Seldom do you hit the Metro and find a queue snaking half a block down the side of the building, surrounded by almost as many ticketless people crying out for spares. Bukem was back and he’d brought his mates, effortlessly creating the hottest Friday in a Sydney winter for some time. The look of dismay on people’s faces as they first saw the line of waiting punters spoke volumes; it wasn’t a long queue. The wait to get inside wasn’t arduous, unlike the slow-moving serpent that frequents Darling Harbour when Home opens its doors. No, the kids were pissed because they were desperate to get inside and their impatience couldn’t be delayed any longer – you could smell the excitement, the anticipation. It was Christmas morning on George Street.

Eventually getting in, running up the stairs and collecting the biggest wrist-stamp in history, elation turned momentarily to sadness when the realisation dawned that Vice Versa, the Sydney act signed to Bukem’s label, had been and gone. Those lucky enough to have seen them spoke highly of them in the ITM forums which only compounded the regret. However, it was difficult to be disappointed for long, as this meant that the Hot New Sensation from Japan was in charge. Makoto – looking so young that one wondered if he needed a letter from his parents to stay out this late – is one of Bukem’s rising stars, the whole purpose of this tour being to promote his latest album. The sound system pounded to tune after tune of hard, soulful dnb, accompanied by the vocals of MC Shelley D, whose singing was quite capable. The crowd was loving the sound, Makoto laying down the science, his calmness betraying the havoc he was wreaking. After a while, Shelley D was starting to grate a bit. She didn’t really seem to be interacting with the crowd that much, save for some unoriginal requests to Put Those Motherfucking Hands In The Air, and she never seemed to shut up. Despite this, the set was fantastic, never letting up apart from the occasional blissful breakdown or rewind, and Makoto is someone to check out, as both a producer and DJ.

And then Bukem and MC Conrad lobbed up on stage, Bukem congratulating Makoto behind the decks, Conrad looming silently on the side, waiting for the track to finish and the crowd to go wild. They stepped up, Bukem starting it off all jingly-jangly for a couple of minutes before dropping a seismic beat that heralded the start of a decidedly harder-than-expected set from the master of jazzier, ‘intelligent’ drum and bass. Of course, the trademark Bukem sound was there – the melodies, the basslines that cruise, snare sounds to die for – but there was something of a junglist edge to the tunes. He even got all samba-infused for a while, the current Brazilian influence showing that it isn’t beyond even the iconoclastic Bukem. So he played, and he mixed well, and he did some rewinds and his tune selection was excellent but the true star has to be MC Conrad. Taking the mike from Shelley D, he instantly started showing her how to do it, getting the crowd by its collective balls within seconds and keeping hold for the next two hours. Seeing the rapport he had with Bukem, with the music, with the crowd, was amazing. Like MC Dynamite, he was a true frontman, full of charisma and blessed with the skills to make his vocals seem like they were always part of the tracks Bukem was spinning. He lifted the crowd, willed them to dance when they should have been buggered; from the dancefloor all the way up to the back bar was just a giant frenzy. The lightshow and visuals were fantastic, only adding to the whole experience. Everyone was bouncing up and down, except for a strange few people who had forsaken this wonder to go and dance to The Breeders and Steppenwolf courtesy of the rock DJs in the back room.

The pair finished up in what seemed like record time, two hours passing far too quickly. Rapturous applause was guaranteed and while I wouldn’t classify the night as an absolute barnstormer, it has to be remembered that one of the joyful things in life is a packed Metro going right off. It’s a beautiful sight, and it was availble for viewing last Friday.