“I know this silence, been here before
I’m walking blinded through your door …

Breathe in this moment, it’s come and gone
Further and faster, through your soul
Open your mind, embrace the dawn
Open your eyes, Oh! Oh!”

When John O’ Callaghan asked Audrey Gallagher to lay down these lyrics to his massive track Big Sky, little did he know that his words would end up as the perfect depiction of Friday night’s Godskitchen experience.

Expecting a rowdy, overexcited queue to Metro, I was surprised to be met by orderly lines of clubbers awaiting entry with quiet, reverential anticipation to this iconic club-night. As for being blinded – I haven’t seen so much white in one place since I had that bizarre polar bear/snow blizzard dream after the Showtek gig earlier this year (but that’s another story).

With a huge line-up featuring five big-name international acts including Wippenberg, Marcel Woods, Andy Moor, John O’Callaghan and John O’Bir, the night flew by and before we knew it, we were out on the street embracing the dawn – literally!

Despite Wippenberg’s (aka Olaf Dieckmann) long, long history as a DJ and producer which has seen him rack up hit after hit from his 1995 release Neuro Dancer to this year’s 100, the crowd did not give him the love he deserved. This was probably due to his early set time of 10.30pm, where Metro was still only at half capacity.

Not that the clubbers on the dancefloor weren’t enjoying his tunes – there was some serious movement in front of the stage – but Wippenberg is renowned for being an electronic music adventurer, so not everyone gets his journey. Saying that though, there were definitely some big grins sighted when he dropped his own track Chakalaka.

Dutch DJ Marcel Woods stepped up to the decks and elevated the clubbers with his own brand of uplifting, melodic trance. Marcel definitely knows how to work a crowd and even when playing a more commercially-geared set knows how to infuse it with a strong underground sound. His tunes drove the dancefloor, which packed out during his set.

Anticipation levels were high by the time Andy Moor took over the CDJs. I hate to say it, but for a DJ ranked #15 on the Top 100 list, he was not on form. Equipment issues? Possibly, but a couple of his mixes were audibly out. However, like the consummate professional he is, Andy pulled it together and for the latter part of his set banged out infectious track after infectious track and had the forgiving crowd begging for more.

By the time John O’Callaghan took the stage the crowd was hyped to fever pitch. The dancefloor exploded with clubbers jumping up and down to his banging basslines. O’Callaghan’s set was harder than the previous ones and it was clear everyone was loving it. He unified the club with his massive anthem Big Sky – arguably the greatest ‘hands in the air’ moment of the evening whilst his global hit Find Yourself instantaneously transformed the Metro landscape into a field of arms, rising up from a sea of white, all reaching worshipfully towards O’Callaghan – the undisputed God of the night. He knew it, the crowd knew it – there was no way he was leaving the stage without an encore, which was cued up immediately.

All I could think was: poor John O’Bir. How could any DJ follow that performance up? He couldn’t. Despite his boyish good looks, cheeky grin and up-for-it attitude, the momentum of the night died when O’Callaghan left the stage. John O’Bir put up a decent showing but the crowds were spent and in a slow but steady stream, people began exiting the club.

The Godskitchen White Party was yet another one of their branded events that didn’t disappoint. As a club, Metro is a great venue for these nights but each time I attend one there, I have the same gripe – that they close the rooftop area too soon. Not only does it have great views, it gives everyone a breather, a chance to chat and to (quoting O’Callaghan again) “release yourself – it’s a big sky!”