It was the 19th of January, a warm Friday night in Canberra. The stars were shining like diamonds sewed into a dark blue blanket around the earth and my heart was happily pounding in anticipation for the night ahead.

It was just before midnight when I arrived at the Academy. As I was heading down the stairs I could hear Milkbar Nick playing that sexy and classy Sebastian Legers track ‘Hypnotized’. As I walked towards the bar, I was greeted by Chris Fraser, then by the Aston Shuffle guys, which are the locals Vance Musgrove, Ross McGrath and Mikah Freeman. A lot of people were already on the dance floor and although the club was far from its capacity, I was pleased to see so many happy people in such a party atmosphere.

It was around 1am when Malente started his basseline-driven electro funk set. I was so looking forward to it, and so was the crowd! He played some happy/upbeat party music to start with, then he played ‘For the Revolution’ which is a track from his latest album ‘How Can You Still Stand To Stand Still?’. Surprisingly, he didn’t play any other tunes from the albums he has released in Australia. I was expecting that he was going to play ‘Like a Freak’, or ‘We Came to Party’, but it didn’t happen, which I didn’t mind at all. I have his albums so I know how they sound. It was nice to listen to some of his other tunes, especially the Aston Shuffle remix of ‘Killer Application’, the most killer track ever – you’ll die to listen to it again. The rest of his set was pure party driven madness, the tunes flowing seamlessly together, everybody was dancing and having a great time. The club was only half full, which created a more intimate vibe. And I must say that if you didn’t attend this event, you missed out on a great night. In my opinion Malente is one of the best DJ/producers around as he is able to please everybody. Although accessible, his sound is not cheesy or commercial, he plays the kind of stuff that makes you move, makes you dance and is truly the kind of music that you can’t really stand to stand still!

Chris Fraser was the one playing next, and as soon as Malente finished his energetic set, Chris got straight into it, playing a funky electro tune that I really love. Then he played the Trentemoller remix of Moby’s ‘Go’ then some Ministry of Sound related tunes, which he was still playing when I left. It was a great night, I had so much fun and by the smile on everybody’s face, it was a night to remember, thanks to Friction and the Academy.