Club Club featuring SOS @ Chinese Laundry, Sydney (05/04/08)
Well you can’t really ask for a better birthday present than being treated to a night out at one of your favourite Sydney clubs, with three huge names playing at what was one of 08’s most anticipated tours so far. And that’s exactly what happened to me last weekend, with the Chinese Laundry’s regular Saturday night Club Club hosting the SOS collective (which stands for ‘Sex on Substance’, jsut so you know) for a mammoth three-hour set. This trio consists of several already well-known names in the form of Desyn Masielo, Demi and Omid 16B. And notably, the lads have also just released the new Balance 13 release. The compilation sees them stamping their own individual styles on a triple-disc feast featuring 56 tracks of deep, rolling progressive house, along with influences from almost every other shade of four-four. Masiello was of course responsible for the landmark Balance 08 compilation, but this collaboration is even better. So there were a lot of people eagerly awaiting Saturday night’s performance.
We arrived at the club at about 11pm thinking there would be a huge line, and we were 100 per cent correct. The queue filled the entrance area, but the line was moving quickly and before long we were inside to enjoy the tasty beats on offer from Club Junque. This warmup set was top notch and kicked off the party nicely, with the main room atmosphere already kicking strongly and many a fist being pumped in the air. The set covered house, minimal, tech house and progressive over the 2.5 hours of tightly mixed tunes. Layout changes were in effect in the main room with the decks and equipment lining the very back of the Laundry, and it was damn hot up front. It was packed in like sardines in the main room, not an uncommon experience if you’ve ever been to the Chinese Laundry to see such a popular act, but there was room to dance. move around or take a break in one of the side rooms.
For a while we were worried that there would be a no-show from SOS as Club Junque played on past 1am, but not long after the lads rolled in, keen to take over on the decks and kick off the show. As SOS began, there was a noticeable change in style as they built on the quality foundation laid down earlier with some straight up tough progressive for the first hour. The DJ unit immediately put the epic mixer setup to work, layering in percussion and loops every 8 or 16 bars at one stage which no doubt made all the audiophiles drool. For the next hour they delivered some epic mainroom party tunes, and whenever a familiar tune was dropped the vibe in the place exploded. At times they dropped some melodic, almost borderline prog/trance tunes in the style of Deadmau5 (much to my delight), but the night was really all about groove-driven basslines however. It was simply impossible to be in the main room and not want to dance as the huge buildups destroyed the place, while wave after wave of sexy bass lines ploughed through the room. The last hour was full of very tech oriented, solid tunes with the set finishing roughly on time.
Other things worth mention was the use of the drum machine over the top of the mix, which added a unique groove and vibe to their set. The lads were totally up for it throughout the performance, and were dancing away behind the decks through the whole set despite being damn tired from the day’s adventures and a massively delayed flight from Perth. The equipment they were playing on included 3 mixers, 6 decks, 3 laptops, 2 effects units and a drum machine. Meanwhile upstairs in the Sand Bar Joe Le Fro, Ben Henderson and Steve Lind were laying down smooth house tunes throughout the night, to a crowd who was battling to find room to escape to the fresh air and have a cigarette. In the infamous Cave, residents Tass and Jeff Drake were on mixing duties, and many a time we took a breather from the main room and took in some of the huge tunes being dished out.
As usual this was an amazing night put on by the Chinese Laundry crew. Three huge names in progressive house for a tiny cover of $15 was perfect, and a great way to celebrate my birthday with our crew and all the other friendly Sydney punters. Some would have had issues getting in on the night (including some of our mates) but the Chinese Laundry isn’t a huge club and this happens when you get a popular act for a minimal cover. The use of all the equipment including 6 decks and 3 mixers went down nicely, and the set that the lads dished out was all-round top class. Despite the hassle of getting around the venue, I love to see the Laundry so packed and the atmosphere throughout the night was incredible, with everyone in the crowd absolutely loving it. If this sounds like something you would enjoy make sure to check out the Laundry weekly. See you at the next one!
