Event: Atomic Energy
Date: June 21, 2003
Venue: The EQ Warehouse

What makes a good party? a) Your favourite DJs & live PAs? b) A totally chilled venue? c) Being able to meet like-minded people - who aren’t on the pull? d) Security that doesn’t make you feel like you’ve got something to hide?

Atomic Energy is one of the few parties keeping the ‘old school’ underground vibe alive and kicking. Summer Solstice rocked with some of London’s best underground DJs. Creating maximum mayhem on the dance floor were: Rubec, Kevin Energy, Fabry, Orange Peel, Choci, De-Cent and Jupe as well as new Atomic Energy residents, live PA Group 185.

You can hear many of these DJs at other events, but Atomic Energy brought them together in one unbeatable party – and everyone I spoke with was having a blinding time.

The Atomic Energy vibe is something you’ll hear a lot of people talking about. There’s a definite ‘family’ feel to the parties. No pretentiousness, just lots of friendly people of like mind (who don’t care what you’re wearing) looking for a great party and know where they’re gonna find it.

Group 185 have been causing a storm – and gaining massive respect on the London underground scene with their ground-shaking blend of acid, hard house & nu nrg, and boy did they deconstruct the dance floor at Summer Solstice! Dave 185 said he likes Atomic Energy parties because "The people behind the parties are fantastic, they’re a good crew and they totally believe in what we and the other DJs and performers are doing." He added "There’s a great atmosphere to the parties, they make people feel welcome and everyone that comes along is really up for it, they know there’s going to be a good atmosphere and they’ll have a great time. Simple as that!"

Kevin Energy, one the most popular and influential hard dance DJs and producers on the underground scene is well known for the raw power and energy of his sets and played a huge one at Summer Solstice. Kevin said "The people involved with Atomic Energy are 100% in it for the music. It’s 100% underground and it’s a vibe that you just don’t get at most of the other parties these days. People come to the parties for that reason, to have a great night out. " He added "Summer Solstice was one of the best parties around and with the best sound system I’ve heard for a while. Respect!"

Adding to the enjoyment of the night were friendly and ultra low-key security which meant no moody, power-tripping bouncers or invasive cameras.

EQ may be a bit out of the way compared with inner city venues but it’s like anything worthwhile: put in a bit of effort and you get something good at the other end, in this case a truly relaxed warehouse venue perfect for underground parties.

Besides, all you need to do is get yourself to Stratford tube/BR and then catch the free shuttle bus. The service runs every 15 – 20 minutes from 10pm till the last train and from 6.15 – 7.15am at the end of the party.

Atomic Energy's next party, Lammas on Saturday 2 August is sure to blow the roof off EQ with a blistering line-up including two live PAs: the inimitable Nu Energy Collective (featuring Kevin Energy, K Complex and Sharkey) in one of their rare, not-to-be-missed performances and Group 185plus DJs Sol Ray, Rubec, Mishka and Injector, Wayne Smart, E.V.P, Fabry, Astralex, Freaky Bob, James and Beardy Weirdy.

Are you tough enough?

Further information www.atomicenergy.co.uk, www.nuenergy.co.uk

You can also catch Group 185 at Peach Goes Harder in August. Stay tuned for more information. 

Reviewed by spacekitten

LINE UP

Main Room: Lisa Lashes, Mark Trench, Nick Sentience, Billy "Daniel" Bunter, Anthony Dean, Tony Rutherford

Room 2: Karim, Superfast Oz, Illogik, Spencer Freeland, EJ Doubell, Billy "Daniel" Bunter (2nd set)

Funky Room: Sharp Boys, Ignition Crew, Disciples Of Sound

Heat has chosen the club that has been billed as the new home of hard dance, and believe me it's not a bad place to settle down! The newly refurbished club in the heart of Elephant & Castle has just had £2.5 million spent on it and the result is a very good-looking club that attracted a huge number of party people.

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The club (a old cinema and music hall) stretches over three floors, each level creating it's own unique atmosphere. The ground floor is decked out in cool blue colours bathed in neon lighting, and is home to the main dance floor. The DJ box is positioned in the middle of the original proscenium arch stage and behind it hangs a massive plasma screen that shows funky graphics and photos of clubbers grooving on the dance floor.

