guys in the crowd actually noticed that they were choreographed?
Hmm, I wonder indeed!

Special mention to Billy Bunter and especially Flashback for making me dance my tits off as we prepared for the Pack.
I really enjoyed the pleasure of some old fashioned House and a sprinkling of late 80’s anthems in the Jenkins Lane room.
Expert scratching and mixing by Nikki Dimension after a wobbly change over that didn’t really fuse with the previous DJ: Jack Bass: arguably, one of the best DJs, that night. But criticism aside, Nikki then geared himself into action; and the ride was awesome.
I wonder how many saw themselves in the films of previous parties that were being projected on two huge screens at the end of that room?
I got nudged "Hey your on!"

In the Deep Blue Arches was the Break Beat crew and every time I was there, to feast on some more nitrous oxide with my mate.
We followed those who seemed to have pitched their tent there for the duration and I don’t blame them the music was uplifting, funny, quirky and as fluffy as you can get at this party.
Drum and Bass, my usual hang out at Raindance, with Nicky Blackmarket playing that night, as one of the highlights, was sort of forgotten during the night, as there were other arches pulling me away…Err, sorry guys!

So many temptations and babes to chase and blah, blah.. with, while desperately trying to remember their names…well, you know.

3 words to sum it all up:

Raindance!... keep coming!

Le Mufti

Photos courtesy of:

bornhardcore

Vinyl Vera

Haven’t you been recently plagued by emails from DJs (you never knew) or Promotions (you never attended) pleading or just begging to vote for them in such and such poll just on the base of their flyer? A bit tricky this one is, by all the accounts.

It is understandable for your friends to ask for your support. To be frank Judging by fair play standards sadly it is simply not honest and constitutes cheating to many but in case of complete strangers to ask for your vote is plainly unacceptable.

So please kindly stop polluting our mailboxes with your sneaky requests! Thank you!

This year DJ Mag Top 100 DJs Poll, however offers some hope in deciding who is really popular with the audiences worldwide as it appears to be 100% public vote. There is also a welcome addition to current poll.

Last year DJ Mag launched first ever poll dedicated to the visual scene as voted by a panel of industry professionals. But this year they are accepting nominations from the public.

To have your say in who should be in the Top 20 VJs simply e-mail a list of your Top 5 VJs, DVJs or audiovisual artists to vjscan@djmag.com.

Please note that only nominations with five different visual performers will be accepted – they won’t accept nominations with just one name, and definitely not nominations with the same name five times!

So here it is - your last chance to play a vital role in deciding the outcome of the this most important poll in dance music (apparently they say)

And hurry up as they close today!

Voting for VJ, DVJs? then click here

Voting for DJs? then click here

We arrived on a gloriously sunny Friday afternoon to a well organised entrance with no queues and no attitude. This was such a very pleasant change from the usual hanging around to get to the gate. Straight into the camping area and up with the tents and gazebo. Fab, that was easy!

Lost Vagueness is at the very height of British middle-class eccentricity. A ballroom and bar equipped with champers, spirits and classy cocktails, not a beer in sight here. None of the usual trance orientated dance music for this lot.

The music ranged from 40s swing to up to date beats, every act so vastly different from the last. Where else in festival land would you shake your stuff to a Rajasthani wedding band? The Jaipur Kawa Brass Band certainly took me back to the land of the fakirs and I was surprised not to see camels waiting on the horizon.
Other musical extravaganzas included the Young Blood Brass Band (traditional brass sounds fused with a mix of jazz and hip hop) and the Priscillas (high kicking rock antics in PVC!).

Also on offer is the casino, provided that you are dressed appropriately, jeans and trainers just will not do! Blackjack, craps, roulette, whatever is your gambling favourite, all represented here. Purchase your tokens and gamble away whilst watching such astounding acts which ranged from Roxy the seriously sexy pole dancer; the astounding trapezes of the Swinging Elvises to magnificent Lucifire, a Torture Garden regular, with her amazing fire act.

