A rooftop party in the middle of winter in Melbourne? You must be crazy, right?

Short answer: Nup. Long answer: Well, Melbournians are never put off by the weather for a party, an event, dinners, plays and so on, so to be honest, we’d never go out if we were always put off by the unpredictable and extreme weather that Melbs is famous for.

So when the well-established, and well-loved Interview crew announced that they would be doing something different – a party in not your usual nightclub venue, with special DJ, Anjunadeep’s Jaytech – then come rain, hail or shine, it was a definite yes from the loyal fans. The party brought many music people out of the woodwork who’d been struck down by that “trying to be all grown up and not party syndrome” yet are still lovers of dance music.

The Interview crew had made a special deal with North Melbourne’s Rydges Hotel Carlton – a rooftop party around their pool and within their city views function rooms. Upon arrival, seeing the party listed in the “conferences held at the hotel” made many of us giggle, as we patiently waited to take the lift to the top floor. Kicking off at 5pm, the party was an early start and early finish at midnight, but understandably considering its location and proximity to inner-city residential apartments.

Not surprisingly, the Interview crew had put thought into their psy-trance-esque decor and small market stall area, with bean bags and massages on offer. Inside, the tunes were chilled out trance and psy trance, providing a relaxing ambience for those of us first arriving straight from work.

Once you ventured outside, you were taken into the main party location, the tunes were rocking with Interview’s own Blinky (Beatgeek) doing his live thing, and the crowd starting to warm up to the sounds, while being rugged up to survive the cold. The main dancefloor was adequately heated with lamps and plastic cutting off the winds, overlooking a small pool, with cool visuals projected on the wall. With the city skyline in the background, this was a pretty good place to be on this night.

Beatgeek’s Kultrun stepped it up a notch with his proggy psy sound, building it up and up until the DJ we’d all been waiting to see jumped on the decks. Hailing from Canberra, Jaytech hasn’t lived down under in years since being scooped up by the infamous Above & Beyond boys for their label, Anjunabeats/Anjunadeep.

These days, Jaytech lives in Berlin and plays all across the European continent and the world as his star continues to shine so brightly. Jaytech’s set was a journey through ‘Jaytech Music’, his sound is undeniable – he is truly unique. Lost in the moment, I couldn’t name all the tracks but I could tell you this – listen to his latest podcasts and you’ve got his set. He delivered exactly what I wanted to hear, and I loved it. Every time I see him, I’m never disappointed.

There was no ego here either, with Jaytech happily chatting with everyone after his gig, relaxing and drinking beers with the crowd. A true professional and all-round nice guy, this has never changed since I first saw him play here years ago. Fame definitely hasn’t affected this guy.

After Jaytech’s stellar set, the crowd started to thin out as people either enjoyed Steve May’s old-skool progressive set inside, or Chris Pana’s banging psy-trance outside, headed home, or ventured to the after party at La Di Da, where you could catch Richie Rich doing a proper old skool set.

The only criticism of the night was that unfortunately the hotel wasn’t really equipped to handle the number of people through the bars. There were many delays, issues with change, and a little bit of disorder at the bars, but besides that, everything seemed to run smoothly.

At Interview’s request, no one entered the pool, everyone was well behaved and I hope that the Rydges staff could see and appreciate the effort put in to ensure that these parties can happen again at this venue. With news that more of these kinds of parties are planned for summer at this venue with the Interview crew, I can’t help but be excited about the possibilities and the fun that will be had on a hot summer’s night up there. It’s going to be amazing.

Thank you Ben Evans and the Interview crew, and Jaytech and all the DJs, for a stellar night at a brilliant venue. This was one memorable event where there were smiles all around from a friendly and happy crowd. Loved it and can’t wait for the next one!