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The second floor is decorated in fresh greens and yellows. Although quite a small room in comparison, the sound system is excellent and the atmosphere electric. The third floor is home to the funky room and to complete the colour spectrum is painted with deep purples and reds. A low DJ table, rather than box gives the crowd a good chance to see what goes on behind the decks.

There is a final balcony that was closed on the night but DancePortalGlobal managed to talk our way up there for a peak and it was amazing. The original theatre balcony remains complete with gold decor, red carpets and plush seats. It provides a spectacular view over the main dance floor and DJ box. From this vantage point the genius of the lighting design and power of the sound system can be truly be appreciated.

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Speaking of music, the line up certainly didn't disappoint. Illogik and Lisa Lashes' sets are both worth a mention but the DJ of the night had to be Billy "Daniel" Bunter. He played a blinder of classics and trance in the main room before jumping on the decks in room two where things got nice and hard. The tune of the night had to be BK's Bad Ass (A 5am at Convergence mix) as it sent the stompers in the second room through the roof.

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The friendly but observant door staff, amnesty box, and free drinking water showed that the club's management are not naive about hosting dance music events, which was very reassuring to for the clubbers.

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However, despite the night being hailed as a general success there were still a couple of glitches - the smell of fresh paint was overwhelming in some places and the drinks were over-priced (at around 4 quid a pint!).

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All in all the night was a good one as can be expected from Heat events wherever they are held, and this extra-special location was a real treat to party in. With some excellent hard dance nights coming up there soon we will be sure to tear up the floors of this stylish venue again.

Reviewed by Mr. Smile and Ninja

414 provided an excellent party venue; small and intimate, but with plenty of room to dance, a great chill-out area up top and, something I think is sorely lacking from most venues – FOOD – to stave off those midnight hunger pangs before settling down to the serious business of stomping on the dance floor till 6am.

Another plus of this small venue (with a capacity of about 400) is that you can actually see the DJs up close. And of course Swamp's DJs are a friendly bunch.. They're more than happy to get down on the dance floor, chat with people and have a boogie themselves.

The party atmosphere was enhanced by some fabulous lighting (gotta love those lasers which make for such cooooool pix!) from Future Sound and Light and friendly security.

Swamp resident DJs put on an awesome show with tune after tune ripping up the dance floor and keeping everyone moving.

Congratulations to the following for FANTASTIC, frenetic sets: Mattie C back 2 back Flake, Group 185 (LIVE), Littleman, LK, DJ SP, and Pascal D.

The crowd got it all from blazing hard nrg and storming hard house to uplifting trance and pounding, driving tribal beats. I don’t think anyone left disappointed.

Swamp is well known for it's ultra-friendly vibe and there were plenty of happy, smiling people having a great time and enjoying some of London's finest hard sounds.

It might have been Swamp’s birthday but the clubbers were the ones who got the presents! Thanks to Mattie C and crew for a great night and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

More information about Swamp parties is available on their website.
 
Reviewed by spacekitten

Event: Antiworld
Date: May 31, 2003
Venue: The Fridge, Brixton

Antiworld is one of London’s most popular club nights and ‘Break the System Down: Volume 003’, in conjunction with Japan’s “Tsuyoshi Suzuki”, aka DJ Tsuyoshi, the man behind the historic trance label Matsuri was no exception.

"What else can be better than to go to the same rave and get three of the highest quality hard trance & hard dance music journeys?"

As promised in the flier text above, so they delivered! An international dance feast with top artists from the UK, Holland and Japan; Break the System Down packed out the Fridge with people who know how to party. Word has it that a number of ticket outlets sold out in advance of the night.

Fabry and E-303 had the early slot, always a tough one (being a bit like radio’s graveyard shift only in reverse) but they really set the mood with a brilliant back-to-back set.

