When one thinks of rave, what does one imagine? Most of us would think of gurny trance, hard trance, gabba and hardore sounds plus kandi kids, shufflers and glowsticks, that’s what I’m guessing. And with our jaded sense of what’s cool, its very mention would begin an internal (and even possibly external) tirade of why raves suck and the rave music scene is crap. We would never think that Sweetchilli would present a night of the rave at the Civic Hotel. I mean, these guys are better known for their nights involving the likes of Anthony Pappa, Dave Seaman and Luke Fair – all progressive house geniuses. But they did indeed put on a Sweetchilli rave, and they did it well!

The crowd was fresh faced and happy, the music was Sweetchilli through and through, the vibe was fun and silly – all the essential elements of a great night out. This was the second installment of Sweetchilli’s new weekly night at the Civic and it seems like they are onto a good thing! The crowd was as diverse as always, some of the “regular” Sweetchilli guys and girls weren’t there but they were replaced by some of the new generation of Sweetchilli punters – young, eager and looking for some awesome sounds.

Sweetchilli is definitely the place to go if you are sick of cheesy electro, or alternatively tired of the tech wave that is sweeping Sydney. The sound is almost always going to hit on the progressive/house minimal/techno nail on the head: it’s underground, it’s interesting and it’s out there. Tonight though, all this fabulous music was interspersed with tracks from the likes of the Chemical Brothers and Prodigy. The perfect way to get the crowd jumping ‘rave style’ at the Civic.

The end of the night was finished on a high, Red Carpet’s Alright was played. PlUR hugs were shared, the love was felt and all in all it was a momentous occasion that lived up to the enormous heritage of rave itself. HUGS!