Who said prog was dead? Or even a dirty word? Obviously, some jealous trance fan. Or maybe it was John Digweed’s jilted ex-lover? Either way, they need their head examined. Last Saturday, Australia’s biggest underground export Anthony Pappa proved that the p-word is still as relevant as ever to dance music with a phenomenal four hour set in the Cave at Chinese Laundry. And in case that wasn’t enough, Ibiza’s Jonathan Ulysses and block-rockin’ yank Tittsworth rounded out an all-star international bill with headline sets in the main room.

Club Junque, the apple of the Cave’s eye, was given the honour of opening for the Pappasauras, and he relished the opportunity, laying down one of the best warm-ups I’ve not only ever heard him play personally, but that I’ve ever heard in my life. There was just nothing in it that could be faulted. The mixing was tight, the track selection was appropriate and thoughtful and he gets bonus points for playing the massively underrated Mic Newman mix of Charlotte by Booka Shade.

What happened in the next four hours can really only be described as a Christmas miracle, albeit three weeks too late (although, Santa did make an appearance for some impromptu back to back action – and was subsequently booed off the decks when he messed up a mix). From the moment he unravelled his headphones cord to the final echoes of a blissful melodic outro, Anthony Pappa commanded the packed crowds attention and took them on a ride that felt like it lasted about four minutes rather than four hours.

After opening with a huge James Holden-esque electronica-meets-prog-meets-anything-else-you-can-think-of banger and grabbing the crowd by the balls, Pappa released his grip just a little, throwing down some chunky, deep, techy grooves like Nils Nurnberg’s Seduction and Physical by Hugo & Daniele Papini. As the hour mark came and went, the music picked up, with Pappa heading towards darker, tougher and more growling selections, and by the time two hours had flown by, the Pappasauras had totally hit his stride (and about fifteen bourbon and cokes) and was belting out ballsy progressive house like only he knows how, including Sasha’s remix of Destroy Everything You Touch by Ladytron and Yousef’s new banger Death Dealer. A brief segue into some deeper, more subtle selections gave the crowd a chance to catch their breath and pick their insides up off the floor, before it was straight back into massive tune after massive tune for the final hour. There was everything from pounding techno with Kevin Saunderson’s Rock To The Beat, to old school prog with Pushin’ Too Hard by Saints & Sinners thrown into the last sixty minutes, and it was a fitting end to an amazing ride that I’m amazed I’ve been capable of putting into words.

In terms of technical ability, it’s almost impossible to do Pappa any justice with mere words. So I’ll just leave it at this: holy shit. Anyone who can flawlessly mix prog on three decks while having a chat to someone, giving high fives, signing autographs, helping eager chinstrokers with track IDs and just generally behaving like a loon behind the decks is alright by me. Oh and did I mention he mixed without headphones for most of the set? Yeah, seriously.

Meanwhile, Jonathan Ulysses and then Tittsworth were in charge in the Laundry. Ulysses brought a little bit of Ibiza to Sydney with a great selection of big room house that never strayed into cheese territory. It was just big, fun house music with a distinctly techy edge and more of an emphasis on loops and complexity than the overused breakdown-buildup-OHMYGODMYFACEISMELTING formula. Highlights were Pryda’s Murani and a remix (not Deadmau5’s) of Cygnus X’s The Orange Theme. Tittsworth did what Tittsworth does: played party music without any real regard for what genre it falls under. It was an unpretentious, irreverent set full of chopped up amen-breaks, cheeky samples and bad arse basslines that kept those who like their music more in-your-face satisfied.

So another Saturday passes and another awesome act (well, three this time) plays another awesome set at the same awesome club. It’s all getting a bit predictable, isn’t it? But hey, I never liked surprises as a kid.