By 1am on Saturday morning, the vicar was on stage, surrounded by the very naughty nuns. It must be time for a mass wedding. Amazingly there were brides everywhere, dressed appropriately with white dresses and veils and those were just the guys! A few minutes later and the vicar had declared the ceremony over and the happy couples were free to celebrate their nuptials in a marriage guaranteed to last at least a day.

Nowhere else in festival land have I seen so many people, and particularly the chaps, getting into the spirit of the occasion and dressing with such panache. Amazingly beautiful people abounded in outfits including tuxedos, ball gowns, flamenco dresses, Victorian corsets and Wellingtons! It could almost have been ladies day at Ascot, but with a distinct twist! It really was such a pleasure to see everyone making such an effort. This is particularly notable as it rained incessantly all day Saturday, luckily breaking around 8pm, in time for the evening festivities to commence. Once again everyone dressed for the occasion and a wild night was had by all.

If you think that sounds bizarre, how about a visit to the Insect Circus? A ride on the carousel? Or watching an elegantly dressed (in white shirt, bow tie & tails) gentleman playing kickin’ break-beat to cocktail drinking clubbers sitting in a converted aeroplane cockpit?

As far as amenities go, Lost Vagueness has made a great effort to go that extra mile to provide home comforts. The toilets, usually the bane of the festival goer, were clean and well stocked with Molton Brown hand wash & hand cream (yes, really!) and hot showers were available (free of charge). There was even an ice-cream van providing ice-creams, Sloggi knickers and other Sloggi freebies (yes, that’s right, free ice cream & knickers!). This certainly is a cut above any other festival that I or my friends have ever been to.

Even the sales outlets were different. At most festivals it seems the stallholders have all been to the same wholesale warehouse full of festive hippy-shit. Here, Stig was showing his amazing fetish furniture made out of reclaimed iron scrap and Georgie her erotic art prints. I can’t remember the name of the lady making (cheap!) clothing out of silk saris, but the skirt I bought is double-sided, different, looks good…and I didn’t need to take out a mortgage to buy it!

Lost Vagueness is weird, wild & wacky. In fact this festival is seriously ludicrous! Would I recommend this to my friends? Yes, most definitely.

But LOST Vagueness? No – I didn’t lose any of mine. Why else do you think it’s taken so long to review?

Eli Saikadeli

for more photos click here

This was the first time I’d been to the George with two rooms pumping. Shining was in the main room and the Hub Sound System, in a funky little room upstairs.
For Hard House lovers the Shining’s line up should not have been missed. Tony K, Skol, Dean Peters, Mark French, Roosta and Craig Mac, what a combo! And they all played a great smattering of classic tunes from a few years ago. There was a point in Roosta’s set when he played Keep Rocking, followed by a string of equally awesome oldies, where I peeked and entered that state of euphoric oblivion, not achieved at every party. The true sign of a good night.

The lighting effects created a dazzling atmosphere. Minimal coloured house lights, with plenty strobe and UV, and laser beams which bounced off glitter balls into every crook and nanny. The laser also projected images onto a screen. The squiggly cartoons were fun to watch and get lost in, but the images of guns and skulls and scary things were a strange thing to project amongst a loved up crowd. A minor point, but I take a lot of notice of backdrops and projections, and I do wonder where the thinking behind the images is coming from sometimes. There’s so much potential to amuse people with funny, cutesy cartoons, trippy, mind bending patterns, or eye watering colours, not guns, please! But the overall effects were stunning.

