There are several factors that contribute to why the Chinese Laundry is one of the best clubs in Sydney. Firstly there’s the crowd, which is probably one of the least pretentious in Sydney. They’re there for the music and to enjoy themselves, rather than to dress up like a flouro highlighter and show off their shaved arms. Then there’s the venue itself, with its unique atmosphere and formidable sound system: crisp and clear in Laundry, and dark, dirty and all consuming in the Cave. And most importantly the Laundry always manages to book the finest international DJs, ensuring its punters hear a lot more than just a generic selection of popular club tracks. Tonight was no exception with appearances from Ninja Tunes legends DJ Food and DK, who played a mind-blowing set that further cemented Break Inn’s reputation as the premier breaks nights in the city.

Resident DJ crew The Impossibles warmed the crowd up nicely with a typically schizophrenic mix of breaks and whatever else they felt like playing. As usual it was humorous and fun, with Electric Six’s Gay Bar going down particularly well. By the time DJ Food and DK took to the decks at midnight the Laundry was already buzzing with activity, with plenty of people assuming their positions around the DJ booth and barely moving for the remainder of the night.

Over the next two and a half hours the guests mesmerized the crowd with a set that was unpredictable, seamless, and completely brilliant. Without ever dropping the beat they took the crowd on a journey through multiple genres and time periods, playing dancehall, reggae, rock, drum n’ bass and even some 1920s jazz, all with a healthy serving of hip hop and breaks. Capturing our attention early with a blinding remix of White Lines by Grandmaster Flash that switched into some tribal drums, by the time they played Jimi Hendrix a couple of tunes later I realized this was going to be a pretty special set. They read the mood of the crowd perfectly, giving us just enough time to catch our breath with some dancehall or reggae, before raising the tempo dangerously high with some frenetic DnB. The DJs had a grin plastered on their face the entire time and their humorous lighthearted touches, such as playing the themes to Adam’s Family and Austin Powers, went down a treat.
Often the most left-of-center choices worked the best. A calypso version of Johnny Cash’s Ring of Fire even prompted the people in the chill out room, who had previously been looking slightly sorry for themselves, to get up and flail about as if their lower spines had been taken hostage by some alien life-force.

Several times I attempted to make a trip over to the Cave to catch Brisbane’s Bitrok, who were playing an intense set that was being lapped up by the crowd. However I never managed to stay long, worried that I might be missing some obscure jazz classic or DnB remix of a DJ Shadow tune in the other room.

Considering the erratic nature of the rest of the set, it was a little disappointing that DJ Food and DK chose to end their set with Jump Around by House of Pain, which we’ve been saturated by recently in Sydney clubs. However that’s just one minor gripe from an otherwise flawless set. Check these guys out first chance you get!