Arthouse, the name says it all…A place we go to listen to geniuses of all genres ub house music. Tonight we party and bring a new sound to our ears, King Unique. A name that I will be searching for in music stores.
A fresh face, no, a fresh name, yes, the duo responsible Matt Thomas and Matt Roberts have been frequenting popular night spots for years across the globe. I knew this review was for me after reading up on some background info on the pair; one article described King Unique as a “genre blowing project”. As I walked through the doors approximately 11.30pm I was greeted by a few furry friends and their blue and white uniformed owners, thankfully they did their rounds and that was the end of it.
As I proceeded to the main room, awkwardly passing through the crowd as the room was already tight, I heard a sound in the background. It was driving house beats, then flashing into something raw and electric. It sounded great, is it King Unique? Nope, it was Ben Morris, and what a great set he played! I managed to catch 2 hours of Ben and was really getting into his set, even though I must have looked like a loner as my plus one was still on his way. I didn’t care, this was too good to be sitting down or hanging at the bar.
The DJ booth began to get a little crowded at this stage, when 3 other men decided to jump on board… yes it was King Unique! But who was the other guy that accompanied the Matts? The promoter, Scott, all smiles as usual. A soothing opening track flourished with tranquility, and the crowd embraced it and showed a keen anticipation for what was to come next. It definitely was a change of pace from what Ben had been playing.
It wasn’t long until King Unique broke out of their shell and showed us their true persona. Do What You Do by Yoshimoto really set the scene, with its haunting and driving sounds and sexy male vocals – I love this track! The style continued and the crowd heated up, until about an hour into the set – a remix of I Feel Love by Donna Summer… haven’t heard this one since Field Day!
After that track I was satisfied for the time being, so I took a walk around the club and court yard. Heading into the breaks room I saw that it was still going crazy at 3am, as if the party had only just begun. I quickly headed back in to the main room to the sounds of thumpin’ and in your face beats. As I was dancing I felt something hit my leg, so I turned around to see someone behind me breakdancing as Wild TV filmed. The first guy was quite impressive, then your usual short skirted attention grabbers moved toward the spot light.
In the end I must remark that their name really does say it all – in my opinion they are Kings, spinning a unique blend of house genres. Not one word can describe their style as Matt T and Matt R have a notably particular sound; it’s a mixture of electronic, uplifting, deep, dark and progressive house. Big names such as Underworld and the Killers have used these boys to remix tracks, and when King Unique bring something out for the CD collection I will be the first one in line to buy it.
