Once again Greenwood Hotel has come up trumps as host to Ministry of Sound Classics. The lineup was enormous, the weather was beautiful & party people had smiles from ear to ear. What a way to spend Boxing Day!

Strolling in at 4pm the dance moves were already being thrown out. Kid Kenobi was gracing the decks in The Courtyard and resident DJ Shamus had already warmed up this crazy crowd. Elroy had started the Lounge Bar off with a bang and The Chapel was in full swing with the Sweet Chilli DJ’s.

Grabbing a drink I checked out the set times for the rest of the evening’s entertainment. Brendan Fing, Smokin’ Jo, Pee Wee Ferris to name a few!! I was so excited I had no idea where I wanted to be and when! Settling into The Courtyard I was pleased to hear Alan Thompson sending out a few classics from the renowned MOS 2001 series. In my mind this CD had to be a Ministry of Sound milestone in Australia. This compilation did wonders for house lovers everywhere and was exactly what clubbers needed to hear at the time. Everything but the Girl, Red Carpet & Bob Sinclair smashed through the speakers into happy clubbers ears and whistles were heard loud and clear.

By 7pm Amber Savage was doing her thing in The Chapel and you could hear the _woohoo_’s a mile away. This room was electric and steam was coming off the roof! This hard house DJ has really come into her own in recent years appearing as resident DJ at Sublime @ Home and she had the crowd in the palm of her hand within minutes.

Now it was time to go and see the Ministry of Sound’s deity himself – John Course. The crowd went berserk as he stepped up to the decks to work his magic. Coming to light in the late 80’s John Course has made a huge mark for himself in the dance world and is responsible for more MOS Sessions than there is time to name. Working under the Vicious label his Vicious Cuts CD was a corker! We were in for a real treat and screams were sent out in appreciation of his talent – he didn’t miss a beat. Neither did we I might add and the sweat was pouring from revved up party people before too long.

Ducking into The Lounge Bar Brendan Fing was keeping a modest crowd alive and it was a little bit of a shame that he was on at the same time as Mr Course. His mix was incredible and I was torn between two worlds at this stage. I resigned myself to standing in the doorway and grooving to whichever song I liked best at the time! Talk about spoilt for choice!!!!

By this time my legs were protesting but I didn’t care. Mark Dynamix was due on in minutes and I couldn’t wait! Grabbing a drink from the bar proved to be a bit more of a mission than I expected and 25 minutes later I was starting to get more than frustrated. The barman did NOT seem like he was in a hurry and did not have any rhythm going in his service of patrons. In the end thirsty punters were waving money over the bar to get his attention! I nearly dived over the bar and served myself. Finally quenching my thirst I moved back into the electrified crowd grooving away to Mr Dynamix himself. Tune after tune belted through the airwaves and recognition was given to all eras of house music – some 15 years old and the crowd still loved it. Dynamix manages to roll out each song as part of a journey and I guess this is the reason this Aussie DJ is so well sought after – each set is not just a bunch of songs thrown together but a carefully constructed experience that takes a crowd along for the ride with him. Hence for the difference between a DJ that plays for him or herself and a DJ that reads the crowd in front of them.
If tickets went on sale for next year’s Boxing Day extravaganza I’d buy them now. Considering they don’t I guess I will have to wait for next year – I’m counting the days!