They were followed by the excellent hard dance live PA, Orpheus 2, who enjoyed one of the most up-for-it crowds I’ve seen in ages. I asked Orpheus 2’s Eryk White what he thought of the night:

“Well, it was still fairly quiet at 11:30 and as we were on at midnight, probably the earliest we've ever played, I was a bit concerned we might be playing to an empty room! However the floodgates really opened and by the time we were on stage the dance floor was pretty packed. By the breakdown in the first track we definitely had the audience on our side and the response from them was fantastic!

People were piling onto the dance floor throughout the set, and every time I looked up from the mixer there was a sea of smiling faces bobbing up and down. The dance floor was busy all night and I loved Tsuyoshi and Nuw Idol's sets. There was no doubt it was really moving on the floor and everyone was right into the music. As ever the Antiworld crowd were up for it and very friendly!”

Tsuyoshi was one of the main drawcards of the night. The crowd, really primed by now, went wild for his special blend of techno and trance. It was one of those nights where there’s absolutely no room on the dance floor but it just doesn’t seem to matter.

Tsuyoshi was followed by one of Holland’s prime exports, DJ and Producer, Don Diablo, in his first Antiworld appearance. He kept everyone up and dancing with his unique blend of techno, trance and electro.

I spoke with a number of people who said they were waiting for the next artist, Nuw Idol. One of electronic music’s most accomplished Dj/Producers, Nuw Idol has an amazing stage presence and put on a corker of a show. And not content with just giving it to the crowd, Nuw Idol was having it large himself:

"Antiworld was a totally wicked, high quality night. What a great line up and everybody delivered their absolute best, including the crowd! Tsuyoshi Suzuki was great and played a totally fresh mix of deep pumping 4/4 layered with rock drum and screechy guitars and acid, mental! I came on after a really cool set by Don Diablo and got a brilliant reception from the start which made me want to mash it up even more... and I did! It was wild.

A big shout to the amazing Mohawk'ed DJ who finished the night in the small room. You totally rocked my socks off with your hard euphoric mayhem, respect dude!"

Antiworld resident, the legendary Beamish, and Stirling Moss also played hard, energised sets, giving the crowd exactly what they wanted. Let’s not forget the Fridge’s second room with fabulous performances from SHM, Nic no name, Phil Able, and ANIMATEK. A special feature of this room was the gorgeous psychadelic wall hangings from London artist Snopix

The next Antiworld event is Faerieland: A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Fridge on 21 June.

 
Reviewed by spacekitten

Event: Torque
Date: April 11, 2003
Venue: The Fridge, Brixton

Friday night. Time for a snooze then those horrible indecisive moments in front of the wardrobe wondering what clubbing glad rags to wear…. 10.30pm and I’m finally on my way to the Fridge for Torque.

I’m really looking forward to this, catching some wicked hard tunes and having a mad bounce around the dance-floor. Unfortunately, much of the night passed by in the kind of pleasant haze that upsets law enforcement officers so I’m VERY grateful to those kind friends who have helped me fill in the gaps…. ;-)

Claire-voyant started the night with some real stompers, setting the scene for a great night. A rip-roaring, head-turning set (I heard someone say they wished she’d played later) filled with different tunes and some awesome mixing, with gentle starts belying the fantastic twisted dirty, grinding beats that were to follow.

Justin Bourne took to the decks next and didn’t disappoint. Unfortunately the Fridge was still pretty quiet at this stage; being so cavernous I find it a lot more uncomfortable empty than when it’s packed…. His set traversed uplifting trance and kick-ass hard beats. Loads of varied rhythms and more great mixing: it got a lot harder, which is exactly how we like it thank you very much (in fact, the harder the better).

London’s nocturnal population started to surface, filling up the dancefloor and creating that friendly Torque vibe we all love. The awesome laser show and spectacular lighting added to the atmosphere (and made for some very cool photographs...)

Taking over from Justin Bourne, Macey, a master of the underground hard trance scene. From a funky start straight into some hard pounding tracks, euphoric trance mixed with fierce, hardcore beats, and really working up the crowd.

Macey powered in to a pounding finale, a great, smooth lead in for live PA Group 185.

I have to admit these are the guys I’ve been waiting to see. And by this time everyone in the room is well up for it. In fact they keep on going right from the start of this pounding set through to its very high-powered end.

