Here forth be recited in gravely odd and patchy detail the final J-Flight for ‘06. Before the cursing of Heineken for an impaired memory it is prudent to state the grand design for a Saturday night hosted by grand fellows: a proper night of trance in a not so proper end of town.

Albert St in the CBD? What? For real like?

Well yes, but considering the underwhelming state of the trance scene in Brisbane any place will do and it seems that the Ashala Bar is actually a really tidy piece of concrete (Made with glass and other such materials too apparently). So after hastily peeling that dirty great big question mark from the top of my head I traipsed through the bar to where a dirty kitchen and not much else would more often be to find a splendidly under-populated room. When greeted by little more than a few isolated groups in a relatively vast venue one word springs to mind: underground!

But enough about venues and frilly bits and . . . . Music ladies and gents! J-Flight being the cornerstone of Brisbane trance it is even at the wee hour of six thirty expected that a greeting of blissed progressive and such is what was received courtesy of Phillip Lakic who set the tone nicely for the evening keeping an erstwhile sedate room tapping their feet. But as expected ‘twas not long before the energy in the room took a sharp turn with Akian seamlessly dropping into the trance.

A turn out for the books however was to see a vocalist. Live performance is something sadly lacking with trance music so to see Kristie Ross singing totally unrehearsed over Akian’s trance was not only refreshing but impressive. It’s essential that trance fans everywhere get to see this sort of performance more often; more vocalists, percussionists, key fiddlers etc. etc. What is important to recognise is that there are performers and promoters in Brisbane willing and creative enough to not only entertain the possibility of but break the monotony of two decks and little else.

Putting the old chestnut ‘HMAS Uninventive DJs’ back in its rightful box, Elemance & RJ were still to come on the bill and did not disappoint, laying down a shifting and layered progressive groove. Being DJs of a more progressive bent it would have been better that these two play before Akian for the next J-Flight to maintain a smoother continuum for the evening.

That aside a fantastic night was had by all involved and for any closeted trance head it would be a good idea to keep an ear to the ground for the next installment of J-Flight as if this one just passed is anything to go by then there will doubtless be more bold things to come.