Ultraworld - Clash of the Titans @ St Paul's, Adelaide (08/03/2003)
It was great to be back at St Paul’s after a lengthy absence, but it was well worth waiting for! Adelaide’s premier rave venue has never looked so good. All credit must go to the Ultraworld crew for really making the effort and transforming the venue with a totally different layout.
The ‘Bigdog’ drum and bass arena upstairs had the DJ booth on a raised platform in the centre of the hall with the dance floor on three sides. The same attention to detail was also given to the laser and light show, which used the new set up of the room to amazing effect.
It seemed to take longer than usual for the D’n’B room to get pumping, but by the time DJ SS & Twisted Individual took control of the decks the place was packed. It was a sight to behold, watching the room going off to the spectacular visuals and mad jungle sounds.
When I arrived shortly after 11pm, the Hard House room was already in full flow to the hard trance tunes being cranked out by Damage, his set got the response it deserved, from the ‘up-for-it’ crowd who filled the floor. Once again the lighting was awesome; the strobes and smoke machine created the perfect rave atmosphere.
The heat and intensity in the hard dance arena increased with each successive DJ; Brendon kept the room rockin’ in his usual style, before making way for Dutch superstar Speedy J. His live set was the highlight of the evening – one of the best I have ever witnessed! Many consider Speedy J to be the world’s leading techno artist – after Saturday night’s performance I am sure there would be few who would dispute that claim.
Following a lengthy, meandering intro he settled into a funky tribal groove that was irresistible, new sounds were introduced to the driving rhythms, adding new layers and textures that took the audience higher and higher as one peak followed another – it would be easy to go over the top with superlatives – and they would be deserved, but I think just hearing techno played like this can only inspire our local tekkers.
The tunes got distinctly harder when English DJ Chris C, took over. After years playing to packed clubs in the UK, it was no surprise that his set – of hot new tracks and classic hard dance tunes – did the business here in Adelaide.
Chris C departed, leaving the dance floor ready and primed for the UK’s first lady of hard house, Madame Zu. She skilfully worked the decks delivering a wicked set of mad, banging tunes that ensured she lived up to her pre-event hype. St Paul’s was shaken to its foundations by Madame Zu’s sonic attack – certainly not a place for the faint-hearted when the over-the-top light show was also mesmerising the visual senses. It is easy to see why hard dance music continues to be so popular around the world!
In the courtyard, the Technodrome offered the perfect escape from the heat inside St Paul’s and also played host to many of Adelaide’s leading techno DJ’s. Jude started proceedings with a tek-funk workout, followed by DJ Bold, who mixed up another of his intense, hard techno sets – the highlight of which was the new single ‘Tribal Raid’.
Finland’s hard dance export, Karri K played a very funky selection of tracks that showed little respect to the confines of specific style classifications. The Adelaide crowd showed their appreciation by packing the courtyard to groove to the tunes.
Devious – who impresses me more each time I see him play – and Fatal Dose kept the momentum going, to send the techno fans home – happy and exhausted!
The 4th area (also under the stars) was for Hardcore, as you would expect the frenetic bpm’s kept the heart rates pumping for those ravers who like their tunes harder and faster. L8’s and H-Bomb kept the tempo up and the sizeable crowd happy and dancing all night.
The presentation of the venue, the line up of DJ’s and the variety of musical styles on offer, made this Ultraworld the most enjoyable event that I have attended at St Paul’s. I can’t wait for the next one now! – Bring it on!