Some seriously warped hard dance with loooots of acid. Who wants to stop dancing when it feels this good?

Their latest track Get Cained (Group 185 Vs Fordy) very nearly blew the doors off the Fridge. (At the very least it raised the roof) Nice one, guys!

Finnie took off nicely where Group 185 left off, keeping up the momentum and continuing the aural (and God knows what other kind of) heaven. It’s getting on for 4am and they’re still mashing it up on the floor: it’s all good.

Taking it through to the end, Superfast Oz, played a pounding techno set. He really rocked the dance floor bringing the night to a huge, thumping climax and leaving a floor full of shell-shocked and exhausted party-goers.

Tales from the Freezer….. it was hot as Hades in there with Lolli-pop, Paul Jack, Brendon Currie, Banga Matt and Leigh Brooks firing up the crowd.

Another great stompin’ night out! Thanks, Torque, you’ve done it again!

Set deep under a manky railway bridge in South London, the club looked rather pokey and unimpressive from the outside, but inside was a completely different matter – the place was massive! A maze of catacombs left us feeling slightly nervous but very excited. Were we going to get lost – oh yes!

As well as the layout, the clubs décor was pretty wicked – big metal pipes and raw brick walls gave the place a funky underground atmosphere that suited the night perfectly.

After ditching our coats we stopped of at the bar (which was of course under stocked and over priced) before checking out what each of the three rooms had to offer.

The first was labelled as only for the headstrong, where we were met with a packed room dancing to the banging sounds of John Rundell. The set was classic and hard. Everyone seemed to be having a very good time.

In the next room was Tidy new boy Paul Maddox who’s set combined a mix of new and old hard tunes, with quite a few from the HardBeds selections as well as a taste of his new and up and coming tunes. When Paul stepped of the decks the crowed clapped and cheered to show their appreciation of a great set.

DancePortalGlobal caught up with Maddox after his set - he said he was “completely buzzing” and found he had a lot of support and appreciation from fans and friends. He also said he played a slightly harder set than normal as he felt it fitted-in better since he was playing the hardest room (which later housed Ed Red, Tara Reynolds and Paul Glazby who kept it pumping all night). Maddox, who has played the venue twice before also added that he was “ [a] bit nervous at the start and I made a couple of mistakes but nobody noticed them really” and that “the sound system had been immensely improved.”

As we carried on exploring we made our way through the massive funky/chillout room, which featured cosy sofas and funky beats. The journey took us back to the main room that was now packed to the rafters. The atmosphere was electric and we were treated to a truly banging line up including Jon Bishop, Lee Haslam, The Tidy Boys and BK to name but a few.

A couple of surprising tunes managed to sneak their way onto the decks, including an amazing remix of Missy Elliot’s ‘Get your freak on’ that worked the crowd in the main room into a frenzy. Later people in the funky room were blown away by a stylish reworking of the Red Hot Chilli Pepper’s ‘By The Way’.

On the whole the night was a blinding success. Tidy managed to move with the times and treat the crowd to some exciting new material as well as playing some real classics. The awesome atmosphere that was generated by a totally mixed crowd, from Gucci girls to cyber Goths, all up for it, giving the night a really special quality. The next Tidy London is definitely one to put in the diary.

Reviewed by Mr Smile & Ninja

Event: Pickle
Date: March 1st 2003
Venue: Imperial Gardens, Camberwell

Pickle's eagerly-awaited opening party for 2003 was held on 1 March at Imperial Gardens and it didn't disappoint.

Resident Djs Sol Ray, Thermobee, Raymondo, Psynrg, Chris C, Euphoria, and the Anarcho Funkateers were joined by Joop, Shaf Da Bass, SHM and Hemlock, playing their NRGised, hard and euphoric trance beats to a full house of ecstatic party goers.

Over the years Pickle has developed a reputation as a fun, friendly and totally unpretentious party night. People go along to catch up with old friends, and make plenty of new ones, (often while waiting for the cloakroom, or in the toilets) and to dance yourself silly. In short, it's a party!

