Alexkid is a name synonymous with quality house music – and also with a certain classic Sega Mastersystem game, but we’ll leave that for another time! Having my mind blown to pieces by Alexkid’s performance at Honky Tonks on Melbourne Cup Eve in 2006, I was very excited to see what he was up to in 2010.

Just before arriving at the gig, I checked my email inbox, only to find that Martin Landsky had cancelled due to ‘unforeseen circumstances’. I quickly got over this initial disappointment, as Alexkid was my real drawcard to the event. Walking through Chinatown, and eventually catching the lift up to Roxanne Parlour, I was flooded with memories from the now defunct Cage nightclub. They have certainly made Roxanne Parlour a lot nicer in appearance. Emerging from the lift, we were greeted by the sounds of Nightmares on Wax Dred Overboard. What a nice track to start the evening! Looking into the main room to see who was responsible for this bold selection, I found Unfettered at the wheels of steel. He kept the quality tunes coming throughout his set; the vibe was deep and soulful – in a Detroit kind of way – creating a nice lead-in for the next two gents.

Christian Vance and Craig McWhinney came on playing a versus set. They started with deep house, and gradually veered towards chunkier, more tribal sounds. They dropped ‘Head First Into The Dark’ by Tom Demac (Flumo Recordings), which got myself and one other random trainspotter up on the dance floor. The lack of people on the dance floor (in the club generally) was becoming a bit of a concern.

And finally, Alexkid hit the decks, playing uber-funky tech-house. The crowd had built somewhat by this point, but was still well below what I would expect for a gig of this size. Alexkid seemed non-plussed by this anyway. Consummate professional he is, he continued to drop funk weapons during the 2-hour plus set – making sure the crowd stayed front and centre. He even managed a high-five to one of the girls dancing on the stage. Throughout the set, Alexkid ran through the gamut of underground dance music. Deep/tech-house, jackin’ minimal, through to pumping techno; always keeping the funky vibe consistent. The evening peaking when he dropped DJ Emerson’s El Lechero & Rattlesnake Suitcase (Basti Grub Remix). Alexkid’s set was quite different from the tech / electro I experienced when I saw him last, and I was grateful for the fact. It appeared he was evolving with the times, like any good DJ.

So the verdict: Had the cancellation of Martin Landsky put many of the punters off showing up? Unfortunately the answer, to a degree: yes. This is a great pity if so, for they missed a great night. Those who came certainly enjoyed the killer set from Alexkid.