The main room at the George IV, has a pretty perfect set up, with a good-sized stage, facing the crowd for all us exhibitionists to perform on. Several times throughout the night the music inspired so many podium dancers that the stage became so rammed with raving rompers I thought the records would jump.
I did find it hard to tear myself away from there, but the Hub Sound System created a great vibe upstairs too. Banging out Breaks, Techno and Funky Techno were Dalski, Frisby, Mexitaff, Hutch, G-whizz, Boy Wonder and Scoot.
The night didn’t stop, instead there was a seamless Crossover to the next party at 6am which held the buzzed up crowds attention. That and a reluctance to venture out into the morning drizzle meant that most people stayed put. I did venture down to the 414 where the official after party was. There was plenty of room there to fly around to some more great tunes from Tony K, Craig Mac and Skol, and drink some energising cups of coffee, for a little while anyway, before ending up back at the George, for a bit more Crossover.

Eddie H and Mickey Fallout were B2B in full flight when I got back there three hours later, and the dance floor was still rammed and jumping to yet more great Hard House. Danny, the last DJ to play, changed the flavour a bit, by playing tunes far more on the Techno side. I do like my Techno, but I have to say that being played after Hard House doesn’t do it any favours. It has a whole different feel. It’s generally slower, and builds very gradually and subtly, there are less predominant tunes and it doesn’t have the same up-lift of Hard House. And I think the crowd reacted to this. You could see the euphoria return when tracks like Revolution were thrown in. But I still danced right till the bitter end, and jigged and twitched for a few hours after that, in true ‘that was a great 13 hours’ after glow.

Sarah Dancing Decor

for more photos click here

...From the publishers...

"We will be covering GK's GLOBAL GATHERING, CREAMFIELD'S where TARA REYNOLDS and PLUMP DJ's talked about their festival highs and lows and Wales very own Wakeboarding festival WAKESTOCK.

The first issue also includes interviews/news with up n coming DJ’s/producers ALED MANN, and promoters ELEVATE, THE CLINIC News sections, Label spotlights with the NU ENERGY COLLECTIVE, record reviews
+ much more..

BASS INSTINCT is a FREE magazine and can found in all good record shops from the 20th of July



If you would like your copy mailed FREE
please send email to:
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Be part of BASS INSTINCT!
we are also looking for contributors...
If you have what it takes to write record reviews, review club nights or distribute the magazine please email killakrupromo@yahoo.co.uk
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Set in the beautiful Wasing Estate Nature Reserve, the site was large enough to easily accommodate various dance stages, market places & a few thousand happy campers without feeling cramped, but small enough to avoid the major treks between stages, so typical of some other festivals.

This was perhaps the most glorious weekend of the year so far. The sun shone brightly on us, providing us the most perfect of camping conditions. After all, who cares about hot showers (which were available this year at the modest price of £1.50 a go) when you can cool off from the heat of British summertime (and imitate a Timotei advert!) under the numerous and deliciously cold stand-pipes around the site.

The whole site had been decorated with love, imagination & flair. Endless rows of multi coloured flags marked the way, shimmering and billowing in the gentle summer breeze. All around the site, inflatable shapes abounded, the most notable of these being the giant octopus, climbing up the main dance tent roof, perhaps in an attempt to escape the rising heat generated by the frenzied crowds!

The festival was full of typical yet somehow essential shopping opportunities, a chance to splash some dosh on clothing, jewellery, CDs & records or perhaps some (legal!) herbal substances. Some of the stalls were so delightfully colourful that they could have been mistaken for part of the festival decorations. Once the dancing, shopping and sunbathing had been exhausted for a while, there was a plethora of cafes and bars serving a diverse mix of cheap and yummy food and drinks from across the globe.

With 7 main music stages and several smaller areas, Glade provided a wide range of electronic dance music, from breaks to house to psy-trance with lots and lots in between. In fact, as promised, there was something for everyone within the realms of electronic dance. The main dance stage possibly hosting the most diverse range of acts, including Dreadzone, “Superstar” DJ Sasha and the brilliant DJ Pathaan (my mate Bill’s festival highlight), who played a wicked set of beautiful tunes to wind down the festival on that sunny Sunday afternoon.