The mix of friendliness, cranking tunes, innovative production, and approachable bouncers(!) is what makes Pickle stand out from the crowd in an increasingly jaded London club scene. If you're into the hype of London's uber-clubs don't even think about Pickle!

Saturday's party may well have been the last at this venue as the Good Vibe Tribe have gone deeper underground creating new party experiences for us. Whatever they come up with I'll be there and you should be too!

More info: Pickle Promotions website

Reviewed by Karen Sprey

The battle lines were drawn and the generals scratched out their plans for nothing short of only the freshest hard dance, the darkest hard trance, lashings of 303 acid insanity and harder than nails slamming techno beats!

WORLD EXCLUSIVE ALBUM LAUNCH TOUR - "None Of Us Are Saints" - the eagerly awaited 4th album, and most defining major release to date from the undisputed Kings of Hard Dance, the almighty Lab 4. This latest culmination of startlingly artistic expression pays perfect testament to the original blueprint, and the current 'Uprising' of LAB-4's journey of musical 'Evilution' - which has spanned over ten years and fifteen different countries the world over.

The musical styles on this album range from subtle and evolving tribal techno rhythms, through an entirely integrated sonic massacre reflecting elements of techno, rock, hard house, industrial, trance and acid mixed with intelligent and previously unused samples, melodic breakdowns and 'Groove Overdrives' - to create an inspirational fusion of listening pleasure that many big name dance producers have tried their best to imitate over the years, but clearly without the same uncompromising punch and 'NRG'.

Even if you have not already been inspired or completely moved by these pioneers of the UK Hard Dance Sound, this landmark double album is an absolute must have for anyone who appreciates a depth and intensity to dance music to which no rules apply in this 'Restless World'... Regular listening will become 'The Ritual'.

And for those who have already fallen victim to this dangerously gripping musical jigsaw that has become the anarchic Lab 4 beast, then this release will no doubt be 'the perfect drug' to further feed your Lab 4 obsession.

AS A WORLD EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR THIS TOUR, FULL LENGTH COPIES OF THE ALBUM WERE AVAILABLE ON THE NIGHT FOR JUST $10.00 (LAB4 imported double albums usually cost around $45.00 in record stores throughout Australia) WITH THE PRESENTATION OF YOUR TICKET STUB FOR THE EVENT. THIS IS A STRICTLY LIMITED AUSTRALIAN TOUR PRE-RELEASE ISSUE.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON THIS TOUR, PLEASE LOG ONTO LAB 4'S WEBSITE

Alex Kidd has been tipped by Yoji Biomehanika in the 2004 Top 100 DJ Mag Poll as one to watch for the future! He is continuing to take club land by storm with his unique, dance floor destroying sets. Alex is one of a few UK based DJs that supports a European Hard Trance & Hard style sound. His storming sets also incorporate a mash-up of Techno & Hard Dance, creating many surprise elements to his performances. Alex is a true showman behind the decks with his constant trickery of the mixer and wild antics that whip the crowd into frenzy. For almost 4 years Mixmag Future Hero‚ Alex has led the way as the original resident at the award winning Goodgreef events.

Time: 10pm - 8am
Venue: Metro, 20 Bourke St, CBD
Tickets: Earlybird tickets were available $26 + BF from Ticketek, $36 presale + b/f, more on the door
Info:

Hard Kandy's website, KillRockstar's website, Lab 4's website and Goodgreef's website.

Lineup:

MAIN ROOM (HK VS. PHARMACY)
LAB 4 (UK)
ALEX KIDD (GOODGREEF, UK)
HELLRAISER
SCOTT ALERT
MASTER KAOS
RICHIE BRAIC
DEE DEE
DR WILLIS
KELSTA
JFX

SMILE POLICE
ANDY GOLDEN
DODGY DAVE
E-MISSION VS. M-EXPERIENCE
SQUIDY
DUDE VS. MAN
EXA-CIST

BOOZEBUS
DAVE PHAM
OSYRIS
MATT RADOVICH
BOYDEX
RUCKUS
DIRTY D
ABLE K

No ticket competition for this event

Photos: (Mouse-over images for info, click to enlarge)

Photos by Adrian Columb