Destination? feat. NAPT @ The Cross, Sydney (05/04/08)

I was keen to see if there’s any truth to the rumours that 2008 is going to see a timely renaissance of breaks. Destination? is a relatively new monthly breaks night to Sydney, imported from the West Coast of this fine country, and they’re looking to ride the wave of this alleged musical resurgence. With all this talking up of the genre, what better way to see where the sound is going than by checking out visiting UK breakbeat duo NAPT, winners of ‘Best Breakthrough Producer’ at the recent Breakspoll Awards. Indeed, the cutting edge of the cutting edge.

The Destination? crew are clearly paying attention to the details, and doing the small things right. Smiling door bitche… ahem, ladies offering free lollies to all upon arrival, great decorations throughout the room that include cool pacman visuals rolling behind the DJ as well as clear, crisp sound bursting from the speakers. As a venue, The Cross is a little like an octopus with a number of sideroom appendages that can be opened or closed depending on the size of the crowd. With most of the tentacles sealed off for the night, the crowd was concentrated on the dancefloor nerve-centre; a good thing as the atmosphere was pumping all night. The bar queues were surprisingly short, and when one of the bartenders got the vodka to dry-ginger ratio completely back to front (with only a splash of the soft in the hard), she decided to give it to me anyway. Things were looking up!

Sideshow Rod was on warm-up duties for the surprisingly burgeoning crowd – The Cross already filling nicely by 10.30pm – and he was handling these duties with aplomb. Keeping things on the funkier tip, plenty of heads were nodding as some smooth grooves were being thrown down, including a splash of The Freestylers. Interestingly, Rod played a track that kept repeating the lyric, “It’s all about house music,” – an odd selection on an evening clearly about breaks. Nonetheless, it was a tight DJ set from someone who clearly knows how to get a crowd primed.

By midnight, the club was almost overflowing and Canberra’s favourite breaks duo (only breaks duo?!) Karton stepped behind the decks and proceeded to rip the place apart. Early on they were banging out some massive tunes, including a cracking remix of My People from The Presets and the storming Soulwax mix of Phantom from Justice. Alongside some well-worn party favourites (like System Addict) were plenty of Karton originals, including the sublimely melodic HiFi Show. These guys have immense talent, and the crowd were clearly picking up what they were putting down.

Now in my opinion, 2am is a little late for the headline act to kick things off, but it was worth the wait. With the two NAPT boys working the CDJs and mixer in tandem, what started out looking a little homoerotic (with their arms intertwined over the EQ nobs, pitch slider and faders), began to look almost borg-like as their collective consciousness started to create some musical magic. Yes (I’m sure you can see the nerd references approaching…), resistance was futile. And I certainly liked what I heard: tough-as ballsy beats laced with electro-funk and an irresistible groove. With consummate skills in the booth and an ear for a sound that comfortably transcends subgenre boundaries, the accolades flowing the way of NAPT seem apt.

But these legs were weary, so the frustrating search for a taxi began (always easier when eating a pie) before NAPT finished their set. However, if Saturday night is anything to go by, I think it’s safe to assume that Destination? is going to become a name synonymous with quality: great tunes, a friendly crowd and a generally fuss-free, fun-filled night of hang-it-all-out-there dancing. I am now more than happy to jump on the ‘Breaks 08’ bandwagon.