In addition to the expected big top style tents, the Pussy Parlure offered a little glamour, showcasing cabaret acts throughout the weekend to a “lounge” style soundtrack of Soul, Latin, Jazz, Disco and lots more. All this performed inside an amazing, dazzling and extremely rare 1920s Mirror Tent, a surreal and incongruent sight in the middle of a field!
New to Glade 2005 was Golden Syrup stage, providing non-stop but un-programmed music 24 hours a day, a possible launch-pad for any aspiring musicians out there. Seeing as this was one of the warmest weekends of the year, the outdoor stages hosted by Origin, Liquid Connective & ID Spiral certainly attracted the crowds. What can ever be better, in our cold climes, than to spend a weekend dancing to some wicked tunes? After all, we Brits spend most of our lives inside avoiding the rain!

The best of the psy-trance for me was the Origin stage where some amazing acts including Silicon Sound, Protoculture, Joti Sidhu, Eskimo, Son Kite (to name just a few) wove their magic on the crowd Hypnotic beats reverberating in the sunshine ensured that we danced wildly like the truly tribal beings that we are.

The music at the main stages promptly ended at 4am. Then time to chill with ID Spiral, set at the far end of the site in a tranquil forested area, all the more enchanted, amazing and ethereal after partaking of some “magic” chai or perhaps a few (then legal!) magic mushrooms. A long standing festival favourite, featuring global music, djs and even an acoustic set from Eat Static. This was a 24 hour music and chill out zone with its renowned and well stocked café. Surrounded by glistening hanging decorations, soft lights twinkling in the approaching morning light, listening to blissful beats, in a comfy, colourful chill-out area reflecting all the very best of nature, what could be better? Time to make a wish, write it out and tie it to the very magical wish-tree and wait (they DO come true!).

The festival ended Sunday night at 8pm, just in time for those extremely unfortunate individuals having to return home in time to do the sensible “Monday morning” bit. So glad that wasn’t me!! Sunday night the festival spirit continued with the ID Spiral chill-out providing the tunes and many of the cafes providing food & chill out space. Many thanks to ID Spiral for providing us with several free cups of their delicious and legendary chai to warm our hearts!

All in all, Glade 2005 rocked! And what with the wonderful weather, Glade 2005 will be a very hard act to follow. This one gets my vote for festival of the year so far.

Unfortunately, my camera gave up towards the end of the festival (along with many of the people who had perhaps rather overdone things!) and so my photo memories were lost. I have included a few photos taken by Bill Vincent, which he has kindly provided.
For more photos of the festival, why not visit the Glade website www.gladefestival.com and also Access all Areas, who were on hand to provide useful festival information and advice www.accessallareas.org
The end of Glade 2005 also marked the end of the legal sale of magic mushrooms (and other freaky fungi) and therefore the end of an era of the harmless hallucinations enjoyed by so many. It was interesting to see so many mushroom sellers hawking their wares on Sunday, prices getting lower and lower, quantities getting larger and larger, in the attempt to sell all before the laws changed or the mushrooms went off!

So typical of our government to decide that a non addictive substance with no proven adverse affects should be criminalised. After all, a babble of giggling mushroom munchers is surely such a large threat to the stability of the nation eh?

Eli Saikadeli

Anyway here we were, Jam Gorilla, Prosiak & Le Mufti (a superb motley crew) going to SEOne on 23 July in a minicab and discussing rather explosive topics connected to recent bombings in London and wondering where is it going to happen next? This subject seems to be taboo in the clubbing environment where, it seems, they all live in a kind of bubble pretending that the outside world doesn’t exist or has no bearing on the weekend’s madness. Perish the thought but another question is looming; what is actually happening in the Middle East and who is liberating whom? We were however on a completely different mission altogether to liberate some sounds and experience some moods at “Break The System Down” so the subject was somehow quickly forgotten.

