I remember the good old days. The days when the Perth all ages event scene was thriving. These were the times when events like Dekwrekka, System6, Uproar, They Came From Mars and other massive productions that were way beyond my time were the place to be for those who liked it hard and euphoric. These memorable experiences have become just that; a distant memory, a memory that I have long since wished to relive Until recently I thought that there would never be any all ages parties here in Perth ever again. That was until Surise and then Godspeed: WhiteNight came along.

Prior to the aforementioned event (Godspeed) I could not hold back the excitement. The proospect of seeing the headlining Raver Baby Crew (Hixxy, Styles, Breeze, Recon & MC Storm), Slipmatt and a massive selection of the very finest hard dance, drum & bass and hardcore DJ’s Perth has to offer felt like a dream come true. This incredible line up wold be playing to a mixed crowd of under and over 18’s, as the event was an “open age” gig, meaning that over 18’s were permitted to buy alcoholic beverages from a separate arena. For experienced party-goers like myself as well as those who have been around for a decade longer than myself, a chance to relive old memories was not to be missed. For the younger crew, Godspeed: WhiteNight would be a memory in the making.

Perth’s Godspeed: WhiteNight had a very similar yet different setup to that of its Sydney parent. The main differences between the two were the musical styles being played in each main room and the venues themselves. I was lucky enough to experience the Sydney equivilent which hosted hardstyle in its main arena and hardcore in a side room. The event was held at the Acer Arena (formerly Sydney Entertainment Centre) and I was rather disappointed that hardcore was not being featured on the main stage. Suffice to say that I was glad to find that Perth would be holding an event of the same name with happy hardcore being the main event, so to speak.

I arrived at the Joondalup-based venue just before 11pm, and it is in the main arena that I spent the entire night I would have loved to check out the over 18’s “Mashed-up” room and the “Local Fokuz” arena, but the hardcore and D&B tuneage that was being banged out from the main arena had a hold on me and refused to let go from start to finish. The queue upon arrival was enormous. From that point on I knew that this night would be something very special.

The professed “godfather of hardcore”, DJ Slipmatt was behind the 1’s and 2’s in between 11pm and 12 midnight. I could not resist the temptation to get straight onto the dance floor. The small crew that I was with pointed out to me that there were a lot of familair faces within the crowd. A huge number of them in fact. The presence of these veteran faces made the night feel that little bit more magical. Some of these people have been around for ten more years than I have. As memories came flooding back to me from events from as far back as 2001, I could not help but wonder about the kinds of memories that were being relived by those who had been around since 1992, and beyond.

Slipmatt’s set really did some damage. He really is the true Godfather of the happy hard sound. During his set he blended the old with the new; combining old tricks and samples with mash-ups of tunes like Freddie La Grand’s “Put Your Hands Up For Detroit.” The crowd was getting bigger by the minute. Eveyone, including DJ Slipmatt, was having a ball.

Word began circulating that the main man behind the phenomenon that is the Raver Baby Crew; DJ Hixxy, was unwell and back at his hotel. I, like so many others collectively thought “say it isn’t so!” I would have to wait just a little bit longer to see Hixxy for the very first time. Even though he is from Portsmouth, I won’t hold this against him.

As it happened; the mighty Raver Baby Crew would be just fine without him. In fact, they totally smashed it. From 12 until 3am the Godspeed: WhiteNight massive would be treated to a feast of pure UK hapy hardcore. For the first timers and youngsters in the crowd, the Raver Baby Crew would provide the ultimate happy hard rave history lesson as they banged out legendary tunes like “You’re Shining”, “You’re My Angel”, “Slide Away” and of course “Pretty Green Eyes.” The RBC’s set didn’t have to be ground breaking, happy hard is all about the party and the more experienced ravers out there would have reveled in hearing all these classics which are still as relevant today as they were in their hayday.

Breeze, Styles and Re-con were doing an amazing job behind the wheels of steel, but it has to be said that the man of the moment was the one and only MC Storm. His ability to whip the crowd into a frenzy and keep the energy going on and on and on is second to none. It could be said that he is an MC’s MC. The younger fraternity within the Godspeed: WhiteNight massive seemed quite taken aback by his abilities.

When I checked my watch for the first time since the RBC started their set, my jaw nearly hit the floor. The time was a quarter to three. Those three hours had passed like they were thirty seconds. My crew and I only stopped dancing to refill our water supplies or fulfill other such business. That is how much fun we were having. Looking around us it seemed that the crowd was on exactly the same level. There weren’t too many people standing about. The Raver Baby Crew would expect ntohing less. I have partied in Melbourne and Sydney but I have to say; when Perth gets an event like this, no one in Australia parties as hard as weo do!

Following a much deserved round of applause, the Raver Baby Crew left the decks. The party wasn’t over just yet. DJ Shock One was given the daunting task of following on from an incredible performance by three of the UK hardcore sound’s biggest names. Shock One switched the momentum of the party from hardcore to drum & bass, and even though he was equal to the task of taking over from the RBC, his set recieved a few mixed reactions from the crowd as many wanted the hardcore to continue. My crew and I decided to take a well deserved and much needed break as we sat down and took in an excellent set by Shock One.

In between the hours of 4 and 5am Menis and Dair got behind the decks to deliver a blisteringly hard set of drum & bass. Unfortunatley we could not stay any longer as the blisters were setting in following five hours of non stop dance floor action. It was great to see the numbers as strong as they were when we left the venue.

Godspeed: WhiteNight will for me and so many others go down in the memory books as being one of the very best all ages events to be staged here in Perth. A special big-ups must go out to not only the DJ’s, who performed above and beyond my every epectation, but also the promoters. It was evident that a lot of back breaking effort had gone into staging this production. You all deserve a pat on the back if nothing else. I can only hope it won’t be too long before the next event of this callibre comes along again.