5am. Sweat is dripping from the ceiling some 20ft above my head. Rusko's headlining set is coming to a close. The crowd are still furiously 'skanking' and my lower back is beginning to show dangerous signs of never fully returning to a vertical position. Tired of the obnoxious swaying of Motion's Main Room I retire to a somewhat deserted Room 2, only to be affectionately greeted by the distorted vocals of Art Deparment's recent hit Without You.
This is the reason why I have developed a recent fondness of Bristol's In:Motion skatepark/club. It's not flash, the interior isn't pretentious, the rooms are all over the place and the drinks aren't particularly cheap, and yet it always manages to provide such an eclectic selection of music in one night that you can ensure you'll always leave smiling.
This was the exact situation at Annie Mac's showcase last week. With Boy 8 Bit, Congorock, Rusko, Mowgli and Solo as a line-up it could never really fail to disappoint, even if Congorock didn't manage to make an appearance. There was no intention for any minimal mincing or grooving on this particular night, and it didn't disappoint. The main room was in full party mode, exposed to my eyes and ears for the first time as the huge, resonating warehouse that it truly is. Elsewhere saw the likes of Electronica new boy Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Made To Play's Idiotproof and locals boys Pardon My French keeping people dancing throughout the rest of the sold out event.
Whilst I do have a slight bias towards Boy 8-Bit, Rusko was a serious contender for the best set of the night. The ever bouncy northerner is well reknowned for his high energy sets, not least because he doesn't seem to spend a minute standing still. However in my eyes that Rusko is foremost an Entertainer and a Producer, and thirdly a DJ. Similarly whilst I do appreciate dubstep as genre every once in a while, my ears yearned for the minimal grooves that were seeping from The Tunnel.
Annie's set was an indulgence of maximal house and electro arm pumping, with the crowd responding with great enthusiasm to Boys Noize's 'Yeah' and Erol's rework of Gonzales' 'Never Stop' amongst other recent hits. Whilst I wasn't a huge fan of the entirety of her set, she certainly fed the crowd exactly what they wanted, and she was the one they were there for after all.
As for Boy 8 Bit, the cheeky faced, long haired and hugely talented rising star, it was a pleasure to see him again. Opening with Djedjotronic's remix of Gonzales' 'I Am Europe', a serious contender for best remix of the year for me, he continued with his unique blend of squeeks, bleeps and bouncing basslines. Various highlights from his set were:
Screendeath - Packback
A brilliantly original synth accompanied by string chord stabs and a punchy bassline, this tune does nothing more than make you squirm in an incredibly delightful way. Not a fist puncher or a euphoric 'hands-in-the-air'er, this is something quite different indeed. It's Boy 8-Bit all over.
Lazy Jay - Float My Boat
In stark contrast to the previous tune, this one really does surprise you when the break comes in and practically forces your arms upwards. A belter in every sense of the word. It turns out it also seems to go down with a more commercial crowd, the main synth progression appearing to be quite 'chantable'. All together now...
The Martin Brothers - Steal Drums
Another song that echoes Boy 8-Bit, especially after his remix of La Roux featured a certain steel drum pattern. He's been playing this one out for a while and there are no surprises why. The crowd loved it.
As for a couple that have needed posting for quite a while now, first up is Mumbai Science's latest EP, Gold. Whilst only a shadow of their previous EP, it still does well to destroy the dancefloor. Also is the Justin Martin Remix of Radio 1's Rachel Barton. Whilst only being a small name on the Radio 1 scene for quite some time, Rachel has had some serious influence, and this EP really does her justice. Not to mention Justin Martin is on fire.
Mumbai Science - Gold
Rachel Barton - Goose Step (Justin Martin Remix)
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