Security at the venue was reasonably apprehensive given circumstances but cool and efficient nevertheless. Perhaps the ban on bringing bags to the venue had something to do with it or maybe the conscious public was on its best behaviour but who cares as long as the door check is quick and intelligent.

Inside a rollercoaster just begun and this Indoor Festival 2nd Birthday– a creation of ES Collective (read Antiworld, Psygate amd Technoworld) promotion – was indeed a one hell of that.
Have been going to SEOne for ages now – starting with the infamous Warp Experience in 1999 and also been to many other festivals or mega events taking place in this enormous space. And have learned there is only one thing in common between them. They are neither better nor cooler nor bigger, they are just…different.

When it comes to Antiworld Indoor Festival it has been consistently offering, over it’s two years of existence, exhilarating and psychedelic to the heart journey through 5 sumptuous rooms of baroqueness deco, vision and sound. There was no change in quality or letting down the pressure on punters with “Break The System Down”.

In fact I will remember it as the one of the best Antiworld parties I have ever been to.
The vibe was nothing but fantastic –maybe it was the present danger that brought people together. Or maybe it was the fact that all light-hearted clubbers stayed home leaving space for true partygoers to flourish. And they were having a hell of the good time banging in every single room including Clockwork Prism’s chill out. Hey good on ya!
It was a high quality crowd making an extra effort to dress up and impress with surreal outfits and trippy hairdos. Glowing in the dark, shining in the open they added extra dimension to the party in full swing. And it was a swing in ways more than one.

Firstly it was truly a festival of light of any kind you could imagine or fancied. There were several rooms packed with exquisite visual effects but two main rooms, Psygate and Upfront, were exceedingly good in throwing blizzards of multi coloured smoke mixed with powerful scanner stabs and sprinkled with fluorescent, luminous and ultra violet toppings.

Couple that with tongs of silk flames enveloped in screens of visuals and lasers slashing through and playing with your retinas. It was a visual and aesthetic feast that will stay a long time with me. Extra mention goes to Electro Breaks room deco designers for creating a superbly cool and suave optics. Bravo…
Secondly musically it was a kaleidoscope of all shades of psytrance, hard dance, techno, breaks and old skool. You name the style and it was there, well…apart from jungle and garage, but my uneducated guess is there wasn’t enough room to accommodate them or they demanded a completely different crowd.
Labelled as “back to the underground party” the line-up indeed included well-known and established artists together with DJ’s playing in squats or semi-legal underground venues in London. And they delivered fantastic performance, full of verve and bite. There is no point to list them all here, as it would be a long list and some of them are walking legends of the scene demanding more than just a mention…
Lastly there were people and they were absolutely unique, international mish mash of high order,

So again here I were as many times in the past schmoozing through the maze of SEOne - leaving poor Mufti completely in awe of Clockwork Prism chill out and Mandie More delicious mix, and deservedly so. Dropping my meagre belongings under the care of Prism crew – consistently in top form and to their credit voted the best room in Alexandra Palace enterprise, ahoy!.. – I went awol into the masses.

Thanks God place wasn’t rammed – otherwise everything turns into the nightmare of queuing up everywhere – and doing continuous rounds presented no problems. First room in my continuous voyage – nomen omen – was Frequency, tech house specialists extraordinaire. Cheerful and busy grooving with dirty twisted bits and bobs lead by Moni, Alek and Mikki between others. For best result go and see them @ Alhambra as this place provides unrivalled underground feel.
They offered housey refuge for many seeking respite from the unleashed furies just next door, and that was Psygate hosted by Antiworld in collaboration with BNE & HOMmega Records – completely different kettle of fish altogether.

