The news that the trio comprising a:rpia:r soundsystem (Rhadoo, Pedro and Raresh) were no longer headlining the inevitably massive Sorry we are Circo Loco gig at Ambar, came as a shock to all who had been seriously amped for the gig. It was destined to be a massive night with quality locals supporting the internationals who were booked to do a 5 hour set.

Democracy released the unfortunate news to ticketholders in Perth and immediately offered a refund. They also stated in their release that the show must go on and with that, a lineup of locals was announced. Perth has a fairly sizeable group of DJ’s rocking the good sounds of 4/4 right now and Democracy chose a quality selection of these for the line up. And how was it? In two words, kick ass. Yep, they aren’t the most descriptive of words but the whole night overall turned out to be a total kick asser with the locals stepping up to the challenge of facing a club full of punters who had been keen for the Circo Loco experience. Proof also, that this particular scene in Perth is thriving.

Joe Stawarz was first on the line up and worked a quality selection of minimal and at times somewhat tech edged tunes. Each track followed on smoothly from the last and overall the programming worked well given it was the opener. Holding the tempo back whilst still filling the system with each tracks’ intricacies and layers, Stawarz nailed a class set. Towards the end, there was a fair amount of people making their way down into the club. It was beginning to appear that the cancellation of the headliners wasn’t much of a deterrent.

Continuing on from the tidy sojourn Stawarz had delivered, Sean Chee was next up and transitioned to a slightly heavier tip with some deeper sounding tech house tracks. The dancefloor was very much happening by the midpoint of his set and continued to fill as more punters arrived. Working with the up-for-it crowd Chee kept them there for his sets entirety, steady mixes and solid grooves maintained throughout. A perusal of the club at the conclusion of his set saw a packed dancefloor with a steady stream through the door. The party was without doubt in full swing by this stage and with or without Circo Loco, the inevitability of an awesome night was a given.

Kid Deep continued with the heavier and thicker sound left by Chee and his selections were well placed for the first hour of his set. Changing the sound up is usually a good thing and so mid-set, Kid Deep dropped a remix of Groove is in the Heart by Deee-Lite which seemed to come out of nowhere. But the familiarity of the well known track proved to be a hit amongst most and with that he drew even more people to take their marks on the dancefloor. A few tribal house bangers ensued before he toned down the pace and mixed in tunes reminiscent of those from the beginning of his set.

Getting straight down to business, Aarin F was next and he drew even more punters to the dancefloor with his blend of upfront minimal and tech selections. Opting for some more refined and stripped back tracks to begin with, Aarin created a steady build before playing tune after tune of minimal goodness and had the whole dancefloor immersed in his set. Plenty of percussive numbers interspersed with some more melodic tracks made for a set where you pretty much couldn’t leave the dancefloor.

New to Perth DJ Loopin’ took to the decks for the final set of the night and his skills, technically and in terms of set programming were on show. The dance-till-close crew clearly loved every one of his tracks and it made for the perfect close to the night that was.

Much respect must go out to each of the locals who more than stepped up in absence of a:rpia:r soundsystem. Whilst the cancellation of a:rpia:r was very unfortunate, it was impressive to see that Perth can deliver a massive 4/4 club night dominated solely by locals and keep the dancefloor happening all night long.

Scenes in general and particularly the Perth scene appear to move in cycles in terms of the popularity and appreciation of individual genres. After quite a bleak patch which saw a severe lack of anything 4/4 in town, and when there was, only a handful of punters at the rare gig, it’s clear to see that times are changing. With the quality and number of locals playing the good sound as well as the frequency of touring internationals and local nights, Perth is definitely in the welcome upsweep of a 4/4 resurgence which appears to be here to stay.

After yet another quality instalment, even in the absence of the headlining act, Democracy have cemented their reputation for putting on kick ass parties and being committed to showcasing all that is quality and good about 4/4 to Perth. What a night. Roll on the next one please.