Perth promoters Democracy have brought The Peoples’ Music of house and techno to the fair people of Perth for over two years now. The honour roll of acts who have graced the Democracy decks and FX is as eclectic as it is astonishing. This strong tradition looks set to continue in earnest during 2010 if the happenings on January 25 are anything to go by. Three of the finest DJs from Germany in the shape of Gabirel Ananda, Marcel Janovsky and Sebo K boldly headlined the bill and Geisha Bar was bestowed with the honour of hosting the first Democracy party of the year. I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to see it all unfold.

Fans of Sebo K would have been absolutely gutted following the revelation that he would not be making an appearance at this gig, for reasons better known to himself, but he really ought to be kicking himself as he missed one heck of a shindig. While the good folk at Democracy offered fans of Sebo K a refund, I cannot help but wonder if there would have been many takers, as Gabriel Ananda and Marcel Jenovsky were inked in for an epic four hour, back to back performance.

My brother, his girlfriend and I arrived at Geisha at a little after ten-thirty, where the three of us were ushered in by the most friendly of doorstaff. Perth’s First Lady of tech-house; Nina van Dyke was in the middle of an appropriately smooth and decadent mix, perfect for setting the tone for the dancefloor debauchery that would inevitably follow. A steady stream of punters followed and before too long the dance floor had ignited.

Gabriel Ananda and Marcel Jenovsky are two names who have dominated the minimal techno circuit for quite some time now, both individually and as a pairing. As a solo artist, Ananda is perhaps most famous for his 2006 floorfiller Doppelwhipper, however he has released equally as impressive material on labels such as Treibstoff, Trapez and his very own label; Karmarouge. A great example of Gabriel Ananda’s sound as DJ, meanwhile, can be found by way of his 2007 Essential Mix for BBC Radio One. When Ananda teams up with good friend and equally prolific producer Marcel Janovsky (who co-founded Treibstoff with Rene Breitbarth), the dance floor is assured of a wild ride through the sounds of house, tech-house, tribal, techno and sometimes even dub.

Ananda and Janovsky took over from Nina van Dyke at about ten minutes to midnight. As I recall, the two techno stalwarts were experiencing technical difficulties, having to cut one particularly excellent track short. The bugs were ironed out soon enough, and it was not long before my two companions and I found ourselves lost in deep, complex, sophisticated and lasagne-layered funky music. What really impressed me about Ananda and Janovsky’s set was not just their technical prowess, but their ability to create a set that flowed seamlessly from one mood to the next.

Things really began picking up during the second hour. I had been given implicit instructions to sit and wait for my two friends as they headed outside, otherwise I would have been dancing uncontrollably with them to two epic techno classics; Flash by Green Velvet followed by Josh Wink’s Superfreak. The three of us headed straight back for the dance floor, and we hardly stopped thereafter, finding ourselves a little corner to the camera-right side of the dance floor. I can only wish that I could see just what these two technically gifted DJs were doing with the vast array of technical tools they had at their disposal.

It is said that Democracy gigs have a special vibe about them and I would have to agree, for the atmosphere all night was just fantastic. Having not danced to techno in the longest while, I found it impossible to resist the urge to throw myself around to the rollicking beats and deep, at times sexy grooves. No other form of dance music has had this kind of effect on me in the past. Towards two-thirty or a-quarter to three, Gabriel Ananda and Marcel Janovsky dropped two more highlight tunes; the first of which I have yet to identify (it had something of an “exploring a new place for the first time” vibe about it) and the second being Minilogue – Doiicie.

Rather unfortunately, my brother’s girlfriend had a bit too much to drink and we had to leave what had been an outstanding party an hour-and-a-half early. I could have stayed on quite happily right ‘til the very end as Gabriel Ananda and Marcel Janovsky’s set was all killer, no filler. Reportedly, the two DJs played right until 5:30am (a whole ninety minutes extra), even after the lights had come on, and the crowd exploded in a manner that would leave the Skyworks organisers envious upon the unleashing of New Order – Blue Monday. I feel suibtably gutted to have missed an epic dance floor moment such as that.

A huge thankyou and two thumbs up must go to Democracy and Geisha Bar for staging this extraordinary night. On a personal note, I think I can say quite confidently that my conversion to techno is now complete, having witnessed its effect in a club setting. This was indeed my first Democracy party but I can assure you that it will not be my last – and if you have yet to go, you really must if you love techno or if you want to expand your curiosity further.