What can I say? …Psygate room was a high quality and kicking psytrance spectacle, illuminated by surreal deco, steaming with visuals and heaving with the buoyant crowd, the busiest room of them all and in my humble view most entertaining on the night. There is no friendlier bunch than psytrance peeps and I sampled it at Fairy Tales, Symbiosis (where are they hiding now?), Synergy Project etc… or psy gigs downtown with Mr Horoscope at the helm. Wherever they go they bring something special with them. No question about it. The same goes to the DJs and on the night I was impressed with Marcello Vor, Oforia and Delirious driving psychedelic waves through receptive audience. There is indeed something to behold when the tune hits the nerve and the crowd moves like a giant serpent stretching and reaching out beyond. Psychedelic force I say. As a consequence stayed there longer making occasional forays into surrounding domains.

Upfront Room was as mentioned before an orgy of special effects supported by strong hard dance line up. To be completely frank, I don’t really care about headliners since it’s all in the vibe and the people – they are the true creators of the bangin party - I seen many a venue emptied or staying empty despite booking big names but surprise, surprise Lab 4 banged it out loud and clear. Locked in the cage they manically rattled space around them with highly powered mix. Got everyone dancing and even muppets in the stalls area were bouncing. Weeked.
Matt Handy had an excellent entrée earlier on and things went smoothly on and according to plan if there was any plan, that is. I missed all other acts simply for being somewhere else and enjoying different buzz.

I was probably in Teknoworld – interesting combination of ascetic deco and gloomy lights, to be in techno mood I presume but it worked just fine. Excellent performances, especially from D.A.M Mast Vs Fabio Spezzaferri. An absolutely not to be missed class act and playing harder than nails techno full stop - they kept me glued for at least half hour before I realised its time to move. Damn reviewing 5 room’s bash, there is never time to stop and savour the music anymore. Yet I revisited Teknoworld again and again simply drawn to the rawness of the sound and it’s squat appeal and watched Mike Smeglett and Chris Liberator spinning out hardened magic.

Electro and Breaks room hosted by Neon And Silverback Records was a very pleasurable ultra violet experience. Took time to fill up but the sound was great and slowly place got rocking in its sublime electro ways. It was also surprise to hear Lisa Lashes chopping out the breaks and she was great by all accounts. Change of career on cards,.. maybe?
Personally I think it suits her better because her hard house mixing doesn’t do much to me. Suppose I am just spoiled and hard to please hardcore, innit?

Blissfully tired and worn out I ended up eventually like at any past Antiworld’s event @ SEOne in Clockwork Prism room, rearranging myself and having a chat with Matt Harder Faster about good old days. Or maybe it was a bright future. Whatever….
With one last round and deep into after party time I found myself listening to Eduardo Herrera finishing still up for it crowd – mad cap he is indeed. But unable to move due to over exposure to party elements and after 13 hours I finally gave in. Go home muppet. Zzzzzzz……

All in all it was awesome experience and perfect example of working harmony between different styles. Thick walls of SEOne are mainly responsible here for keeping entities of separate environments intact and the place still keep this old underground vibe going. Yes sir!.
Autumn edition of Indoor Festival will soon hit you in October at secret location in London. The party is as good as the last one so I honestly recommend it. Just go…

Jam Gorilla

For more photos click here

Logic’s 6th birthday and Oblivion’s 3rd birthday was my first time at the Fridge since 2002. (I’ve not been slacking; I lived in beautiful South Africa for a couple of years in-between.) I used to get a huge rush, coming down from upstairs, and pushing open the doors leading to the dance floor. After the starkness of the corridor, being suddenly confronted by hundreds of flying clubbers, intense lights, and overwhelming sound, used to give me a massive buzz. Walking in to Logic on Friday, I braced myself for the initial impact. It put a gaping grin on my face and I was blasted back to my early days. Could it be more glittery and colourful than before? The number of lasers made an immediate impression, creating an awesome eye banquet, the wall of high-energy sound and the very into it, vibrant crowd were just how I remembered, ahhhh… the Fridge!

