Rain, hail or shine, Club Club nights at Laundry have a reputation for always attracting quite a crowd. Tonight would be no exception, and while there may not have been any massive international DJs on the bill, as the line snaked its way up the stairs from the lower ground locale, it was a simple formula: another night at Laundry on a Saturday night; another good rinse to be had.

As I waltzed in with my posse for the night, we made a beeline for the Cave to see local boy, and ITM favourite Andrew Wowk doing a mighty fine job. As always, Wowk was a picture of concentration, and was nailing tunes left, right and centre. Playing a strong set loaded with the types of tracks that your typical Cave fans would lap up, and lap up they did, he put his wares on display and showed little wonder why he continues to get solid reviews across the city.

He handed over to the big man in Anthony Pappa, the erstwhile Aussie now based himself in the UK. Always a pleasure to have him back, and boy, did he give us a show. Pappa came to play, and play he bloody well did. He absolutely banged em out for two hours, even though for me it was a touch disappointing – OK, maybe disappointing is too strong a word – maybe more like a shame… or maybe even an awwwwwww… whatever your choice of words, it was related to the fact that that about three quarters into it, when you felt that he could have taken it up a notch and completely blown the place apart, he chose not to, and kept it all in relative check. Then again, things were already getting pretty loose and messy in the Cave, not all that surprising given the strong ITM contingent present, so maybe it was a pseudo-OHS decision on his part.

Despite that, he kept cranking out the tunes loud. Hell, maybe even a bit too loud for some, with complaints being yelled across the Cave that sound levels were just a wee bit on the side of too much. But Pappa showed why he can truly hold his own in the international arena, and reaffirmed why it is always a damn pleasure to have him back in town. He left us all exhausted and the Cave looked like a sea of carnage, with punters gasping and feeling so good, that many went outside for a cigarette. Yep, to some extent, it was that good.

Dave Beres then picked up the pieces and continued pumping it out, and kept those that remained behind happy. Never easy coming off the back of a machine like Pappa, but he did it with aplomb, and those that remained were suitably rewarded.

All up, proved to be one of the most fun nights I have had in recent time, and confirmed that sometimes, it’s the relatively unsuspecting nights that sneak up on you, and absolutely smack you in the guts, but leave you gasping for more more more.