You can normally judge how good of a night out I have had by the amount of usless messages I send to people and going by that theory, Terminal 9 was by far one of the most enjoyable nights out I’ve had this year. In particular a stunning performance from the highly respected turntablist (also DJ for the Beastie Boys) Mixmaster Mike.

It wasn’t the best start to a night out, mainly due to my selection of a particularly unreliable friend to take along. Despite my requests of a pre 10pm arrival as the event started at 8pm we didn’t arrive till just after 11. Despite the late arrival, I intended to make the most of the night and headed straight to the main room to catch the end of an old favourite of mine Salmonella Dub, who were rocking the main room. Now never having been to an event at the Forum before, all I can say is, wow, too say I was very impressed with the venue is an understatment.

After managing to catch the end of Salmonella Dub’s set I decided to head up to the main room and catch the live performance of Sydney duo, Poxy Music. It was quite packed and difficult to move up on the mezzanine level where the second stage was held, not quite providing the same amount of space as the main room, but it was still quite an impressive atmosphere as a fairly packed dancefloor moved to some awesome breaks. Including a few of the duo’s own remixes of tunes such as Alter Ego’s Rocker and the Freestylers Get A Life. They closed with JJJ favourite, there own production Our Break.

After quite an impressive performance, it seemed many people had the same idea as me and were headed to the main room to get a good spot for Mixmaster Mike. My eagerness led me to catch the last thirty minutes of Koolism’s set, which I was actually quite impressed with, throwing in some very unique beats, elements of drum and bass, as well as some relativley impressive scratch solo’s it really showed how far Aussie hip hop is coming along.

But come 1am it was the time most of the patrons at the Forum had been waiting for. Turntablist extrordinaire Mixmaster Mike took to the decks with a bang, utilising Final Scratch, a mic, and a laptop he managed to belt out one of the most enjoyable, amazing and impressive hours of music i can ever recall. Featuring a perfect mix of party tunes and awesome bass lines as well as near god like skills the whole venue was rocked off its feet. Highlights would have to be hearing tunes as diverese as System of a Down, Herbie Hancock, Chemical Brothers, Franz Ferdinand, DJ Shadow and of course Beastie Boys. But the most incredible thing was hearing him play Nirvana’s classic, Smells Like Teen Spirit to a an almost rock concert like response, only to follow it up with Rage Against the Machines, Killing in the Name Of, which turned the front half of the crowd into a mosh pit. After this, I along with most otheres headed off, although I did manage to catch a little bit of the Loose Cannon’s as I was lining up for Mike’s autograph, but it wasn’t enough to keep me there, not after the performance of Mixmaster Mike.

Overall, it was definetly one of the most enjoyable nights out I’ve had this year, perfect venue, awesome crowd, great atmosphere and best of all rad music.