I weaved through the crowds of chillers and chatterers, to take a look at the dance floor, which was ram packed full of waving arms and cheesy grins, and all facing the DJ, who’s much more visible now, just how it should be. Eduardo Herrera had the enthusiastic, logical crowd, jumping. The bar area seemed more colourful and sparkled with glitter balls and lights as I wondered through, heading for what used to be the restaurant/chill out, to see how it worked as a second room. I always thought the only thing missing at the Fridge was a second sound system, and now it’s got one. In this great sized space with sofas and a handy perch for surveying the scene, Oblivion was warming up nicely to the tunes of Andy T.

The Logic line up was impressive, featuring two of my old favourite DJ’s, MC Dry Weave and Proteus, as hard and highly energised as ever. No pyrotechnics tonight, instead Proteus scaled the heights as part of his show. Ting exuded extreme energy, and injected it into the crowd, while spinning some quite different ‘hard, hi energy, metal house’. And Alek Szahala’s live set was very fast and powerful.

The Oblivion room had a great vibe with a dose of bounce, and full of the good old familiar, friendly Fridge fraternising. I met lots of lovely peeps in here, full of fresh-faced enthusiasm; so glad to see it’s still there!

By the end of the night I was illogically oblivious and found myself at the George for the after party, a good move, I love the George when it pumps like this, the perfect way to get even more when you’re not ready to stop!

Sarah Dancing Decor

For more photos click here
or here

It's well organised and friendly, with several floor plans. The main space with the bar and food kitchen has generous seating; a space to dance on and a courtyard access which is well used, during the Summer months for juggling, poi and also has ample seating.

Off the bar are two separate levels. One exclusively decked with large tables where various children's activities are devised by the PA staff, as well as some of the parents, who volunteer their services, thus keeping the children well entertained with various activities such as costume-making, face painting, painting and organised games, etcetera, devised to keep the kids entertained, educated and motivated...and they are well busy during the day!

And as Angel told me:
"Our ethos for *Chilled* has always been to create a unique and alternative space for like-minded people, friends & families to spend quality time together, in an environment where they feel safe, comfortable and inspired to interact, play and create - whatever their age!"

"We work hard to get the balance of elements right and provide a range of activities from Holistic Health Workshops to Performers, Art, Crafts, Games & more! For me there's no greater pleasure than watching children and adults communicate and connect with each other on a one-to-one basis, as they play a game, make something or share food. We regularly see three generations of the same family, sharing a table. It's great to see everyone making friends, learning creative skills and having a good time. It’s what it's all about for me!"

And as Angel says, that is absolutely what you get, as this Sunday Chill is tailor-made for Clubbers with children and also those trance-addicts who've mellowed out and seek newer forms of interaction away from the smoke filled and banging environments of mayhem...
There is an upstairs chill out space with big sofas to sprawl into, with your mates, and back rooms used for individual and group healing sessions, especially Reiki, and are free to attend.

The highlight of the Sunday was Temple Hedz who delivered a good set and that started a surge of dancers to accompany them and the subsequent DJs rocked the place down till the end. A special mention to U-4-Ric aka Richard Morley, a fine Trance DJ who has set standards in the underground scene, for many years. He delivered a lovely mix of funky breaks and fluffy trance that brought back vivid and colourful memories of nights at Imperial Gardens.
That is usually what happens at a Planet Angel Chilled...as the day progresses, the music goes from ambient like trance and world beats to full blown trance for the evening session, which being a Bank Holiday weekend extended the license till 1am instead of the usual 10pm finish.

Finally, I asked Angel what plans they had for the future:
"We hope to continue to develop and grow *Chilled* to be all it can be, our main focus right now is to encourage more people (particularly unemployed and low income parents), to get involved - with their kids - and incorporate their ideas, improvements, workshops, games, activities and more!"

If you used to hang out at Spitz for "Loungeabout" or "Bingly Bongly" then this is a "chill" you will enjoy, with the same faces and the added bonus of interactive ness to occupy adults and children alike.

Le Mufti

Next Chilled is happening this Sunday at the same place

for more info click here